Close Reading Steps, So Far, For Analysis When Reading Poems:
A Recommended, But Not Required, Order of Intellectual and Emotional Processing
- Read the title.
- Pause.
- Allow associations to roll. Let them hang around, but commit to none.
- What emotional or intellectual connotations might fit with this title? Keep them in mind.
- Ask yourself: What is this poem going to be about? Literally.
- Read the poem. Denotation is essential here.
- Wait...what?
- Don't start spazzing out.
- Ask: How, does the speaker feel about it all? That is, what is the speaker’s general tone about he or she has said? Positive or negative is a good start, but then get more precise, if possible.
- Ask further: Why did this person bother to write this poem? What (subject, issue) are they trying to say something about?
- Oh, its a poem about ____________. (I) Alternatively, I still have no idea what this poem is about. Either way, proceed to step #12. If you think you know, it will need to be tested; if you think you don't know, it will need to discovered.
- Draw a picture of the poem, with a suggestion of chronological order of events...like a film or comic book sequence. This will help you to…
- Order and comprehend the literal events, images, details, etc. of the poem.
- Remind yourself of and summarize in your mind the basic situation. (S) This need not include the climax, conclusion, or resolution.
- Go to the first detail (D) of the poem that seems like it might be worth explaining something big or even fairly obvious about. This might be an image, an interesting word choice, a particular selection of detail, etc.
- Realize the significance of that detail. What intellectual or emotional idea or impact does it convey or suggest? Jot down an E right there on the page next to that line, in your drawing, or wherever you take notes.
- Go to next D of note. What does it suggest? How does it “fit” with the previous D>E? (This is what is known as context!)
- PAY SPECIAL ATTENTION TO THE SIMILARITY OR CONTRAST BETWEEN THESE D. How do they fit together and what does that mean? What are their differences and what do those contrasts highlight or suggest?
- Repeat #17-#18 for the rest of poem.
- Return to step #9. What message about the subject is being suggested?
- Ask yourself: What D>E specifically backs up my interpretation?
- What does this poem “do”? Find the right verb. This plus a subject and a suggestion of direction becomes your I.
- Begin to write analysis.
- I have suggested beginning with I (#11) or S (#14). This is certainly not necessary, but it allows you to build the rest of the paragraph on the foundation of an idea or a situation. Even if you are lost on I, you should always be able to get S.
- Remember the Mad Hatter: Proceed chronologically (usually) through poem as your write D>E’s, selecting those D that illustrate the I and/or S you are analyzing.
- CONTRASTS AND REPETITIONS!!!!!!
- As you approach the end of your paragraph, the Es should be getting longer and more totalizing....almost like it is flowing into your AC.
- Work, feel, think, and play towards an AC: What is said, more completely, about the I you have introduced? Think big picture concepts, simple emotional expressions, or observations about society and humanity. Remember, ambiguity, even contradiction or paradox, are often part of this meaning.
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