English 2710
Krantz POETRY EXPLICATION

Due:

First Draft: March 30, Two copies of a draft for a mandatory peer review; no matter what the excuse, absence will result in a lower paper grade.

Final Draft: April 1 at the beginning of class: final draft, early draft, and review worksheet.
Length: 2-3 pages (minimum 500 words). Lateness will result in a lowered paper grade.

Explicating means looking at a poem line-by-line and explaining each line, leading ultimately to an explanation of the theme of the poem. You are to explicate one of the poems in our book that we have discussed.
In examining the poem, first pick out and look up words with which you are unfamiliar or familiar words that do not make sense in the context of the poem.
Then ask yourself questions such as: Who is the speaker? Who is being addressed? What is the literal situation? What are the major images and what do they mean?
After answering these questions for yourself, possibly by freewriting, write a rough introduction and begin examining the poem.

In considering word meanings, you might find useful the Oxford or New English Dictionary (OED or NED), found in the reference section of the library. Once you have asked yourself questions on the poet's techniques and have consulted the dictionaries, you will be ready for a line-by-line analysis which will lead to an overall understanding of the poem. This understanding should be summed up in your conclusion.

Consider the example of explication that I give you for a model.

Format: Papers must be wordprocessed. You may submit a clean photocopy if you wish but a draft must always accompany an essay so save an early draft as copy 1 if you are working on a computer. Please keep an extra copy of each paper that you submit. Use 1-inch margins, double space, and do not leave an extra space between paragraphs. Don't use a cover sheet. Put my name, the class, and the date at the top of the first page. Put your name on the reverse side of the last page. Please staple the pages of the final copy together and attach these to the draft with a paper clip.