How can I discuss the structure of a poem?

Structure says a lot about the poets intentions of the poem, and how they wished the poem to be read. 

Short, sharp lines, with long continuous stanzas suggest a pace to the poem. Whereas longer lines, with lots of commas or full stop, create a stop and start sense to the poem. Once you have figured out how the poem should be read, see how this pace relates to the words in the poem. Does the pace compliment or juxtapose the poem? Is the structure of the poem an art form. Is the poem balanced? Are the lines and stanzas all of the same length? Or are some deliberately shorter than others. How many lines are there in the poem? If twelve, could it relate to a clock of some kind? Or does the number of lines hold significant to a number or time mentioned in the text? 

 

JW
Answered by Jenna W. English Literature tutor

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