Tips for Unseen Poems

TIPS FOR UNSEEN POEMS

1.Use the MISS rule: 

Meter: stressed/unstressed, iambic pentameter… 

Imagery: simile, metaphor, conceit… 

Sound effects: alliteration, rhyme, onomatopoeia, assonance… 

Special effects: personification, anthropomorphism…

2.What if you don’t get it? 

Step 1: break the poem down into sentences or clauses. Ignore line-breaks to start off with and focus on deciphering the meaning before moving on to consider connotations. 

Step 2: if you…