How to Read a Poem: Seven Steps

How to Read a Poem provides a new approach to creative reading and teaching the skills of poetic interpretation. It offers practical steps for constructing perceptive and inventive readings of any poem and develops an extended reading of a single poem. It is an accessible and enjoyable guide for anyone approaching the study of poetry.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 154 pages
Publication date: 12 July 2021
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

How to Read a Poem is an introductory guide to the art of creative reading, which involves coming up with something to say about a text. It presents a novel approach to learning and teaching poetic interpretation skills, offering practical steps for constructing perceptive and inventive readings of any poem one might encounter.

The Introduction lays out the book's objectives and introduces some fundamental principles for applying the seven steps. In each subsequent chapter, the step is introduced, explained, relevant interpretive theory and methodology are discussed, and multiple examples are provided to illustrate the point. The step is then put into practice in a final section, where the book develops an extended reading of a single poem, Letitia Landon's Lines Written under a Picture of a Girl Burning a Love-Letter from 1822. This extended reading is sustained throughout the book, providing a detailed and comprehensive example of how to read a poem.

This accessible and engaging guide is an ideal introduction for anyone approaching the detailed study of poetry for the first time, offering valuable theoretical insights for those more experienced in the field. It provides a solid foundation for understanding and appreciating poetry and encourages readers to engage with the text in new and exciting ways.

Weight: 252g
Dimension: 154 x 234 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367695040