Understanding Poetry

Structure of Poetry
Poetry is usually arranged in lines.
A group of lines is called a stanza.
I heard them tell the story
of the man who couldn’t see—
Blind from birth he lived each day
striving to be free.

Free from the chains of prejudice—

from the hateful words of sight—
He judged each man on character,
on doing what was right.

In life he found the beauty

of a love one cannot see.
His life was full of riches—
He’s seen more than you or me.
 Structure of Poetry
I heard them tell the story Notice that there
of the man who couldn’t see— is space between
Stanza 1
Blind from birth he lived each day
the stanzas. This
striving to be free.
is how you can tell
Free from the chains of prejudice— where one stanza
from the hateful words of sight— ends and the next
He judged each man on character,
Stanza 2 begins.
on doing what was right.
In this poem, each
In life he found the beauty stanza has 4
of a love one cannot see.
Stanza 3 lines.
His life was full of riches—
He’s seen more than you or me.
Structure of Poetry

Poems may have a regular rhyme, which is the

repetition of similar sounds.

A rhyme scheme is the pattern formed by end

rhymes.
Structure of Poetry
Notice that in this poem,
I heard them tell the story
of the man who couldn’t see— every other line rhymes.
Blind from birth he lived each day
striving to be free. We label the rhyme
scheme by using
Free from the chains of prejudice— different letters to
from the hateful words of sight— represent sounds.
He judged each man on character,
on doing what was right.
In a stanza, the first line
In life he found the beauty is always labeled “A.”
of a love one cannot see. If the second line
His life was full of riches— doesn’t rhyme with the
He’s seen more than you or me. first, it is labeled “B.”
When a line DOES
rhyme, it receives the
same label it received
the first time.
Structure of Poetry
I heard them tell the story story = A
of the man who couldn’t see— see = B
Blind from birth he lived each day day = C
striving to be free. free = B

Free from the chains of prejudice—

Story is labeled “A.” Since see
from the hateful words of sight—
He judged each man on character,
doesn’t rhyme with story, it is
on doing what was right. labeled “B.” Day doesn’t rhyme
with story or see, so it is labeled
In life he found the beauty “C.” Free rhymes with see, so
of a love one cannot see. we give it the same label: “B.”
His life was full of riches—
He’s seen more than you or me. The rhyme scheme for this
poem is ABCB. This means
that the 2nd and 4th lines of
every stanza will rhyme.
Structure of Poetry
Not all poems rhyme! In fact, MANY of
them do not rhyme. This is called “free
verse” poetry.

Free Verse
•Poetry that has no fixed pattern of meter,
rhyme, line length, or stanza arrangement
•Traditional rules are ignored
•Techniques such as repetition and
alliteration are sometimes used to create
musical patterns
Structure of Poetry
Free Verse:
A gentle rain bathes the windshield—
Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes
with their steady, hypnotic rhythm.
Whispers and giggles and squeals of delight
fill every empty space in the backseat
as the white and yellow lines zoom by.
A screech of tires grabbing the roadway.
A world upside down.
Metal ripping.
Silence.

A gentle rain bathes the broken windshield—

Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes with
their steady, hypnotic rhythm.
 Structure of Poetry
A gentle rain bathes the windshield—
Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes
with their steady, hypnotic rhythm.
Whispers and giggles and squeals of delight
fill every empty space in the backseat
as the white and yellow lines zoom by.
A screech of tires grabbing the roadway.
A world upside down.
Metal ripping.
Silence.

A gentle rain bathes the broken windshield—

Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes
with their steady, hypnotic rhythm.

How would this poem change if the writer had

Made all the lines rhyme? Is free verse a good
choice for this poem? Why or why not?
Graphical Elements
in Poetry
• Poets have the power to create
meaning with words and form. We
know that figurative language such as
similes, metaphors, and hyperbole
help relay meaning. Did you know
that poets also create meaning with
capitalization, line length, and word
position?
Capitalization

Poetry does not always follow the normal

capitalization rules. In most poems, you will see that
first letter of each line is capitalized whether or not it
starts a new sentence. However, some poems do not
do this, and in general, this is not what we are talking
about when we look at the effect of capitalization on
poetry.

What you want to look for in poetry are words that break
the normal capitalization rules—words capitalized
when they normally wouldn’t be or words not
capitalized when they normally would be.
Capitalization

Mama dropped me off at school everyday.

The swings, the slides, the sandbox—
Stuffed animals pouring out of every bin.
But that was last year.

Now the yellow bus takes me to School everyday.

The books, the desks, the chairs—
Red ink spilling out over my papers.
I miss being little.
What word uses capitalization to grab your attention?

How might capitalizing this word affect the meaning?

Line Length

In free verse poems, line length can be

used as a graphical element to affect the
meaning, reinforce the meaning, or
enhance the meaning.

When you read poetry, consider how the

length of the lines might be important.
Look for lines that are longer or shorter
than most other lines.
Line Length

A gentle rain bathes the windshield—

Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes Why does the
with their steady, hypnotic rhythm. length of these 3
Whispers and giggles and squeals of delight lines grab the
fill every empty space in the backseat reader’s attention?
as the white and yellow lines zoom by.
A screech of tires grabbing the roadway. Compare these
A world upside down. lines to the ones
Metal ripping. before and after
Silence. them. How might
the line length
A gentle rain bathes the broken windshield—
enhance the
Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes with
their steady, hypnotic rhythm. meaning?
Word Position

•Word position can be used to show the

relationships between the words and
ideas.
•Look for words that stand out because
they…
– Change positions
– Are placed by themselves
– Create images because they form shapes
Word Position

• Another way that poets use word

position in a poem is to separate key
words for emphasis or to make a
point.
Word Position

A gentle rain bathes the windshield—

Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes
with their steady, hypnotic rhythm. Look at this poem
Whispers and giggles and squeals of delight again.
fill every empty space in the backseat
as the white and yellow lines zoom by. Now look at it
A screech of tires grabbing the roadway. again on the next
A world upside down. slide with one
Metal ripping.
change in spacing.
Silence.

A gentle rain bathes the broken windshield—

Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes with
their steady, hypnotic rhythm.
Word Position

A gentle rain bathes the windshield—

Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes
with their steady, hypnotic rhythm. How does it affect
Whispers and giggles and squeals of delight the meaning if we
fill every empty space in the backseat add extra space
as the white and yellow lines zoom by. before “Silence”?
A screech of tires grabbing the roadway.
A world upside down.
Metal ripping.

Silence.

A gentle rain bathes the broken windshield—

Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes with
their steady, hypnotic rhythm.
Word Position

A gentle rain bathes the windshield—

Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes
with their steady, hypnotic rhythm. Does it change any
Whispers and giggles and squeals of delight more if we move it
fill every empty space in the backseat to the middle?
as the white and yellow lines zoom by. Why or why not?
A screech of tires grabbing the roadway.
A world upside down.
Metal ripping.

Silence.

A gentle rain bathes the broken windshield—

Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes with
their steady, hypnotic rhythm.
 Word Position

A gentle rain bathes the windshield—

Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes
with their steady, hypnotic rhythm.
Whispers and giggles and squeals of delight
fill every empty space in the backseat
as the white and yellow lines zoom by.
Same words. Different
A screech of tires grabbing the roadway.
word positions. How
A world upside down.
Metal ripping. would this affect the
Silence. meaning? What would
A gentle rain bathes the broken windshield— it focus you on?
Back and forth the wiper blades mark the minutes with their
steady, hypnotic rhythm.
As you read poetry, look for
graphical elements such as
capitalization, line length, and word
position. These elements can help
you to interpret the meaning.
Imagery, Figurative
Language, and Sound
Effects
Imagery

Poets use imagery, or language that appeals to the

senses, to help readers visualize what they read. It
creates the picture in the reader’s mind.

Sight imagery:
Hundreds of tiny yellow blossoms dotted the plush green
meadow.

Sound imagery:
Horns honked and sirens screamed across the night.
Imagery

Smell imagery:
The scent of cinnamon apples wafted through the
air.

Taste imagery:
Tart cherries puckered my mouth as the sweet crust
melted against my tongue.

Touch imagery:
Splintered boards scraped my legs, pricking the soft
skin.
 Figurative Language
Figurative language communicates ideas beyond
the literal meanings of words.

•A simile uses like or as to compare seemingly unlike

things.

•A metaphor implies the comparison instead of directly

stating it.

•Hyperbole is an extreme exaggeration.

•Poets use personification to write about an idea, an

object, or an animal as if it were human.

•An idiom is an expression whose meanings cannot be

understood by simply joining the meanings of the words.
Simile and Metaphor
My brain is like a cluttered garage. (simile)
My brain is a cluttered garage. (metaphor)

How does this comparison of my brain to a cluttered garage help

you to understand what the writer is saying?

How does this image

help you to understand
what is going on in
my brain?

Explain.
Personification
The wind danced through the meadow.

My friend’s unkind words punched me in the

gut.

How do these action words help

you to better understand what
the writer is saying?
Hyperbole
I’ve told you a million times to stop talking.

I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.

How does this exaggeration

help you to understand what the
writer is trying to say?
Alliteration
Alliteration is the repetition of
consonant sounds at the beginning
of words.
• Moses let the motor run for a moment.

Sometimes this alliteration adds

meaning by reinforcing a sound.

What might the “mmmm… mmmm…

mmmm” sound represent in the
sentence above?
Assonance

Assonance is the repetition of the same

vowel sound.
• Three sheep bleat in the dark night.
➢(long e sound)

What sound might the long “e”

sound be imitating?
Consonance
Consonance is the repetition of consonant
sounds at the ends of non-rhyming words or
syllables.
• All mammals named Sam are clammy.

A writer may use alliteration, assonance, or

consonance to reinforce meaning, to enhance the
meaning, or simply to draw attention to particular
words in a poem.
As you read poetry, look for
elements such as imagery,
figurative language, and sound
effects. These elements can
help you to interpret the meaning
the author intends to convey.