Unpacking Poems

Bring a poem (not your own) that you have recently been very taken with. Not a favorite poem of all time. Plan to discuss why the poem is effective for you (both the words on the page & the emotional resonance). What about the poem hits home for you? What works and what doesn’t (if applicable)? As a reader, what are your takeaways from this poem?

Plan to read the poem you bring to workshop and share your initial reflections. Then, we’ll discuss the poem as a group.

Hopefully, unpacking poems will inspire you to, in the words of Richard Hugo, “write off the subject”.

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A few thoughts on ‘How to talk about a poem’

  • Begin with a close reading
    • I’m thinking of what Matthew Zapruder shares in ‘Why Poetry’
    • Basically, close read and pay attention to the words. Read like you would a story or article. Each word signifies. This is how Zapruder makes a poet like John Ashbery more accessible.
  • Consider context
  • What’s on the page? What is left off the page? What can you read between the lines?
  • Does the language feel public (Collins/Oliver/Auden) or private? (Mostly we’ll be seeing private) – Hugo talks about this in The Triggering Town
  • Attention to symbolism / imagery / metaphor / & other literary devices used in the poem
  • Sonics — listen to the poem, read it aloud to yourself (either literally or in your head) — poetry has its origins in oratory — poetry is meant to be heard
  • Structure
    • Let’s say you agree that Marshall McLuhan was right and “the medium is the message” — How might you apply this thinking to the way the poem appears on the page / the delivery of the poem / the line breaks / the use of repetition & other poetic techniques
  • Consider the speaker’s voice — Does this sound like a real life person (but on the page)? Does this voice sound similar to many poets writing today? If different, how so?
  • Consider the speaker’s tone and its impact on messaging
  • What is your (reader) emotional response?
  • What is your (reader) intellectual response?
  • How can we read/interpret this poem in different ways? What are potential unobvious takeaways?
  • The poem is only 50% of the experience. The other 50% is what you, as a reader/person, bring to the table. Our personal experiences and “baggage” impact how we read and approach the work. Consider the ways that your life impacts your experience engaging with the poem.
  • What can we learn from this poem?
  • Does this poem remind you of any other poems? After all, poetry is all about associations.