1
BREAKING IT DOWN

• Thayers Approach to Analyzing a Poem

2
The First Read

• Your first time through you should
• Read, Enjoy and Absorb what you can
• Make preliminary guesses about what it means, but
  dont form any permanent ideas.

3
The Second Read

• Structure and Sound
• Look for
• Rhyme
• Alliteration
• Assonance
• Consonance
• Onomatopoeia
• Repetition of words or phrases

4
The Third Read

• Figurative Language
• Then you will look for any
• Metaphors
• Similes
• Hyperboles
• Imagery
• Personification
• Diction

5
The Fourth Read

• Meaning
• NOW you will start to look for what you think the
  poem means.
• Dont be afraid to completely abandon your
  original idea about what you thought it meant.

6
The Fifth Read

• Anything You Missed
• Reading the poem several times will help you find
  elements you missed during the previous read.
• Also, look for any Allusions
• Dont forget to address the poems Tone and
  Purpose

7
REMEMBER

• Your analysis is graded on two parts
• 1) conventions (steps 2 3)
• or HOW the poem means
• 2) Meaning (steps 1, 4 5)
• or WHAT the poem means

8
Lastly

• Contrary to what some people believe
• THERE IS NOT ONE RIGHT ANSWER
• The beauty of poetry is that
• ANY INTERPRETATION IS POSSIBLE
• if you can explain it
• with EVERY LINE of the poem.

9

• Though your interpretation may not match what the
  poet intended, it is not any less right or valid.
• Each person may get something different from a
  poem, and that is ok.
• So dont be afraid to take a chance. You have
  nothing to lose.