How to Read a Poem

Table Of Contents

1. What Poetry Means
Poems Supplementary to Chapter 1

2. Metaphor
Poems Supplementary to Chapter 2

3. How Poetry Works: Approaches and Techniques
1. Poetic Music
2. Contrast; Balance
3. Precision
4. Obscurity
Poems Supplementary to Chapter 3

What Poetry Uses: Devices
1. Rhyme
2. Alliteration
3. Repetition; Refrain
4. Allusion; Acrostics
5. Imitation; Parody
6. Onomatopoeia

5. Shapes and Structures
1. Couplets; Quatrains
2. Ballads and Hymns
3. Sonnets (Italian, Shakespearian, Spenserian)
4. Songs (Lyrics)
5. Dialogues; Monologues
6. Other Traditional Forms
7. Free Forms
8. Concrete Poetry

6. Metrics
Author Index
Poem Index
Subject Index