How to Write Poetry Analysis Essay

The art of poetry requires not just significant writing skills but also talent. Poets can just in a few lines reveal their souls and tell you the whole story. The poem is like a short message which includes great content. Every poet has its own unique style which cannot be repeated. And exactly this style is that distinctive feature which gives the strong basis for the poetry analysis.

Writing the poetry analysis essay is not an easy assignment. You have to review all the components that make up the poem. Those are multiple artistic, functional, and structural pieces. So, you better do it in several stages.

Pre-Writing Stage

First of all, read the poem attentively. You can even make it several times in order to get a general idea and all concepts included in the poem. While reading, take notes on the following points:

• the type of poem (Limerick, free verse, sonnet, ode, haiku, lyric, etc.)
• the rhyme scheme (if there is one)
• and other poetic techniques that the poet used (such as end-stopped lines, enjambment, figurative language, meter, etc.)

But before you start writing, remember! The poetry analysis essay is a kind of analysis which requires using facts over opinions. Everyone perceives the same piece of art according to their personal experience. So, analyzing the poem you should interpret its elements providing multiple possibilities of what the author was trying to put into words. But, don’t be ambiguous, pick the side, and support your ideas with valid pieces of evidence.

Poetry Analysis Essay Outline

In this section, describe all the necessary information you’ve found during research of the background, topic, and theme.

1. General literary analysis –form, vocabulary, imagery, and punctuation

Vocabulary is the part which includes the most important words of the poem that convey the main idea, tone, and music of the work.

Imagery. Very often authors use in their poems metaphor, allegory, irony, synesthesia, simile, and other expressive means and devices that are normally not used in everyday life to make their poem special.

Form. Here we deal with its rhymes and rhythm.  The poem can be an open form (free verse) or closed (with the fixed structure).

Punctuation marks. Punctuation marks are very important in the poetry, as they set the tone of the poem, define its emotions. That’s why it is important to analyze their role as well.

2. Line-by-line literary analysis (or select remarkable lines)

3. Conclusion – meaning and overall impression

Write the poetry analysis essay based on the author’s biography, your impressions from the poem and background information, and your work will be appreciated. You can also check some poetry analysis essay samples.