interacting with Poetrydocx – Google Docs https://docs.googlecom/document/d/ 12~Hj Oe-xS QMCwIOF] Z9…
Unit 2: Interacting with Poetry
ReSpond to poem/s we have read this semester. Your audience is academic and has expectations
about what makes a reasonable response to a written text.
Focus is vital. Your response won’t cover every theme the poet covers. That’s fine. Let your
interests, ideas, and reactions guide you in your response. Whichever response strategy you
choose, make sure to deveIOp your points, and back up what you say with support from the text
in question, e.g. use words or lines from the poem to support your ideas.
I’ll be looking for:
O a strong, lively engagement with poem/s we have read this semester.
I a demonstrated understanding of the poem/s
I use of quotations and paraphrasing to support your points
I MLA documentation
I support for claims made (outside research Optional)
I academic tone, eloquent prose
O cohesiveness: a central theme, idea, argument: thesis statement
Vhat’s not allowed:
0 excessive summarizing
o a like/ dislike or agree/ disagree or “this poet is annoying” essay
0 a five paragraph essay
I an assortment of unrelated, scattered reactions or a sampling of the questions below.
Essay Length: 3 to 4+ pages
I Due date : first draft 11/2 (two pages), second draft 11/9, final draft 11/16
Possible Ways of Responding or Getting Into a Text
Criticism: What do you disagree with? Why do you feel the poet has failed to construct poetic
language, imagery, sound? Did he build the poem on faulty-assumptions? Where did he fail to
develop his thinking? Could the poet’s ideas be turned against him?
Extension: Where else could the poem’s ideas go? Can they be applied elsewhere? While the
poem might offer an intriguing look at one topic, its ideas might be extended to discuss other
subjects. Or might a poem be compared constructively to another poem?
Exegesis (Analysis): Isolate one strain running through the poem, either stated or implied, and
interpret it. What is the poet’s attitude toward ? What is the poem’s most striking
metaphor, image, or theme-and why? On what assumptions does poem rest? Think themes:
how does the poem address its major themes.
This list is not comprehensive. Feel free to generate other response strategies.
1 ofl lO/ZSIIS, 9:38 AM