Poetry (Prescribed Poems) - Comprehension, Appreciation, and Figures of Speech
Prescribed poems test comprehension, appreciation, and recognition of figures of speech. You must explain what a device does, not only name it.
Core rules
- Read stanza by stanza; identify the speaker, situation, and tone.
- Paraphrase the stanza in your own words, then state the theme.
- Figures: simile uses like/as; metaphor makes a direct comparison; personification gives a human quality to a non-human thing; alliteration repeats initial consonants; imagery appeals to the senses.
- Appreciation needs theme + tone + device + effect + your response, supported by a short quotation.
Worked example
Line: 'The moon walked slowly across the sky.' Reasoning: 'walked' gives a human action to the moon, so the device is personification. The effect is that the moon seems alive and calm, which supports a peaceful tone. Writing only 'personification' is incomplete because it does not explain the effect.
Traps
- Naming a figure of speech without explaining its effect.
- Confusing simile and metaphor when 'like' or 'as' is absent.
- Treating a prose paraphrase as poetic appreciation.
- Ignoring rhyme scheme or repetition when the question asks about sound.
- Quoting a line but not linking it to theme or tone.