How to Hate Poetry (a Little Less)

"But it doesn't make sense. I hate poems."

Poetry can seem daunting and confusing. It might leave you feeling like you're Alice in Wonderland. I agree, from a first glance, nothing really makes sense in poetry. Nothing is written in complete sentences. When compared to standard essays, poetry is always minimal and contains very few explanations. The words seem random and out of place. However, there is a shortcut to understanding poems.

I want you to pretend like every poem is a page ripped out of someone's diary. This person is very secretive so they like to write in codes. You don't have the page before or after this particular page, only the person's name and their random notes.

However, you are very curious and nosy, and as a budding detective, you just want to know more!

So what does any nosy person do? They dig up some dirt on the person on the internet.

In other words, you want to research this person. Some basic questions include:

• Who was the poet?

• Where did he live?

• What did he do for work?

• What did s/he like to talk about?

Write down these facts as part of your detective work, and record them somewhere safe. Once you are ready, go back to the poem and try to make sense of the poem using your new information.

"Ok? I've dug up some dirt on the poet from a YouTube video. What next?"

It's time to snoop! First though, let's pay attention to the structure. Instead of paragraphs, poetry has stanzas. These stanzas can contain two lines (couplet), three lines (tercet) or four lines (quatrain). Poems are not very different to other texts. Poets use techniques to elicit a particular effect, show themes and ideas. The only difference is that poems are more likely to use techniques such as enjambment, rhyme, symbolism, metaphors and imagery. To make your life easier in collecting analysis, grab your highlighter and follow the Five Step Guide to Text Analysis.

"Show me some examples of analysis please."

I have chose poems with somewhat relatable themes such as love, friendship or technology. Read these poems, try to complete the analysis by yourself and compare it to examples shown below.

Example 1: The Facebook Sonnet explores how social media like Facebook removes social skills and how social media is actually causing loneliness. The writer Lexie talks about how not appreciating the present because too busy looking at past on the phones.

Facebook Sonnet

Theme: Social media is an isolating yet overused platform causing people to devalue the present and publicise their lives. 

Technique	Example	Effect
Rhetorical question	‘Why can’t we pretend every stage of life is the same?’	Depicts how social media users take the present for granted, makes the reader question and wonder about treasuring every moment of life.
Allusion	Let church.com become our church	Reveals the disharmony brought on by social media
Enjambment	Welcome to the endless high school reunion	Reinforces the nature of social media as monotonous, ceaseless nature
Rhyme	‘Confess here at the altar of loneliness’	Urgently elucidates how social media can be an isolating experience, evoking melancholy

Sherman Alexie’s 2011 poem ‘The Facebook Sonnet’ portrays how social media is an isolating yet overused platform causing people to devalue the present and publicise their lives. Alexie first introduces the reader with a satirical‘Welcome to the endless high school reunion’, with enjambment in the phrase to reinforce the nature of social media as monotonous and ceaseless. Alexie raises the rhetorical question ‘Why can’t we pretend every stage of life is the same?’, in order to depict how social media users take the present for granted, makes the reader question and wonder about treasuring every moment of life. Moreover, Alexie sarcastically calls the reader to ‘Let church.com become our church’, an allusion to reveal the disharmony and lack of social awareness brought on by social media. Finally, concluding with a call to action to ‘Confess here at the altar of loneliness’, the rhyme urgently elucidates how social media can be an isolating experience, evoking melancholy from the reader.   

Example 2: Message from Nature explores how we should value, appreciate and preserve nature. There are lots to learn from nature. Nature offers lessons on perseverance, letting go of the past, trying your best, and not giving up.

Example 4: The Road Not Taken explores the complexities of life choices.

Ok, I am ready to write a poem!

Once you have mastered the list of techniques, you are ready to write your very own poem. Here are some of the poems written by students. (TBC)

• Early Days by Nathan Yen is a humorous, loving poem for pet lovers!