名人教你讲英文：分析诗词之要点 The Essentials in Poetry Analysis

名人教英文：分析诗词之要点 the essentials in poetry analysis

poetry analysis is often like solving a mystery. the reader solves the mystery from the clues and prompts given in the words, symbolism or imagery used in the poem. in analysing a poem, one is expected to examine the poem line by line, even word by word. one is very much in the diagnostic mode: that is to say, one picks the poem apart to find clues and to understand the poem better. one reads the poem carefully, aloud if necessary, so as to hear the music of the words and see the picture developing in the mind's eye.

in poetry appreciation, one is often invited to respond to a poem and analyse it by answering questions relating to the poem:

?what is the theme? (1a)
?what does the poet achieve by using the literary trope? (此文学之词采有何作用？)
?what is the poet's attitude towards the motif ? (1b)
?can you hear the music in the words and visualise the picture as drawn in words by the poet?

?what is the scansion? that is to say, how do you analyse the metre and rhyme of the poem (即是如何分析韵律).

or any number of questions, in a number of ways, relating to the five vital areas of poetry appreciation.
to put it simply, in poetry appreciation and analysis, one asks oneself questions of who, what, why, when and how:

1 who is the poet?
knowledge about the poet could give clues to the style and the theme of the poem itself. for example, edmund blunden, a leading poet of the 20th century, who taught for many years at the hong kong university, wrote often with oriental imagery.
"the tiny carved bird, the bony bough,
start sharp into life for me."
from the chinese paper knife