Guide Note
Understanding Poetry is a process often called poetry explication. Poetry is a compact language that expresses complex feelings. To understand the multiple meanings of a poem, readers must examine its words and phrasing from the perspectives of rhythm, sound, images, obvious meaning, and implied meaning. In explication readers then organize responses to the verse into a logical, point-by-point explanation.
Fast Facts
- Comes from the Greek word poiesis, meaning "making" or "creating"
- Oldest surviving poem is the Epic of Gilgamesh 3rd Millennium BC written in Sumer
- Three Major Genres: Epic, Lyric and Dramatic Poetry
- Basic Poetic Elements: Meter, Rhythm, Intonation Rhyme, Alliteration, Assonance, Poetic Form, Poetic Diction
- Popular Forms: Sonnet, Jintishi, Sestina, Villanelle, Ode, Haiku, Tanka, Villanelle, Cinquain, Free Verse
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