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    Poetry Analysis With SMILE

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    Barbara Parker
    The document introduces the SMILE method for analyzing poetry. SMILE is an acronym that represents five important poetic elements: S for Structure, M for Meaning, I for Imagery, L for Language, and E for Effect. Each element is then defined in more detail, with Structure focusing on physical composition, Meaning on subject and theme, Imagery on sensory details, Language on word choice and sound devices, and Effect on the overall emotional impact.

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    Poetry Analysis With SMILE

    Uploaded by

    Barbara Parker
    408 views3 pages
    The document introduces the SMILE method for analyzing poetry. SMILE is an acronym that represents five important poetic elements: S for Structure, M for Meaning, I for Imagery, L for Language, and E for Effect. Each element is then defined in more detail, with Structure focusing on physical composition, Meaning on subject and theme, Imagery on sensory details, Language on word choice and sound devices, and Effect on the overall emotional impact.

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    Great way to break down poetry analysis for Year 11 Standard English students.

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    Poetry analysis with SMILE

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    The document introduces the SMILE method for analyzing poetry. SMILE is an acronym that represents five important poetic elements: S for Structure, M for Meaning, I for Imagery, L for Language, and E for Effect. Each element is then defined in more detail, with Structure focusing on physical composition, Meaning on subject and theme, Imagery on sensory details, Language on word choice and sound devices, and Effect on the overall emotional impact.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    408 views3 pages

    Poetry Analysis With SMILE

    Uploaded by

    Barbara Parker
    The document introduces the SMILE method for analyzing poetry. SMILE is an acronym that represents five important poetic elements: S for Structure, M for Meaning, I for Imagery, L for Language, and E for Effect. Each element is then defined in more detail, with Structure focusing on physical composition, Meaning on subject and theme, Imagery on sensory details, Language on word choice and sound devices, and Effect on the overall emotional impact.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    of 3

    Poetry analysis with SMILE

    SMILE is an acronym that helps you remember important aspects of a poem to interpret.
    Each letter stands for a separate poetic element as outlined below.

    Structure
    S

    Meaning
    M

    Imagery
    I

    Language
    L

    Effect
    E

    Structure

    The structure refers to the physical and grammatical composition of the poem. For this
    element, you should consider the following for your poetry analysis:

     number of verses/stanzas
     comparative length of verses/stanzas (regular or irregular)
     line length
     rhyme scheme
     repetition, including refrains
     enjambment
     sentence structure and grammar
     punctuation or lack thereof

    Meaning

    In identifying the meaning, you should be able to articulate the basic subject of a poem
    along with its deeper significance. To truly capture meaning, a reader must also be able to
    accurately identify a poem's message or theme. Often this requires working out a poem’s
    figurative meaning. In Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken”, for example, the basic subject
    conveys a man walking in the woods who has difficulty deciding which path to take. To fully
    understand the poem, however, readers must recognise that the forest paths represent the
    journey of life, and the poem’s message reminds us that each choice in life has irrevocable
    consequences. It is often useful to establish a poem’s basic meaning and then revisit step
    M for a poem’s deeper significance following further analysis of other elements (steps ILE).

    Imagery

    Imagery refers to language that appeals to one of the five senses - touch, taste, smell,
    sound, and sight. Imagery helps strengthen a writer's description by providing physical
    details that enable the reader to better imagine the scene or understand the speaker's
    feelings. Imagery can contain figurative language, but does not have to, as in the
    examples below, taken from “City Autumn” by Joseph Moncure March.

    No figurative language: A thin wind beats/ Old dust and papers down gray streets
    Figurative language: A snowflake falls like an errant feather

    Both examples of imagery in “City Autumn” give us a visual picture of the autumn weather.
    One does so with a literal description and the other with an effective simile.
    By adding imagery to a particular object, person, or scene, the writer heightens the
    importance of that detail and helps add negative or positive value to it.

    Language

    Language refers to a writer's diction, or word choice. Use of figurative language should be
    noted here and interpreted, along with sound devices, repetition, the speaker' dialect, and
    particularly significant words. Students may find the questions below useful when analysing
    poetic language.

     Does the poem contain metaphor, simile, personification, hyperbole or other


    figurative language?
     Does the poem play with sound using alliteration, assonance, repetition, or rhyme?
     Are there any words that are particularly sophisticated or especially basic? Does the
    rhyme, for example, depend on words like “hog” and “dog” or “absolution” and
    “circumlocution”?
     Does the poem contain formal or informal dialect? Does the speaker seem to come
    from a particular region, country, or cultural background?
    Effect

    In determining a poem's effect, readers can include their initial reactions. How do they feel
    after reading it? What is the mood of the poem? The readers should also review this
    element after studying the other four (SMIL). In this way, students can consider the effect of
    the poem's structure, imagery, language, and message as they work together.

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