Have you ever been in love with a particular song the moment you heard it? You immediately grab your phone and search for the song. Then you repeat it over and over until you know the lyrics and every note. This song becomes your favourite and your obsession.
It’s unlikely to happen often.
You feel ambivalent when you first hear a song. You don’t feel like jumping out of your seat and starting to dance. You don’t want to bang your head. You can’t sing it. You don’t even care if it is ever heard again. Then you hear it again. On the second listen, you realise that this song isn’t as bad. You hear it again, and you notice a lyric or riff that is interesting. You hear the song again and see something that really speaks to you. The song becomes your favourite after you’ve listened to it at least a dozen times.
Some things we love instantly, while others need time to grow on us.
It’s the same with poetry. We may be lucky enough to come across a poem which immediately captures our attention. Most of the time, we have to take a bit of time to appreciate or understand a piece. It’s not the fault of the poem; sometimes, poetry that demands a deeper reading is the most rewarding.
Anyone can read lines of poetry in a book and let the language flow through their minds. However, we can enrich our reading experiences by putting some effort into them. This will help us become better readers and have a greater appreciation of what we are reading.
How to Read a Poem
Here are some tips on how to read poetry. These tips will improve your poetry writing and enhance the reading experience.
- You will gain a deeper understanding of a poem by reading it multiple times. When you read a poem again, it can become more interesting. The meaning of a poem that seemed obtuse is revealed. A poem that seems hollow can become deeper and more meaningful. Sometimes you are not in the mood to read a poem the first time, but it will strike the right chord later.
- When you read poetry, keep a dictionary handy. Poets often use unusual words. Look them up instead of skipping these words or attempting to determine their meaning by context. Use the same technique with poetic devices such as connotation and metaphors. It’s possible you know that two words with the same consonant are called “alliteration“. If you are unsure if the poem you’re reading is a sonnet, you can look up its form.
- Listen to and read the poem aloud (if you can find a recording or video of a performance). Some poems were written to be heard and not read. Hearing a poet read a poem will help clarify its cadence. The meaning of a poem can be affected by a reading, especially if the poet emphasises or pauses at places not obvious in the text.
- Take a moment to reflect on the meaning of a poem after you’ve finished reading it. Many poems have multiple layers of meaning. Various readings, and other times, sometimes reveal these layers through reflection.
- To gain a better understanding of poetry, rewrite the poems in your own words.
- What is the poem about? What’s the subject? What could have been the inspiration? It could be fictional. Not based on the personal experience of the poet? Is there a point to the poem? What images was it trying to convey? Did it contain a message? Was there a message? Answer the questions that you have come up with.
- Explore the poet’s work. To gain more insight, read the poet’s bio and other works.
- What did you like about the poem? What did you like? What didn’t work well? What did you find appealing or unappealing? Was it just a matter of personal taste? Or could you say that there was something objectively wrong about the poem?
- Keep a journal in which you can record the poets that you have studied, the poems you’ve read or the poetry collections. You can use the journal to keep track of your poetry reading habits, literary terms or words you’ve studied, questions about the poems you read, the thoughts they evoked in you, your paraphrasing and critiques.
It’s not a matter of right or wrong, but it is a question of reading in a way that enhances your experience and understanding.
What are your favourite techniques for understanding and reading poetry? How often do you read poetry? What are your favourite poets and poems? Leave a comment and continue to read poetry.
