How to Read a Poem

How to Read a Poem

“Reading poetry well is part attitude and part technique” writes Edward Hirsch, emphasizing the idea that having an emotion to back up some form of skill that is further enforced by a set of ‘ground rules’ for literacy and writing is what poetry’s about. But nothing denotes further from the truth than grounding one’s idea that a poem is exactly the way an individual wants it to be. On the contrary, poetry is not theory or philosophy, but rather the poet’s rendition of a sense of attitude and technique, not the interpretation of it. The struggle is finding that answer: What does the poem mean overall?

Some poets themselves answer the question to finding that answer, as William Carlos Williams entails that a reader must “’complete’ what the poet has begun’”. Again, the answer does not come from within, but through the text of the poem itself.

To do this, many steps may be involved but to simplify how to read a poem I will break it down into three simple steps, enforced by research of others [such as Edward Hirsch].

Besides obviously reading the poem, and for some reading aloud is appropriate as well, I would suggest going through each line and answering the ‘who, what, where, when, why’ questions. Who is the reader? Is it the author of it is the lover, friend, doctor, enemy, priest, etc.? What is the poem talking about? War, hunger, feelings, etc.? Where is the poem taking place [and more so] when is the poem taking place [year, age, etc.]… And finally, why is the poet crafting his or her art into a literary form?

As Edward Hirsch mentions, “Talking Back to [the] Poem” by asking questions such as who the speaker is, what circumstances gave rise to the poem, what kind of figurative language, if any, does the poem use, etc. will help understand the answers.

The next key step is to hone in on specific words that shine, adverbs, people, places, etc. Not to answer the metaphysical questions, but to simple observe them and let it sink in, which will lead naturally into the last phase: connecting.

Finally, try to connect to something within the poem in order to make it feel real for you. While poetry is something we cannot interpret individually and be correct without proper investigation, we can, however, make it a part of our lives.

Overall reading poetry is about figuring out what the poetry is from a metaphysical standpoint and not allowing your own opinion to interfere with the sole purpose of its [the poems] objective.