Name: _____________________________ Date: _____________________________________

How to Effectively Analyze a Poem

There are 3 key steps in analyzing a poem. The trick is

to use the KEY to help unlock the meaning.

1. K – What do you Know about the language of the poem –

what poetic devices does the author use?
i) What purpose do these poetic devices serve in the context of this poem?

2. E – What is the tonE of the poem?

i) Whose point of view is this? Why does it matter? (be specific)
ii) How does the author convey their attitude towards the topic? (poetic devices/word
choices/rhythm etc.?)

3. Y – Why? What is the underlying message the poem?

i) What message is the poet trying to get across?

In Flanders Fields
BY JOHN MCCRAE

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Name: _____________________________ Date: _____________________________________

Let’s use the KEY method to unlock “In Flanders Fields” by

John McCrae
K – What do I know about the language?
Alliteration/Consonance
– “Flanders fields, the poppies blow”
Symbolism
– Poppies represent the dead souls.
– Row of poppies symbolize the rows of dead soldiers
Imagery
– Poppies blow between the crosses, row on row
Hyperbole
- “To you falling hands we throw The torch” is an exaggeration. The dead souls are not
throwing the torch; instead, it represents the hope that they are passing onto the world.
Personification
- “The larks, still bravely singing, fly”, as if the larks (a small songbird) are humans that can
sing. Larks are gentle, and perhaps peaceful.
Metaphor
- “We are the Dead”. The poet is comparing older soldiers to the dead and referring them as
already dead.

E – What is the tone of the poem?

1st Stanza – Peaceful tone. “Poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row”. “Larks are
bravely singing, fly”. The image conveys a peaceful tone, as flowers are blowing in the wind
with the birds singing in the background.
2nd Stanza – Dark/sad tone. This stanza says that they are the dead, but long ago they had
beautiful lives. However, now they lay in Flanders fields.
3rd Stanza – Hopeful tone. Passing of “the torch” signifies a sense of faith for those who are
living. Passing the torch can also be telling readers to always remember “the dead” in a way
that as readers, we must “take up the quarrel with the foe” of the Canadian soldiers. The
dead soldiers, however, will not sleep so long as the poppies grow on Flanders Fields.
The overall tone can be described as a depressing yet calm tone that describes the
poem and help conveys the message. The poem is written in the perspective of the dead
soldiers, as depicted from “We are the dead”, and this helps set the tone for the entire
poem. Having it from this point of view gives the poem an even more dramatic sense
because they explain how they are gone. They also explain that a short while ago, they
“loved and were loved” and “felt dawn, saw sunset glow” – beautiful aspects of imagery that
the poet uses to explain how these soldiers cannot see these images anymore.
Name: _____________________________ Date: _____________________________________

Y – What is the underlying message of the poem?

An associated theme can be the “realities of war” because McCrae shows many beautiful
aspects that can be easily taken away. The image of a poppy blown away; the singing birds
hearing the guns below; the inability to see sunset glowing; and the incapacity to love and
feel loved. In particular, life is short, just like a “poppy’s bloom” or a “lark’s song”.