T P C A S T T Notes on Poetry Analysis Technique

1. TPCASTTNotes on Poetry Analysis Technique English II

2. What is TPCASTT? • TPCASTT is a mnemonic device (memory trick), an acronym of steps used to analyze poetry. The results of TPCASTT can be used to write an explicate an essay and write a poem. • Explicating poetry means: to analyze and explain • There are seven steps in the TPCASTT process.

3. T -- Title • Ponder the title before reading the poem • Look at the title and attempt to predict what the poem will be about. • Using the sample in front of you, let’s do this step now.

4. STOP! • Put your pen down! • Read the poem all the way through without marking it. • Read it for understanding • Look up any words you are unfamiliar with and define them.

5. P - Paraphrase • Translate the poem into your own words • There should not be many more words than what the poem consists of originally. Write exactly what happened • Make sure you understand the LITERAL meaning of the poem. • Literal is the antonym for figurative. It means it actually took place (e.g. it’s literally raining cats and dogs means animals are falling from the sky). • WRITE notes in the margin beside each major section of the poem so you can review these later

6. C - Connotation • Contemplate the poem for meaning beyond the literal level- think figuratively now • Figurative language makes readers use their imagination (e.g. it’s raining cats and dogs means its raining water from the sky really hard) • Look for any and all poetic devices and try to see how those devices contribute to the meaning, the effect or both of the poem • Metaphor, simile, personification, alliteration, onomatopoeia, rhythm, rhyme, symbolism, and diction, etc. • ANALYZE your sample poem now. CIRCLE these devices, color code them and make margin notes about their meanings.

7. A - Attitude • Observe both the speaker’s attitude and the poet’s attitude (this may or may not be clear) • This, of course, is TONE. • Remember that these attitudes will probably shift or be mixed in the poem. Label all you see, especially if you see a shift. • Attitude cannot be named in a single word (for the same reason that you can’t explain your feelings completely in just one word)

8. S - Shift • Note shifts in speakers or attitudes • What is CHANGING!? • Are there any shifts in the poem before you? • Key words: but, yet, however, although • Punctuation: dashes, periods, commas, colons, ellipsis, etc. • Stanza: divisions, changes in length and lines • Irony • Changes in sound and diction (read the poem aloud if you have trouble with this)

9. T – Title (again) • Re-examine the title. Try to see how the title fits with the work as a whole. • This time, you are interpreting the title, not just predicting or looking at it literally.

10. T - Theme • Determine what the poet is saying • THIS IS NOT THE MORAL OF THE POEM • Identify the theme by recognizing the human experience, motivation, or condition of the poem. • Follow the steps on your handout to help you come to theme. • One work may have several possible themes • Ask yourself why is there only 1 poem that 100 people can connect to… What is that reason they can connect with it?