How to Analyze a Poem
Dana Gioia unpacks William Butler Yeats’s “The Lake Isle of Innisfree” as an example of how to analyze poems.
September 15, 2021
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Most people are intimidated by poetry because they feel they need to understand a poem intellectually to enjoy it. But poetry is not a primarily intellectual art. It communicates to the entire human being. It addresses us simultaneously as people with intellects, emotions, imaginations, intuition, memory, and physical bodies. It addresses us in the fullness of our humanity. That being said, we can still analyze a poem if we want to. In this video I explain my personal approach on how to analyze poetry using W.B. Yeats’s poem “The Lake Isle of Innisfree” as an example. — Dana Gioia
Did you know LARB is a reader-supported nonprofit?
LARB publishes daily without a paywall as part of our mission to make rigorous, incisive, and engaging writing on every aspect of literature, culture, and the arts freely accessible to the public. Help us continue this work with your tax-deductible donation today!