Critical Appreciation Of A Poem

The best starting point when writing a
critical appreciation of a poem is to determine what the author's message or
theme is. Once you determine this key point, the rest of the paper falls into
place much easier.

I tell my students to next look at
the author's tone. What is the author's attitude toward the subject
of the poem? How do you know? What words do they use to convey that tone? You can then discuss
how the tone is important to the theme of the poem.

It's important to then
look for literary elements you're familiar with. Do you see a ?
What about great ? Is there an example of ? Once you find these, the key point to remember is
that the author made these poetic choices for a reason. How does that simile contribute to the
tone or theme? How does the imagery utilized bring deeper significance to the tone or
theme?

For example, in the poem "Because I could not stop for Death
€“," Emily Dickinson chooses to personify Death. Why does she make that choice? The image
provides a way for her to discuss the transition into the afterlife as though she is a passenger
in a carriage with Death. By doing so, she is able to reflect upon the life she's lived in light
of the knowledge of death that all people face.

In the poem "Stopping by
Woods on a Snowy Evening," Robert Frost uses imagery to convey the peaceful scene before
him as he pauses in snow-filled woods on a dark evening. Why does he use imagery there? The
peaceful imagery he utilizes contrasts with the "But" at the end of the poem; he has
"promises to keep" and "miles to go" before he sleeps. He is in a hurry and
doesn't have time to enjoy this peace often.

Each choice the poet makes is
for a specific purpose. It's important, therefore, to not simply identify those literary
elements but also to analyze how each one brings deeper significance to the author's
work.