Poetry Analysis Method TPCASTT Prepare for the Assignment

Poetry Analysis Method TPCASTT

Prepare for the Assignment 1. Take out a sheet of notebook paper. 2. Label the paper with a proper heading. Title the assignment “TPCASTT __(poem title)__. ” 3. Do NOT copy down the example TPCASTT shown on the projector. This is the example. You will complete each step of the TPCASTT method for a new poem on your paper.

Structure of the Activity 1. For each step of the TPCASTT method, I will explain the step and its directions. I will also demonstrate how to complete that step using the poem “Making a Fist. ” (page 617 in the literature book) 2. After each explanation, you will work with a partner to complete THAT STEP ONLY on a different poem. 3. You will be given a set amount of time to complete each step – this will help you and your partner stay focused on the task at hand. 4. For each step, you will be given instructions on how to switch to a new partner.

Step 1 - Title Before you even think about reading the poetry or trying to analyze it, speculate on what you think the poem might be about based upon the title. Often time authors conceal meaning in the title and give clues in the title. Sometimes the title has a very literal meaning. Jot down what you think this poem will be about…

Example: T – Title “Making a Fist” This title reminds me of fighting. When I think of a fist, I think of someone getting punched. Maybe the speaker is in a fight or is remembering a fight.

T - Title With your partner, discuss and write down your initial thoughts on the title of the poem we are analyzing. The title is… “Spring and All”

Step 2 - Paraphrase Look up any unfamiliar vocabulary words. If you don’t know what a word means, you can’t possibly know what the line or sentence means in which it appears. Restate the poem in your own words. Try to follow the sentence structure provided by stanzas, line breaks, and punctuation used by the poet. This is the step where you examine the literal meaning (you are not yet analyzing!).

Example: P – Paraphrase “Making a Fist” Vocabulary: Tampico: seaport in eastern Mexico clenching: closing or holding tightly Paraphrase: The speaker remembers the first time she thought her “life was sliding out". She was seven, laying in the backseat of a car. Her stomach felt like a split melon. She and her mother had been traveling a long time, and the speaker asked how a person knows if she is dying. Her mother said, “When you can’t make a fist anymore. ” The speaker still thinks about that trip, as well as other borders that people have to cross alone. The speaker is still alive, she is still in the backseat with a lot of questions. She is still making a fist.

P - Paraphrase With your new partner, write down and define at least three vocabulary words from “Spring and All. ” Next, reword the poem using your own words. The line breaks and punctuation in this poem are not standard, so you and your partner will need to group the ideas together as best you can to form complete thoughts to reword.

Step 3 - Connotation What does this poem mean beyond its word-for-word literal meaning? Look for and identify the use and effect of: • Form • Diction • Point of • Details View • Figurative • Symbolism Language • Imagery • Allusions • Other Devices

Example: C – Connotation “Making a Fist” Diction: The word choice seems like ordinary speech; she uses conversational vocabulary. Imagery: She uses visual imagery to describe the appearance of the palm trees as she views them speeding by in the car. Point of View: She describes an event that happened when she was seven, but since she says “years later” I feel that she is definitely a grown adult looking back on a lesson learned. Symbolism: The clenched fist seems to be a symbol of strength or determination. Her mom says making a fist shows that a person isn’t dying, and in the last stanza the speaker says she is still making a fist even though she is unsure of things (she says she still has questions). Figurative Language: She uses metaphors to describe her sick stomach (a split open melon), the feeling of her life leaving her (a drum getting harder to hear), and difficult decisions people make in life (borders we must cross separately).

C - Connotation With your partner, discuss and write down the important things you notice about the poem “Spring and All. ” You do not need to have something for all nine items on the TPCASTT directions paper, but you should have ideas written for at least four of them.

Step 4 - Attitude Having examined the poem's devices and clues closely, you are now ready to explore the multiple attitudes that may be present in the poem. What is the speaker’s attitude? What is the poet’s attitude? Remember that usually the tone or attitude cannot be named with a single word. Think complexity.

Example: A – Attitude “Making a Fist” The general topic of the poem seems to be about hard things in life and how the speaker deals with them. The speaker’s attitude seems to be one of perseverance – even when things seem horrible (like feeling like you’re about to die) she finds a way to keep going by making a fist. Also, the speaker seems optimistic. The poem ends with the symbol of the clenching fist, so the speaker hasn’t given up the fight. She seems to want the reader to be inspired to keep fighting, too.

A - Attitude With your new partner, discuss and write down your answers to the following for the poem “Spring and All”: What is the subject/topic of the poem? What is the speaker’s attitude or tone towards this topic? What is the poet’s attitude? How do you know? Explain your thoughts by referring to specific ideas in the poem.

Step 5 – Shift (Structure) Rarely does a poem begin and end the poetic experience in the same place. Examine the way the ideas in the poem are structured. Watch for the following keys to shifts: • key words, (but, yet, however, although) • punctuation (dashes, periods, colons, ellipsis) • stanza divisions • changes in line or stanza length or both • irony • changes in sound that may indicate changes in meaning • changes in diction

Example: S – Shift (Structure) “Making a Fist” Each stanza seems to serve a different purpose. Stanza 1 sets up a concrete situation – the girl suffering from being carsick on a long trip. Stanza 2 represents a question and answer that can be applied to the situation in Stanza 1, but could also be applied to life in general. Stanza 3 carries the symbolism of the journey and fist into the speaker’s adult life with all of its “unanswerable woes. ”

S – Shift (Structure) With a new partner, discuss and make notes about the structure of “Spring and All. ” Look for a pattern created by the stanzas. Is there a change that happens in a later stanza? Does something change? Where? WHY?

Step 6 – Title (Again) Now look at the title again, but this time on an interpretive level. What new insight does the title provide in understanding the poem.

Example: T – Title (Again) “Making a Fist” is about fighting, but not the kind of fighting I expected in the beginning. The fist in the title is a symbol for a person’s will to keep going – even when things in life are difficult. The speaker’s ability to “make a fist” affirms for her that she is still alive to continue the struggle, no matter how hard things seem.

T – Title (Again) With your new partner, examine the title of “Spring and All” again. Was the poem about what you originally thought? How is your understanding now different from your initial thoughts?

Step 7 – Theme What is the poem saying about the human experience, motivation, or condition? What subject or subjects does the poem address? What do you learn about those subjects? What idea does the poet want you take away with you concerning these subjects? Remember that theme of any work of literature is stated in a complete sentence.

Example: T – Theme “Making a Fist” Big Ideas: Theme: challenges, struggle, keep fighting Even though people do not have all the answers to the challenging moments that life presents, people still possess the power within themselves to keep fighting and to keep struggling on through difficulties.

T – Theme What is this poem about? Write down the “big ideas” What is the speaker trying to say about those big ideas? Use the guidelines to write a complete theme statement.