This is a presentation based on the elements of poetry. It defines and highlights the literary elements that poets used in order to communicate a specific message. I hope you find it useful.

1. BASIC ELEMENTS OF A
POEM
PRESENTED BY: MBALI MAPHOSA
ENGLISH GRADE 9
08/2022

2. IN THIS LESSON YOU WILL…
 Define what poetry is
 Discuss the purpose and structure of a poem
 Explore the elements of a poem
 Analyze a poem entitled “Those Winter Days” By Robert E. Hayden

3. AT THE END OF THIS LESSON, YOU
SHOULD…
 Be able to define what poetry is and state its purpose as intended by the poet
 Be able to analyze the structure of a poem
 Be able to identify the elements of poetry in a poem
 Be able to answer questions asked based on the poem you will be reading and
analyzing

4. L O O K AT T H E T E X T
O N T H E R I G H T A N D
A N A LY Z E I T.
P. S . D O N O T R E A D
I T 
Question: What do you think this
poem is about by just analyzing
the title and picture?

5. WHAT IS POETRY?
 Poetry is literature writing that aims to convey the poet’s feelings, opinions or ideas about a particular
subject and a message about that subject .
 Poetry is a form of writing that uses words to communicate one’s thoughts and feelings about a thing and
has an intended message
 It can be defined as a style of writing composed of spoken words that conveys an idea
 According to Cuison (2020), “Poetry is a literary genre written in lines and stanzas. It is a type of literature,
or artistic writing, that attempts to stir a reader’s imagination or emotions.’
 There are many definitions of poetry and this is because people read poems and perceive them differently.
However, there one common aspect of defining a poem, is that is evokes feelings to the reader.

6. PURPOSE OF A POEM
 First and foremost, it is important to note that poems are, at times, difficult to understand
and require a lot of reading effort from the reader.
 This is because poets use a range of figures of speech to either define or describe things,
even the most simplest ones.
 Therefore, the purpose of a poem is to help us and other people understand the world
around us and them, as experienced and viewed by another person – being the poet –
and show us again things that we may have taken lightly in the past.
 The other purpose it serves is to allow us to see the world with fresh eyes again, like a
new born baby opening their eyes for the very first time.

7. STRUCTURE OF A POEM
 The title… any idea what it might be?
 A title is the first text that is written at the top of a poem. It is written in bold so that it draws the attention
of the reader.
 It is meant to tempt them to read the poem and come up with idea on what the poem may potentially be
about.
 A stanza…
 Stanzas are the equivalence of paragraph in an essay. They are a series of lines that are grouped together
according to the same idea they share and are separated by skipping a line in between. Moreover, they
give structure to the poem.
 Hamidah (2017) states, “In poetry, a stanza is a division of four or more lines having a fixed length, meter
or rhyming scheme. Stanza divides a poem in such a way that does not harm its balance but rather it adds
to the beauty to the symmetry of a poem.”

8. CONTINUED…
 Poets use a variety of elements to evoke feelings and ideas in their readers. These include similes,
metaphors, personification, alliteration, assonance, rhyme, rhythm and symbols, to name a few.
 Similes are comparisons that uses words: like, as or than, it compares between things that are different.
Example: On the television aerial
look like sultanas
 Metaphors is similar to a simile, it also makes a comparison however does not make use of the words like,
as or than. It makes a direct comparison by making the reader picture the subject as if it is the other thing.
Example: The beach is the quarter of golden fruit
 Personification is a kind of metaphor that gives human qualities to non-living things. Example: Busy old
fool, unruly Sun

9. CONTINUED…
 Alliteration is the repetition of the same letter or sound at the beginning of two or more words. Example:
The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew
 Assonance is the repetition of the same vowel sounds followed by different consonant sounds. Example:
Thou still unravish’d bride of quietness.
 Rhyme is when there is an agreement in words of similar sounds in their endings. Example: time, crime
way, day
 Rhythm is the beat of pattern that is created or heard when a poem is read. It can evoke the movement of
dance . Example:
 Symbols are the use of specific concrete objects to describe an abstract thing. Example: the dove has
come to symbolize peace.

10. REFLECTION TIME:
QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS…

11. LET US ANALYZE
THIS POEM BY
ROBERT E. HAYDEN
“THOSE WINTER DAYS”

12. REFERENCES
 Alba, E. (2012). Types of Poetry.
https://www.slideshare.net/edsilyza07alba/types-of-poetry-10842784
 Cuison, P. (2020). Elements of Poetry.
https://www.slideshare.net/PrincessCuison1/elements-of-poetry-236786176
 Donasco, E., Gatchalian, F., Giba, M., & Salud, V. J. (2014). Types of Poetry.
https://www.slideshare.net/chelseafied1994/types-of-poetry-36649070
 Hamidah, R. (2017). Definitions, Elements, Types, and Genres of Poetry.
https://www.slideshare.net/RabiatulHamidah2/definition-elements-types-and-genres-of-
poetry
 Pera, A. (2015). Elements of Poetry in English.
https://www.slideshare.net/angelitopera/elements-of-poetry-in-english