There are many schemes for analyzing a lyric work. In some, more attention is paid to the form of the verse, in others the emphasis is on the semantic content. Indeed, there is no universal plan for analyzing a poem. It all depends on the purpose of the analysis. As a rule, school analysis is simpler than university analysis. The proposed plan is one of the most complete and multifaceted. Some points of the plan can be replaced or reversed.
Instructions
Step 1
Brief information about the author and the poem.
It is not necessary to paint the entire biography of the author - it is enough to limit ourselves to those facts that are directly related to the analyzed poem. Give a short history of the creation of the poem: when it was written, to whom it was dedicated, with what events it was connected, where it was first published, etc.
Step 2
Poem genre
Determine the genre of the poem. List the characteristics of the genre. Answer the questions: what place does this genre occupy in the poet's work, is it typical for him, what literary direction the poem belongs to: romanticism, realism, modernism, etc.
Step 3
Analysis of the themes and problems of the poem
Determine the main theme of the poem: love, hate, nature, freedom, etc. Problems - a set of problems raised in a poem. Does it meet the demands of the time? Is it relevant at the present stage and why.
Step 4
Analysis of the plot and composition
Briefly summarize the plot (if any). Whether the plot is typical, archetypal, or original. What is the role of plot elements? Why did the author choose this particular plot, how does it agree with the subject matter and problems. The composition of the poem, its relationship with the stanza and plot.
Step 5
Analysis of symbology
Find the symbols in the poem and explain how they play in the plot and storyline. If, in your opinion, there are no symbols, find the keywords and explain their meaning. Typically, keywords and symbols are related.
Step 6
Lyrical "I", lyrical subject, the image of the author
Give an assessment to the lyric hero, whether the image of the lyric hero and the lyric subject coincides, how the author's image is realized, whether he is present at all. The place of the lyric hero in the character system.
Step 7
Formal signs of the poem
Determine the size, meter of the poem, rhyme system, stanza. Is it why the author resorted to just this form of versification.
Step 8
Stylistics
Stylistic means traditionally include: tropes (epithets, metaphors, comparisons, personification, irony, paraphrase, hyperbole, etc.), figures (epiphora, anaphora, gradation, repetitions, parallelism, etc.), sound writing. It would be appropriate in this section to cite the words of one thematic group (for example, furniture: chair, table, mirror in Brodsky's poem "I hugged these shoulders and looked …"), which play a large role in the poem. Find outdated vocabulary and neologisms, explain why the author uses them.
This section is usually the largest and most detailed, and should be given the greatest attention during analysis. Symbolism can also be given here, "tying" it to stylistic devices.
Step 9
Your personal attitude to what you read
You need to give your own assessment of the poem. Just do not reduce everything to a primitive "like it or not." Your conclusions should be moderately subjective (this is your attitude) and at the same time reasoned. It is good if you take an objective stand and highlight equally the merits and demerits of the poem.
