The document provides guidance on analyzing poetry by examining its key elements. It discusses considering themes, language, sound/rhythm, and structure. It then outlines a 10 step process for analyzing a poem which includes reading it multiple times, mapping rhyme schemes, scanning meter, studying language/content, and paraphrasing each line. Examples are also provided of Italian and English sonnets, the most common poetic forms during the Renaissance, along with their defining characteristics.

1. How to Analyze Poetry:
10 Steps for Analyzing a
Poem

2. What Is Poetry
Analysis?
 Poetry analysis is examining the independent elements
of a poem to understand the literary work in its
entirety. Analyzing poems line by line allows you to
break poems down in order to study their structure,
form, language, metrical pattern, and theme. The
purpose of literary analysis is to interpret the meaning
of a poem and appreciate it on a deeper level.

3. 5 Things to Consider When Analyzing
Poetry
 Poetry involves different elements like language, rhythm, and structure. Together,
they tell a story and create a complexity that is unique to poetic verse. When studying
poems in-depth
1. Theme: Poetry often conveys a message through figurative language. The central idea
and the subject matter can reveal the underlying theme of a poem.
2. Language: From word choice to imagery, language creates the mood and tone of a
poem. The way language is arranged also impacts the rhythm of a poem.
3. Sound and rhythm: The syllabic patterns and stresses create the metrical pattern of a
poem.
4. Structure: The framework of a poem’s structure affects how it is meant to be read. A
poet sculpts their story around stanzas, line breaks, rhyme patterns, punctuation, and
pauses.

4. How to Analyze a Poem in 10
Steps
 Reading poetry is a rewarding experience
in and of itself. But to really see how all
of the elements of a poem work together,
you’ll want to study the qualities and
characteristics of each

5. Read the poem. The first time you approach a poem, read it to
yourself. Go through it slowly, appreciating the nuances and
details you might miss when reading it quickly. Examine the
title of the poem and how it relates to the meaning of the piece.
Read the poem again, this time aloud. Given its rhythmic
patterns, poetry is designed to be read aloud. As you read a
poem aloud, listen to how the words and syllables shape the
rhythm. It can also help to hear someone else read the poem.
Look online and find a recording of the poem, if you can.
Listen to how the words flow from line to line, where the
breaks are, and where the stress is placed.

6. Map out the rhyme scheme. You’ll notice right away if a poem has a
rhyme scheme or is written in free verse (i.e. without a rhyme scheme
or regular meter). Map out the rhyming pattern by assigning each line
a letter, giving lines that rhyme the same letter. See if there is a
distinct pattern and a formal rhyme scheme, like terza rima (three-line
stanzas with interconnected scheme of ABA BCB, etc.)
Scan the poem. Scansion is how you analyze the meter of poetry
based on the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in each
line. Mark each foot—the basic measurement of a poetic line
consisting of one stressed syllable paired with at least one
unstressed syllable. Next, mark the pattern of stresses throughout
the line. Identify the meter based on this information. For example, a
poem written in iambic pentameter will have five feet with a syllabic
pattern of da DUM, da DUM, da DUM, da DUM, da DUM.

7. Break down the structure. Take a step back and look at the poem
on the page. Notice the white space around the words. Poetry is
meant to make a visual statement as well as an emotional one.
Look at the details of this structure—like how many lines are in
each stanza. Notice where the line breaks are. Does the end of
every line coincide with the end of the thought? If not, the poet
may be using enjambment, where one line continues into the
next.
Determine the form of the poem. In your poem analysis, note what
type of poem you’re reading based on the elements you’ve
examined. For example, if a poem has three quatrains (four-line
stanzas) followed by a couplet, the poem is a sonnet. Other formal
types of poetry include sestina, haiku, and limerick.

8. Study the language in the poem. Poets make deliberate word
choices to craft their poems. Examine each word and its
significance in the line and the poem. How does it contribute to
the story? If there are words you don’t know, look them up. See
how the poet plays with language through the use of metaphors,
similes, and figurative language. Note any literary devices used,
like alliteration and assonance, that help sculpt the poem’s
language.
Study the content of the poem. As you wade through the
language of the poem, look at the content and message of the
piece to uncover the theme. Learn when it was written to learn the
historical context of the poem. Find out where it was written, and
what language the poet used. If you’re reading a translation, see if

9. Determine who the narrator is. Try to identify the speaker
of the poem. Is it told through first-person point of view,
second-person, or third-person? What tone does the
narrator convey? The speaker’s identity influences the
telling of the poem based on their personal perspective.
Paraphrase the poem line by line. Finally, go through the
poem again. Beginning with the first line, paraphrase
each line. In other words, interpret the meaning, writing
down your summary as you go. Once you’ve gone
through the entire piece, read your words to grasp the
meaning of the poem.

10. Middle age of poetry brought rhythm
 The renaissance period brought about enormous change to the world of
poetry. Playwrights like William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, and
Ben Jonson, introduced a new poetic form to theater called blank verse.
 Blank verse is a non-rhyming poetic form that features a specific meter;
often iambic pentameter.
Sonnet
 But perhaps the most famous poetic form during this period was the
sonnet; invented by Italian poet Giacomo da Lentini. But what is a
sonnet? This next video explains everything you need to know:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDpW1sHrBaU&t=278s

11. Italian Sonnets
 The first and most common type of sonnet is the Italian
sonnet, otherwise known as the Petrarchan sonnet.
Giacomo da Lentini is attributed as the inventor of this
form of poetry, even though they're named
after Francesco Petrarca (commonly referred to simply
as Petrarch), one of the most revered Italian poets.
 Giacomo de Lentini penned almost 250 sonnets. Other
notable sonneteers from Italy include Dante
Alighieri, Guido Cavalcanti, and Michelangelo.

12.  These sonnets are divided into two stanzas. The first stanza contains
eight lines, or an octave; the second stanza contains six lines, or a sestet.
In an Italian sonnet, there is a "volta" or "turn," which signals a change
from the proposition of the poem to its resolution. The volta usually
appears in the ninth line.
 Initially, the rhyme scheme for the octave was ABABABAB. Eventually, it
evolved into ABBAABBA. The sestet is either CDECDE or CDCCDC. Later,
the variation of CDCDCD was introduced.
 You'll note that, while Italian sonnets generally follow iambic pentameter,
the meter for the sestet tends to be more flexible. Meaning, either the first
(iamb) or the second (troche) syllable may be stressed in the two-syllable
metric "foot."
 The rhyming nature of these poems lent itself well to the lyricism of
the Italian language. Of course, nowadays, you'll find many fine examples
written in the English language too.

13.  The Italian sonnet, like the English, has 14 lines
written in iambic pentameter. Its rhyme scheme is
abbaabba cdecde or a close variation of this. The
first eight lines are called the octave and they state
the theme of the poem or present a sort of
problem. The final six lines are called the sestet
and they comment on the theme or answer the
problem. This form is very difficult in the English
language due to a scarcity of rhyming words.

14. Italian Sonnet Example
 A great example of an Italian sonnet is Sonnet 26, but the creator himself of the form, Giacomo
da Lentini.
I’ve seen it rain on sunny days
And seen the darkness flash with light
And even lightning turn to haze,
Yes, frozen snow turn warm and bright
And sweet things taste of bitterness
And what is bitter taste most sweet
And enemies their love confess
And good, close friends no longer meet.
Yet stranger things I’ve seen of love
Who healed my wounds by wounding me.
The fire in me he quenched before;
The life he gave was the end thereof,
The fire that slew eluded me.
Once saved from love, love now burns more.

15. English Sonnets
 The second most common form of sonnet is the English sonnet,
otherwise known as the Elizabethan or Shakespearean sonnet.
These sonnets are divided into four stanzas, comprising 14 lines
in total.
 The first three stanzas are quatrains, meaning they contain four
lines each. The final stanza is a couplet, meaning it contains two
lines. The "volta" appears in the third quatrain and the traditional
rhyme scheme is ABAB CDCD EFEF GG.
 English sonnets typically adhere to iambic pentameter more
strictly than Italian sonnets. You'll find each line traditionally
consists of 10 syllables - divided into five pairs - with an
unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.

16.  Published in 1591, the sonnet set "Astrophil and Stella" by Sir Philip
Sidney established the form of the English sonnet. Other notable authors
include Michael Drayton, Fulke Greville, and, of course, William
Shakespeare. Even though Shakespeare did not invent this sonnet style,
he was among the most prolific, writing over 150 in his lifetime.
 The English sonnet has 14 lines and is written in iambic
pentameter. The rhyme scheme is different, however, and that
difference alters the content. Its rhyme pattern is ababcdcdefefgg.
Instead of a clear division of thought as in the octave and sestet of
the Italian sonnet, the English sonnet takes a looser approach to
its presentation. It may contain three or four changes in thought.
The final two lines, which rhyme with each other, are the couplet.
These two lines are usually the strongest of the English sonnet.

17. English Sonnet Example
 "Astrophil and Stella 1" the first of 108 sonnets and songs in Philip Sidney's
set, creates the opening scene for this love story.
Loving in truth, and fain in verse my love to show,
That she, dear she, might take some pleasure of my pain,—
Pleasure might cause her read, reading might make her know,
Knowledge might pity win, and pity grace obtain,—
I sought fit words to paint the blackest face of woe;
Studying inventions fine her wits to entertain,
Oft turning others' leaves, to see if thence would flow
Some fresh and fruitful showers upon my sunburn'd brain.
But words came halting forth, wanting invention's stay;
Invention, Nature's child, fled step-dame Study's blows;
And others' feet still seem'd but strangers in my way.
Thus great with child to speak and helpless in my throes,
Biting my truant pen, beating myself for spite,
"Fool," said my Muse to me, "look in thy heart, and write."