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BEFORE YOU
BEGIN
Before you begin your annotation, you
should read the poem two or three
times to get a general sense of the
meaning.
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LET’S ANNOTATE
Follow along using your
blank version of the
poem “I Wandered
Lonely As A Cloud” by
William Wordsworth.
Annotate using the
following seven steps.
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STEP 1: REFLECT ON THE
POEM’S TITLE
Authors choose titles very carefully.
Consider whether the title is
important to the meaning of this
poem. Why do you think the author
chose this title?
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STEP 2: CLARIFY AREAS OF
CONFUSION
Spend time clarifying those things you do not understand. Underline
words you do not know and find the meanings for the words (or
synonyms). Jot those down somewhere near the term and put them in
parenthesis. If there are lines you don’t understand, put a * beside
them and see if they become more clear as you continue to annotate.
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STEP 3: SUMMARIZE AND
PARAPHRASE
Read through the poem and write your understanding of what is
happening along the side of each stanza. The purpose of this is to
summarize the literal meaning of the poem. Consider the following
questions: Who is speaking? To whom? About what? For what
purpose? When and where? You may also consider the tone of the
poem. At this point, the confusing lines from step two may be
clarified.
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STEP 4: LOCATE
LITERARY DEVICES
Now that you understand the literal meaning of the poem, you will
underline or highlight any uses of figurative language or literary
devices in the poem. Some examples of these may include metaphor,
simile, imagery, personification, hyperbole, oxymoron, allusion,
alliteration, etc. Color coding these maybe useful for you. You may also
comment on why you think the author used these devices or how it
enhances the poem.
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STEP 5: EXAMINE
POETIC FORM
Poetic form can also play an important role in a poem's
meaning. Examine the poem and label the rhyme scheme
beside the lines (or write a form section at the bottom of the
page) and the meter (rhythm). Consider if there is anything
significant about how the poem looks on the page (punctuation,
shape, line length).
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STEP 6: INTERPRET
THE THEME
Now it is time to dig deeper and consider the author's
purpose for writing this poem. What does the author want
you to think about or consider? What message are they
trying to convey? Explain this theme at the bottom of the
page.
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STEP 7: ADD THE
FINISHING TOUCHES
If there is anything else that stands out to you as
important
or something you were thinking about while reading,
make annotations along the side to note these
elements. Don’t feel tied to these specific steps. If
something interesting comes to you, add it to the
annotation.
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COMPLETED
ANNOTATION
When you are done your
annotation, it might look
something like this!
Compare your annotation
to this response and
consider the following:
• In what areas of the annotation do
you feel you did really well?
• If you did another annotation in the
future, what areas could you
improve?
• Do you feel this is a good strategy for
poetry analysis? Why or why not?
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