All poems have a
voice, which can be called a
speaker (or in some case
speakers, if there is more than one person speaking
the poem).
- Who
tells
the poem? Are there things you can say about the
speaker’s personality,
point of view,
tone,
society, age, cultural position, or gender?
- Does the speaker seem to have a particular kind of vocabulary? What kind of vocabulary
is it—simple, odd, familiar, formal, etc?
- Does the
speaker assume a
persona at any point in the poem, and speak
as
a
particular person (e.g., I am Lazarus, come from the dead . . . I shall tell you
all
)?
- Does the
speaker seem attached or detached from what is
said? That is, is the speaker somehow distant from (above) the poem’s subject or
action?
- What effect do the
speaker’s characteristics have on the poem?
Likewise, all poems have a silent or implied listener/reader, an
addressee.
- Is it possible to figure out to whom (or what) the poem is addressed? Is there an
ideal listener or reader?
- Do you feel the speaker is speaking to you? And if so, what makes you think this?
Do
you like the speaker?
- Does the
speaker seek anything from the listener/reader (sympathy, support, agreement,
etc.)?
Narrative &
Narrator. Poems capture thoughts, ideas, feelings, impressions,
experiences, and incidents, but sometimes poems also feature a clear story. Ask yourself:
- Who tells the story, and what relationship does the
narrator have to the story? Is the narrator more of a particpant or an
observer?
- What is happening in the poem? What action, drama, or
conflict is present? Is there more than one event
in the poem?
- Does anything change in the poem (is an action completed, does an attempted action
fail, or does someone change in an important way)?
[Key terms:
speaker,
addressee,
tone,
persona,
point of view,
ideal reader /
listener,
narrative,
narrator,
voice,
conflict,
dramatic monologue,
lyric poem,
irony,
theme.]