Using TPCASTT for Analysis of Poetry - MsEffie使用tpcastt分析诗歌mseffie.doc

Using TPCASTTfor Analysis of Poetry T Title What do the words of the title suggest to you? What denotations are presented in the title? What connotations or associations do the words posses? P Paraphrase Translate the poem in your own words. What is the poem about? C Connotation What meaning does the poem have beyond the literal meaning? Fill in the chart below. Form Diction Imagery Point of View Details Allusions Symbolism Figurative Language Other Devices (antithesis, apostrophe, sound devices, irony, oxymoron, paradox, pun, sarcasm, understatement) A Attitude What is the speaker’s attitude? How does the speaker feel about himself, about others, and about the subject? What is the author’s attitude? How does the author feel about the speaker, about other characters, about the subject, and the reader? S Shifts Where do the shifts in tone, setting, voice, etc. occur? Look for time and place, keywords, punctuation, stanza divisions, changes in length or rhyme, and sentence structure. What is the purpose of each shift? How do they contribute to effect and meaning? T Title Reanalyze the title on an interpretive level. What part does the title play in the overall interpretation of the poem? T Theme List the subjects and the abstract ideas in the poem. Then determine the overall theme. What message is the author trying to convey? What lesson is being taught? The theme must be written in a complete sentence. D.U.C.A.T.S. The “6 gold pieces” of writer’s voice Diction refers to a writer’s (or speaker’s) word choice with the following considerations: denotation / connotation degree of difficulty or complexity of a word monosyllabic / polysyllabic abstract / conceret euphonius / cacophonous colloquial / formal / informal / technical tone of a word (the emotional charge a word carries) the above will often create a subtext for the text Unity refers to the idea that all of the ideas in a written piece are relevant and appropriate to the focus