Poetry Analysis: 1. Read through each poem aloud. 2. What type of poem is it? 3. What is the main theme of this poem? 4. What poetic devices are used in this poem? Rhyme scheme? 5. Who is the speaker in the poem? 6. What do you think the author of the poem is like? 7. Research the poet and give a short summary of their life. 8. Find a picture of the poet.
How to be a “great audience”
Poet Walt Whitman once said, “To have great poets, there must be great audiences too.” In order to be a “great audience” of poetry, there are several rules you can follow. Here are some suggestions:
1. Be open to new thoughts and ideas.
2. Look at the title to see what ideas/themes may be present.
3. Begin by reading poem aloud.
4. Write down your initial thoughts/ reactions in a notebook journal.
5. Reread the poem several times, both silently and aloud.
6. Consider any background information you know about the author or style of poem.
7. Reread your initial reactions to see if they have changed after studying the poem.
8. Remember that poetry can be interpreted in many different ways.
Types of Poems for Poetry Portfolio!
Haiku (2 for portfolio)
Haiku: a Japanese poetry form that has seventeen syllables and just three lines. It is a short poem that captures a moment in nature.
Line 1: 5 syllables
Line 2: 7 syllables
Line 3: 5 syllables
As the wind does blow
Across the trees, I see the
Buds blooming in May
I walk across sand
And find myself blistering
In the hot, hot heat
Falling to the ground,
I watch a leaf settle down
In a bed of brown.
Shape (or concrete) poem
-Poem that describes an object and is written in the shape of the object
-The image is the word
Ex.: Poetry as a Kite: A poem can play with the wind and dart and dance and fly about in the mind like a kite in the cloudy white sky at so dizzy a height it seems out of reach but is wait ing to be very gently pulled down to the page at the very last word, ah! Ballad (10 lines for portfolio)
-Ballad is a song-like poem that tells a story, one one dealing with adventure or romance. Most are written in four or six-line stanzas with regular rhythms and rhyme schemes (usually ABAB). Often has a refrain.
-Ex. Think song lyrics! I'll tell a tale, a thrilling tale of love beyond compare I knew a lad not long ago more gorgeous than any I've seen. And in his eyes I found my self a'falling in love with the swain. Oh, the glorious fellow I met by the ocean with eyes of deep-sea green!
He was a rugged sailor man with eyes of deep-sea green, And I a maid, a tavern maid! Whose living was serving beer. So with a kiss and with a wave, off on his boat he sailed And left me on the dock, the theif! Without my heart, oh dear!
And with a heart that's lost at sea, I go on living still. I still am now still serving beer in that tavern by the sea. And though the pay check's still the same, the money won't go as far For now I feed not just myself, but my little one and me!
So let that be a lesson, dear, and keep your heart safely hid. I gave mine to a sailing thief with gorgeous eyes of green. Save yours for a sweeter lad who makes the land his home. Ah me! If only I'd never met that sailor by the sea!
-- Lonnie Adrift
Narrative Poem (12 lines for portfolio, with personification and alliteration)
-Tells a story.
-Ex. “Casey at the Bat” or “The Raven”
Free verse poem (for portfolio: include 1 simile and 1 metaphor and 1 hyperbole)
- Poem written without proper rules about form, rhyme, rhythm, meter, etc
- Poet makes rules about how poem should look, sound, feel, etc.
“Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman (1) ICELEBRATE myself, and sing myself,
And what I assume you shall assume,
For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you. I loafe and invite my soul,
I lean and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass. My tongue, every atom of my blood, form'd from this soil, this air, Born here of parents born here from parents the same, and their parents the same, I, now thirty-seven years old in perfect health begin, Hoping to cease not till death. Creeds and schools in abeyance, Retiring back a while sufficed at what they are, but never forgotten, I harbor for good or bad, I permit to speak at every hazard, Nature without check with original energy.
Limerick -A limerick is a kind of a witty, humorous, or nonsense poem. It was made famous by Edward Lear in the 19th century. There are five lines, which follow the rhyme scheme AABBA. The meter, or the number of beats (stressed syllables) per lines, is 3,3,2,2,3.
-Several examples: || There was a small boy from Maine
Who couldn’t remember his name.
His friends thought him dumb
When he sucked on his thumb
So he left town on a train.
There was an old man from Spain
Who liked to fight bulls in the rain
But one day he fell
And no one could tell
That he was in very bad pain.
There was an old woman from Maine
Who liked to drive cars in the rain
But one day she crashed
Which made a big splash
And then she was hit by a train.
There was a small boy from our school
Who really thought himself cool.
The girls thought him great
And a rather nice date
But we think that he was a fool.
There once was a man from the street
Who didn’t know what he should eat
So rather than snoring
He said, “This is boring!”
And wondered why he couldn’t sleep.
There once was a man from the zoo
Who didn’t know what he should do
So rather than zoom
He fell on his broom
When he heard the monkey say boo!
There was an old woman from space
Who liked to drive cars in a race
But one day she crashed
And got a bad rash
And that was the end of her face.
There once was a man from France
Who didn’t know what he should dance
So rather than move
He sat on his roof
And wondered why he couldn’t prance.
There was a short man from Maine
Who didn’t like the rain
So one day he raced
But forgot a shoelace
Then he tripped and was in very bad pain.
There was a small boy from our school
Who didn’t know how to be cool
He wore disco pants
While trying to dance
And then picked his nose with a tool.
There once was a man from the street
Who didn’t know what he should eat
So rather than die
He ate a whole pie
Then decided to suck on his feet!
A man from a far away place
Thought he could fit in a suitcase
But then one day in May
He tried it with some hay
And found there was really no space.
Parody poem
-A parody is a humorous imitation of an original work, an author’s style, or a particular type of literature.
-Ex: Twas The Night Before Christmas
(Texas Style)
'Twas the night before Christmas, in Texas, you know.
Way out on the prairie, without any snow.
Asleep in their cabin, were Buddy and Sue,
A dreamin' of Christmas, like me and you.
Not stockings, but boots, at the foot of their bed,
For this was Texas, what more need be said,
When all of a sudden, from out of the still night,
There came such a ruckus, it gave me a fright.
And I saw 'cross the prairie, like a shot from a gun,
A loaded up buckboard, come on at a run,
The driver was "Geein" and "Hawin", with a will,
The horses (not reindeer) he drove with such skill.
"Come on there Buck, Poncho, & Prince, to the right,
There'll be plenty of travelin' for you all tonight."
The driver in Levi's and a shirt that was red,
Had a ten-gallon Stetson on top of his head.
As he stepped from the buckboard, he was really a sight,
With his beard and moustache, so curly and white.
As he burst in the cabin, the children awoke,
And were so astonished, that neither one spoke.
And he filled up their boots with such presents galore,
That neither could think of a single thing more.
When Buddy recovered the use of his jaws,
He asked in a whisper, "Are you really Santa Claus?"
"Am I the real Santa? Well, what do you think?"
And he smiled as he gave a mysterious wink.
Then he leaped in his buckboard, and called back in his drawl,
"To all the children in Texas, Merry Christmas, You-all"
English Sonnet A sonnet is a fourteen line stanza from consisting of iambic pentameter lines. The two major sonnet forms are the Italian and the English (or Shakespearean).
The English sonnet is a fourteen-line stanza consisting of three quatrains and a couplet (three sets of four and one set of two lines). Notice how the poet's thoughts are organized around these 4 sets of lines. The rhyme scheme is ababcdcdefefgg.
Each line has 10 beats (iambic pentameter).
Shall I compare Thee to a Summer's Day? (Sonnet 18) By William Shakespeare
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date: Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines And often is his gold complexion dimmed; And every fair from fair sometime declines, By chance, or nature's changing course untrimmed. But thy eternal summer shall not fade Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st; Nor shall death brag thou wand'rest in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st, So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
1. Read through each poem aloud.
2. What type of poem is it?
3. What is the main theme of this poem?
4. What poetic devices are used in this poem? Rhyme scheme?
5. Who is the speaker in the poem?
6. What do you think the author of the poem is like?
7. Research the poet and give a short summary of their life.
8. Find a picture of the poet.
How to be a “great audience”
Poet Walt Whitman once said, “To have great poets, there must be great audiences too.” In order to be a “great audience” of poetry, there are several rules you can follow. Here are some suggestions:Types of Poems for Poetry Portfolio!
Haiku (2 for portfolio)
Haiku: a Japanese poetry form that has seventeen syllables and just three lines. It is a short poem that captures a moment in nature.
Line 1: 5 syllables
Line 2: 7 syllables
Line 3: 5 syllables
As the wind does blow
Across the trees, I see the
Buds blooming in May
I walk across sand
And find myself blisteringIn the hot, hot heat
Falling to the ground,
I watch a leaf settle down
In a bed of brown.
Shape (or concrete) poem
-Poem that describes an object and is written in the shape of the object
-The image is the word
Ex.: Poetry as a Kite:
A
poem
can play
with the wind
and dart and dance
and fly about in the mind
like a kite in the cloudy
white sky at so dizzy
a height it seems
out of reach
but is wait
ing to
be
very
gently
pulled
down
to
the
page
at
the
very
last
word,
ah!
Ballad (10 lines for portfolio)
-Ballad is a song-like poem that tells a story, one one dealing with adventure or romance. Most are written in four or six-line stanzas with regular rhythms and rhyme schemes (usually ABAB). Often has a refrain.
-Ex. Think song lyrics!
I'll tell a tale, a thrilling tale of love beyond compare
I knew a lad not long ago more gorgeous than any I've seen.
And in his eyes I found my self a'falling in love with the swain.
Oh, the glorious fellow I met by the ocean with eyes of deep-sea green!
He was a rugged sailor man with eyes of deep-sea green,
And I a maid, a tavern maid! Whose living was serving beer.
So with a kiss and with a wave, off on his boat he sailed
And left me on the dock, the theif! Without my heart, oh dear!
And with a heart that's lost at sea, I go on living still.
I still am now still serving beer in that tavern by the sea.
And though the pay check's still the same, the money won't go as far
For now I feed not just myself, but my little one and me!
So let that be a lesson, dear, and keep your heart safely hid.
I gave mine to a sailing thief with gorgeous eyes of green.
Save yours for a sweeter lad who makes the land his home.
Ah me! If only I'd never met that sailor by the sea!
-- Lonnie Adrift
Narrative Poem (12 lines for portfolio, with personification and alliteration)
-Tells a story.
-Ex. “Casey at the Bat” or “The Raven”
Free verse poem (for portfolio: include 1 simile and 1 metaphor and 1 hyperbole)
- Poem written without proper rules about form, rhyme, rhythm, meter, etc
- Poet makes rules about how poem should look, sound, feel, etc.
“Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman (1)
I CELEBRATE myself, and sing myself,
And what I assume you shall assume,
For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.
I loafe and invite my soul,
I lean and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass.
My tongue, every atom of my blood, form'd from this soil, this air,
Born here of parents born here from parents the same, and
their parents the same,
I, now thirty-seven years old in perfect health begin,
Hoping to cease not till death.
Creeds and schools in abeyance,
Retiring back a while sufficed at what they are, but never forgotten,
I harbor for good or bad, I permit to speak at every hazard,
Nature without check with original energy.
Limerick
-A limerick is a kind of a witty, humorous, or nonsense poem. It was made famous by Edward Lear in the 19th century. There are five lines, which follow the rhyme scheme AABBA. The meter, or the number of beats (stressed syllables) per lines, is 3,3,2,2,3.
-Several examples:
|| There was a small boy from Maine
Who couldn’t remember his name.
His friends thought him dumb
When he sucked on his thumb
So he left town on a train.
Who liked to fight bulls in the rain
But one day he fell
And no one could tell
That he was in very bad pain.
Who liked to drive cars in the rain
But one day she crashed
Which made a big splash
And then she was hit by a train.
Who really thought himself cool.
The girls thought him great
And a rather nice date
But we think that he was a fool.
Who didn’t know what he should eat
So rather than snoring
He said, “This is boring!”
And wondered why he couldn’t sleep.
Who didn’t know what he should do
So rather than zoom
He fell on his broom
When he heard the monkey say boo!
Who liked to drive cars in a race
But one day she crashed
And got a bad rash
And that was the end of her face.
Who didn’t know what he should dance
So rather than move
He sat on his roof
And wondered why he couldn’t prance.
Who didn’t like the rain
So one day he raced
But forgot a shoelace
Then he tripped and was in very bad pain.
Who didn’t know how to be cool
He wore disco pants
While trying to dance
And then picked his nose with a tool.
Who didn’t know what he should eat
So rather than die
He ate a whole pie
Then decided to suck on his feet!
Thought he could fit in a suitcase
But then one day in May
He tried it with some hay
And found there was really no space.
Parody poem
-A parody is a humorous imitation of an original work, an author’s style, or a particular type of literature.
-Ex: Twas The Night Before Christmas
(Texas Style)
'Twas the night before Christmas, in Texas, you know.
Way out on the prairie, without any snow.
Asleep in their cabin, were Buddy and Sue,
A dreamin' of Christmas, like me and you.
Not stockings, but boots, at the foot of their bed,
For this was Texas, what more need be said,
When all of a sudden, from out of the still night,
There came such a ruckus, it gave me a fright.
And I saw 'cross the prairie, like a shot from a gun,
A loaded up buckboard, come on at a run,
The driver was "Geein" and "Hawin", with a will,
The horses (not reindeer) he drove with such skill.
"Come on there Buck, Poncho, & Prince, to the right,
There'll be plenty of travelin' for you all tonight."
The driver in Levi's and a shirt that was red,
Had a ten-gallon Stetson on top of his head.
As he stepped from the buckboard, he was really a sight,
With his beard and moustache, so curly and white.
As he burst in the cabin, the children awoke,
And were so astonished, that neither one spoke.
And he filled up their boots with such presents galore,
That neither could think of a single thing more.
When Buddy recovered the use of his jaws,
He asked in a whisper, "Are you really Santa Claus?"
"Am I the real Santa? Well, what do you think?"
And he smiled as he gave a mysterious wink.
Then he leaped in his buckboard, and called back in his drawl,
"To all the children in Texas, Merry Christmas, You-all"
English Sonnet
A sonnet is a fourteen line stanza from consisting of iambic pentameter lines. The two major sonnet forms are the Italian and the English (or Shakespearean).
The English sonnet is a fourteen-line stanza consisting of three quatrains and a couplet (three sets of four and one set of two lines). Notice how the poet's thoughts are organized around these 4 sets of lines. The rhyme scheme is ababcdcdefefgg.
Each line has 10 beats (iambic pentameter).
Shall I compare Thee to a Summer's Day?
(Sonnet 18) By William Shakespeare
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines
And often is his gold complexion dimmed;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance, or nature's changing course untrimmed.
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st;
Nor shall death brag thou wand'rest in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st,
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.