reflective essay on poetry

How to write a poetry essay

August 26, 2023

Whether you love literature or are just curious, this guide will help you understand, enjoy, and talk about poetry. So, let’s start exploring the world of lines and symbols, where each one tells a story to discover.

Here are the steps on writing a poetry essay.

Choose a poem

The first step is, of course, to choose a poem to write your essay .

It should be one that you find interesting, thought-provoking, or emotionally resonant. It’s important to select a poem that you can engage with and analyze effectively.

Choose a poem that genuinely captures your interest. Look for poems that evoke emotions, thoughts, or curiosity when you read them.
Consider the themes addressed in the poem. It should offer ample material for analysis.

When choosing a poem

So for this guide, let’s choose Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop for Death.” You’ll see a short excerpt of this poem for your understanding.

Poem example for poetry essay

Because i couldn not stop for Death by Emily Dickinson

Because I could not stop for Death – He kindly stopped for me – The Carriage held but just Ourselves – And Immortality. We slowly drove – He knew no haste And I had put away My labor and my leisure too, For His Civility – We passed the School, where Children strove At Recess – in the Ring – We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain – We passed the Setting Sun – The poem continues....

This poem is intriguing due to its exploration of mortality, the afterlife, and eternity. The imagery and language in the poem provide ample material for analysis, making it a suitable choice for a comprehensive essay.

After carefully choosing the poem that interests you, understanding the poem is the biggest key to writing an effective and nice poetry essay.

Understand the poem

Reading the poem several times to grasp its meaning is the most important part of a good analysis. You must first analyze the structure, rhyme scheme , meter and literary tools used in the poem.

For a solid understanding, you should:

Read the poem multiple times to familiarize yourself with its content. Each reading may reveal new insights.
Identify the central themes or messages the poem conveys.
Study the rhyme scheme and meter (rhythmic pattern) of the poem.
Consider how the structure, including its stanzas, lines, and breaks, contributes to the poem's meaning and impact.

For example

Remember, understanding the poem thoroughly is the foundation for a well-informed analysis. Take your time to grasp the poem’s various elements before moving on to the next steps in your essay.

Now that we have a clear understanding of the poem, let’s move into writing the introduction.

Write a catchy introduction

Begin with an attention-grabbing hook sentence that piques the reader's interest.
Provide the necessary information about the poem and its author. Mention the poet's name and title of the poem.
Offer some context about the poem's time period, literary movement, or cultural influences.
Present your thesis statement , which outlines the main argument or focus of your essay.

Poetry essay introduction example

Introduction

Thesis statement for poetry essays

A thesis statement is a clear and concise sentence or two that presents the main argument or point of your essay . It provides a roadmap for your reader, outlining what they can expect to find in your essay.

In the case of a poetry essay, your thesis statement should capture the central message, themes, or techniques you’ll be discussing in relation to the poem.

Why is the thesis important for a poetry essay?

By reading your thesis statement, your audience should have a clear idea of what to expect from your poem analysis essay.

When creating a thesis statement, keep these in mind:

Start by identifying the key elements of the poem that you want to discuss. These could be themes, literary devices, emotions conveyed, or the poet's intentions.
Based on the key elements you've identified, formulate a central argument that encapsulates your main analysis. What is the poem trying to convey? What are you trying to say about the poem?
Your thesis should be specific and focused. Avoid vague or broad statements. Instead, provide a clear direction for your analysis.

Poetry essasy thesis statement example

....(introduction starts) ....(introduction continues) ....(introduction continues) In "Because I could not stop for Death," Emily Dickinson employs vivid imagery, personification, and an unconventional perspective on mortality to explore the transcendence of death and the eternity of the soul. Thesis statement, which is usually the last sentence of your introduction

Analyze language and imagery

Language and image analysis in poetry involves a close examination of the words, phrases and literary devices used by the poet. In this step you must uncover the deeper layers of meaning, emotion and sensory experiences conveyed by the poet’s choice of language and imagery.

Why language and imagery?

Start by identifying and listing the literary devices present in the poem. These could include metaphors, similes, personification, symbolism, alliteration, onomatopoeia, and more.
For each identified device, explain its significance. How does it contribute to the poem's meaning, mood, or tone?
Analyze how the literary devices interact with the context of the poem. How do they relate to the themes, characters, or situations presented in the poem?
Discuss how the use of specific language and imagery influences the reader's emotional response and understanding of the poem.

Continuing with Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death,” let’s analyze the use of imagery:

Language and imagery analysis example

Lines chosen for analysis

Discuss themes in body paragraphs

Exploring themes helps you grasp the deeper meaning of the poem and connect it to broader human experiences. Understanding the themes allows you to uncover what the poet is attempting to convey and how the poem relates to readers on a universal level.

In this step, you will likely dedicate multiple body paragraphs to the analysis of various aspects of language and imagery. Each body paragraph should focus on a specific literary device, phrase, or aspect of language and imagery.

Here’s how you can structure the body paragraphs.

Poetry essay body paragraphs example

Body Paragraph 1: Identify and Explain Literary Devices

Body Paragraph 2: Context and Interaction with Themes

Body Paragraph 3: Reader's emotional response and understanding

Provide evidence from the poem

Providing evidence involves quoting specific lines or stanzas from the poem to support the points you’re making in your analysis. These quotes serve as concrete examples that demonstrate how the poet uses language, imagery, or literary devices to convey specific meanings or emotions.

Select lines or stanzas from the poem that directly relate to the point you're making in your analysis.
Introduce each quote with context, explaining the significance of the lines and how they contribute to your analysis.
Use quotation marks to indicate that you're using the poet's language.
After providing the quote, interpret its meaning. Explain how the language, imagery, or devices used in the quoted lines contribute to your analysis.

Providing evidence example

In your essay, you should include several quotes and interpret them to reinforce your points. Quoting specific lines from the poem allows you to showcase the poet’s language while demonstrating how these lines contribute to the poem’s overall expression.

Write a conclusion

Conclusion paragraph is the last sentence of your poem analysis essay. It reinforces your thesis statement and emphasizes your insights.

Additionally, the conclusion offers a chance to provide a final thought that leaves a lasting impression on the reader. In your conclusion, make sure to:

Start by rephrasing your thesis statement. Remind the reader of the main argument you've made in your essay.
Provide a concise summary of the main points. Avoid introducing new information; focus on the key ideas.
Discuss the broader significance or implications. How does the poem's message relate to readers beyond its specific context?
End with a thoughtful reflection, observation, or question that leaves the reader with something to ponder.

Poetry essay conclusion example

In your essay, the conclusion serves as a final opportunity to leave a strong impression on the reader by summarizing your analysis and offering insights into the poem’s broader significance.

Now, it’s time to double check what you’ve written.

Proofread and revise your essay

Edit your essay for clarity, coherence, tense selection , correct headings , etc. Ensure that your ideas flow logically and your analysis is well-supported. Remember, a poetry essay is an opportunity to delve into the nuances of a poem’s language, themes, and emotions.

Review each paragraph to ensure ideas flow logically from one to the next.
Check for grammar and punctuation errors.
Verify that your evidence from the poem is accurately quoted and explained.
Make sure your language is clear and effectively conveys your analysis.

By proofreading and revising, you can refine your essay, improving its readability and ensuring that your insights are communicated accurately.

So this was the last part, you’re now ready to write your first poem analysis (poetry) essay.

Frequently Asked Questions

What should i include in the introduction of a poetry essay.

In the introduction, provide background information about the poem and poet. Include the poem’s title, publication date, and any relevant context that helps readers understand its significance.

Can I include my emotional responses in a poetry essay?

Yes, you can discuss your emotional responses, but ensure they are supported by your analysis of the poem’s literary elements. Avoid focusing solely on personal feelings.

Is it important to understand the poet's background when writing a poetry essay?

While it can provide context, your focus should be on analyzing the poem itself. If the poet’s background is relevant to the poem’s interpretation, mention it briefly.

What's the best way to conclude a poetry essay?

In the conclusion, summarize your main points and tie them together. Offer insights into the poem’s broader significance, implications, or lasting impact.

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Poetry & Poets

Explore the beauty of poetry – discover the poet within

How To Write A Poetry Reflection

Introduction

Writing a poetry reflection can often be quite challenging and intimidating. For some, it can be difficult to find the right words, while others experience anxiety at the thought of interpreting a poem. In order to help make this process easier, we’ve broken down the process into easy-to-follow steps so that you can approach your reflections on your favourite pieces of poetry with confidence.

Describing the Poem

The first step in writing a reflection of a poem is to provide an accurate description of the piece. It is important to consider not just the literal meaning of the poem, but also the subtle nuances of the language that have been used. When you read the poem, take time to notice the imagery, language, and other literary devices that have been used by the poet. Pay attention to the tone, the rhyme and rhythm of the poem, and consider the atmosphere or mood that it has created.

Interpreting the Poem

Once you have accurately described the poem, it is time to give your insights and interpretations of the piece. Consider how the imagery and language has been used to convey meaning, and think about any themes or messages that the poet might have been attempting to convey. Think about how this poem connects to your own life experiences, and what it might say to other people.

Using Metaphors and Similes

When writing a reflection on a poem, it can be helpful to use metaphors or similes to explain how you felt or your experience of reading the poem. Metaphors and similes can be powerful ways of conveying ideas and emotions, and can help the reader to visualise your interpretation of the poem.

Exploring Connections

When you are reflecting on a poem, it can be useful to explore the connections between the poem and other pieces of literature, culture, or personal experience. If there are references or allusions to other works that you have read, take the time to research them in order to gain a clearer understanding of the poet’s intentions.

Using Quotations

Quotations are a great way to support your interpretation of a poem and to give the reader an insight into the poet’s use of language. Choose relevant lines from the poem to support your reflections, and consider how the language used in these passages can help to emphasise the tone, meaning, and atmosphere of the poem.

Avoiding Plagiarism

When writing a reflection of a poem, it is important to ensure that you are not plagiarising the poet’s words. This means avoiding the use of poetic language, and instead focusing on the analytical aspects of the poem and your own reflections. Also, be sure to quote any passages that you do include in your reflection.

The Role of Imagery

Imagery is a powerful tool that can be used to convey emotion or atmosphere to the reader. In a reflection, it can be useful to pay special attention to any imagery that has been used in the poem, and to consider the purpose of this imagery in emphasising the ideas or themes of the poem.

The Poet’s Meaning

When writing a reflection, it is important to consider the poet’s intended meaning and the way in which this has been conveyed. Consider how the language of the poem has been used to express this meaning, and consider whether or not this message is relatable or applicable to our own lives.

The Power of Language

When reflecting on a poem, it is essential to consider the power of language and how it has been used in the poem to convey the poet’s message. Think about the way in which the language has been used to create a particular atmosphere, and which words have been used to express the tone and emotion of the poem.

The Use of Symbolism

Symbolism can be a powerful tool when writing poetry and can be used to convey hidden meanings and ideas. Consider how symbolism has been used in the poem and contemplate how this can be interpreted to gain a deeper understanding of the piece.

Exploring Theme and Message

When reflecting on a poem, think about the poem’s theme and message and how this can be interpreted. Consider any words or images that are used to convey this message and any connections between these elements. Think about the relevance of the poem to your own life and any wider implications that the poem might have.

Exploring Emotion

When we read a poem, there is usually an emotional response that is triggered. Consider your emotional response to the poem and how this relates to the themes or messages that the poet has offered. Use this emotional response to interpret the poem, and think about why the poet has chosen to make you feel this way.

Writing a reflection of a poem can be a rewarding and enriching experience. By taking the time to accurately describe the poem, interpret it, and explore its themes and messages, you can gain a deeper understanding of the poem and gain insights into how the poet has used language and symbolism to express their intentions.

Minnie Walters

Minnie Walters is a passionate writer and lover of poetry. She has a deep knowledge and appreciation for the work of famous poets such as William Wordsworth, Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, and many more. She hopes you will also fall in love with poetry!

Learned words: using poetry to reflect on practices in higher education

Poetry writing can aid reflection on your teaching and learning or research practices, offering a fresh way of organising thoughts, as Sam Illingworth explains

Sam Illingworth

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I have written before about how poetry can be created from data to aid analysis , and even how it might be used to solve problems , but what about reflection? How might people working in higher education turn to poetry to revisit, contextualise and learn from their experiences?

For those of you who want to think about writing poetry to reflect on your own teaching and learning experiences or perhaps encourage your students to do so, I offer the following process, one that is grounded in Gibbs’ reflective cycle .

In the first part of this process, I recommend picking a formative learning and/or teaching experience, going through each of the steps in Gibbs’ cycle, and writing down 30 to 50 words for each. In formalising this reflection, it might be that some of the steps bleed into one another, and for example you find yourself developing a combined “Conclusion” and “Action plan”. However, in some cases this is to be expected; don’t get too caught up in the specifics but focus on the process as a whole.

As an example, here is a reflection using Gibbs’ cycle on one of my most formative learning experiences: taken from when I was a lecturer in science communication at Manchester Metropolitan University.

Description: In my first ever lecture I waited outside the classroom to shake hands with the cohort. One of the female students said she could not shake my hand for religious reasons.

Feelings: I felt incredibly embarrassed and also worried that I had upset, shamed, or offended the student.

Evaluation: It was very bad that I had potentially upset the student, but after checking in with them, this was thankfully not the case.

Analysis: This was an awkward situation that forced me to re-evaluate how to approach the needs of the individual when working with students.

Conclusion: I could have checked beforehand about the potential implications of my handshaking. For example, by asking other colleagues if they did this.

Action plan: I no longer wait outside classrooms waiting to shake the hands of my students, and I try to understand their individual needs, rather than assume that they are the same as mine.

Having developed this reflection, we can now turn it into a poem. Aside from being a creative outlet, doing so helps to provide an alternative lens through which to view and even reconsider our reflections.

Starting with your reflections from Gibbs’ cycle, use the following four steps to turn them into a poem:

Take the “Descriptions”, “Feelings” and “Evaluation” and write them side by side
Look for a rhythm
Fill in gaps using the rest of your reflections
Edit the poem so that it is true to your experience

Step 1: Take the ‘Descriptions’, ‘Feelings’ and ‘Evaluation’ and write them side by side

In my first ever lecture I waited outside the classroom to shake hands with the cohort. One of the female students said she could not shake my hand for religious reasons. I felt incredibly embarrassed and also worried that I had upset, shamed, or offended the student. It was very bad that I had potentially upset the student, but after checking in with them, this was thankfully not the case.

Step 2: Look for a rhythm

I think that overly restrictive definitions of what a poem is and is not can be exclusionary, and as such I offer the following inclusive, and some might say very loose, definition: all poems have rhythm. Taking this into consideration, how might we begin to turn the text that we produced in Step 1 into a poem, by introducing some line breaks and removing any text that feels either redundant or unrhythmical:

Step 3: Fill in gaps using the rest of your reflections

At this point we have developed the following nascent poem:

In my first ever lecture I waited outside the classroom to shake hands. One of the students said she could not. I felt embarrassed and worried. It was very bad.

However, the last three lines feel underdeveloped. Also, they are at odds with the reflection as a whole, as they tend to put the focus of the poem on my needs, rather than that of a shared experience with the student. At this stage we need to replace some of the lines with new ones, using words that might not have appeared in the original reflection created using Gibbs’ cycle, but which are still congruent to the experience itself.

Step 4: Edit the poem so that it is true to your experience

In my first lecture I waited outside the classroom to shake hands. One of the students said she could not. I felt embarrassed for a shame we shared.

As a final step, we might now also think about a title for this piece. Deciding on the best title for your poems is hard (or at least I find it to be hard). The best advice I have received was from the writer Sara Goudarzi , who once told me that “the title should say something that the poem does not”. How I interpret this when writing my own poems is that if the topic is immediately obvious from the poem itself then I can afford to be a little bit more playful with the title, but if the poem is deliberately vague or metaphorical then a more literal title might be useful. Using this approach, I settled on a title of Aligning Our Needs .

If this exercise has piqued your interest, then you might consider submitting your work (anonymously) to Learned Words , a repository of poetry that we have set up to curate the poetic reflections of people from around the world who support learning and teaching in higher education. We welcome poems from anyone working in the higher education sector; there is no gatekeeping with regard to aesthetics or reputation. Rather, we want to create a space were everyone is welcome to use poetry to revisit, contextualise and learn from their experiences.

Sam Illingworth is associate professor in the department of learning and teaching enhancement at Edinburgh Napier University and author of Science Communication Through Poetry . His work focuses on using poetry to develop dialogue between scientists and non-scientists.

If you found this interesting and want advice and insight from academics and university staff delivered direct to your inbox each week, sign up for the THE Campus newsletter .

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Poetry as Reflective Writing

First Online: 15 September 2017

Cite this chapter

Helen Owton 4

Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies in Creativity and Culture ((PASCC))

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As noted earlier in some of the debates surrounding Poetic Inquiry, one might ask: What qualifies you to conduct Poetic Inquiry? This section considers the debated concept of poetry as therapy amidst the importance of self-care of the researcher. Poetry is a risky business, and qualitative researchers in general have to always ‘prove’ themselves (Cahnmann-Taylor 2009). Researchers, such as Butler-Kisber and Stewart (in: Prendergast et al. (eds). Poetic inquiry, Sense publishers, Boston, 2009), highlight discussions about the professional practices of those who employ poetry as a tool of inquiry and urge them to read more poetry, take creative writing classes, and take more risks in our field notes and articles. This section provides some examples along with some tasks on how to write reflectively (e.g. writing experiments to encourage a ‘stream of consciousness’).

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Owton, H. (2017). Poetry as Reflective Writing. In: Doing Poetic Inquiry. Palgrave Studies in Creativity and Culture. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-64577-3_6

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Reflections on Writing Poetry

Originally published at thinkingthroughmylens.com on May 2, 2018.

After 30 days of writing a poem a day, I asked my students to take some time to reflect on what they learned from participating in the challenge. So, in the spirit of full participation, I am also taking the time to reflect on all I learned from this poetry challenge.

My thoughts seem to have coalesced into four categories: learning from poetry, learning from writing, learning from students, and learning from blogging.

Learning from Poetry

Poetry offers opportunities to express feelings, to practice crafting vivid descriptions, to bring others into your view of the world. Like the sunset, poetry makes everything more beautiful. Each word contributes to the painting the reader experiences, blending and building, As I read poems written by others–published or not–I found inspiration for my own poetry. Poems became mentors for my poems, they opened my eyes to my own experiences, allowing me to see my own life in new ways.

Learning from Writing

The only way to be a writer is to write. I have learned the lesson again that when I write daily, writing comes. My brain and my hands seem to respond to the daily habit of putting words on a page. Knowing I will write each day helps me pay attention, helps me think about connections between thoughts, actions, and ideas, and helps me articulate my thinking. When I write daily I get into that mode we in the writing project often call writer’s brain . It is a space where experiences become fodder for written expression. When I expect to write, I write more and better and explore life’s possibilities through language. Writing helps me branch out, trying on new ideas in different ways.

Learning from Students

I have watched my students blossom as writers. Stilted, ordinary poems have become unexpected expressions of whimsy, of fear, of love, of exploration. My students have become a community of writers who are interested in the writing of others and who are eager to share their writing with others. They are talking about their inspiration, about their struggles as writers, about their ideas for revision, and finding poems in their baseball games, in their dance rehearsals, in the night sky, and in the books we read. I have loved watching their poetry grow in sophistication and I have noticed that writing has become less daunting, although no less challenging as they strive to express themselves.

Learning from Blogging

Blogging my 30 days of poetry has been a public affirmation of poetry as a valuable learning activity. I not only made my own poetry public, but I also showcased the poetry of my students. Giving my students an authentic audience was motivating. They were eager to share their poetry and have it appear on my blog. Many checked my blog to see whose poem they would find. Blogging each day also made real my commitment to being a teacher-writer. I not only teach writing, I write. Being vulnerable as a writer helps me remember that this writing thing is not easy…and is filled with pitfalls. I remember each day when I work with students that writing needs nurturing…and writers do too!

Thanks to all of you who read and liked and commented during our 30-day poetry challenge. I look forward to reading my students’ reflections and hearing their perspectives on this learning. I’ll be sure to share their insights with you too!

Kim Douillard is an elementary school teacher and the director of the San Diego Area Writing Project.

May 02, 2018

Teaching Writing

High School

Teen writers: virtual writing marathon this summer, why i write: bringing the story back into history.

How to Write a Reflective Essay

What is a Reflective Essay: Purpose + Importance

Being present is a cornerstone of mindfulness and meditation. You must have often heard that staying in the moment helps you appreciate your surroundings, connects you with people and nature, and allows you to feel whatever emotions you must feel without anxiety. While this is helpful advice as you become more focused and avoid getting lost in thought, how can you truly appreciate the present without reflecting on your past experiences that have led you to the current moment?

We don't say that you should dwell on the past and get carried away with a constant thought process, but hey, hear us out - practice reflective thinking! Think back on your previous life events, paint a true picture of history, and make connections to your present self. This requires you to get a bit analytical and creative. So you might as well document your critical reflection on a piece of paper and give direction to your personal observations. That's when the need for reflective essays steps in!

In a reflective essay, you open up about your thoughts and emotions to uncover your mindset, personality, traits of character, and background. It should include a description of the experience/literature piece as well as explanations of your thoughts, feelings, and reactions. In this article, our essay writer service will share our ultimate guide on how to write a reflective essay with a clear format and examples that will inspire you.

Reflective Essay Outline

To give you a clear idea of structuring a reflective essay, we broke down the essential steps below. Primarily, the organization is very similar to other types of papers. However, our custom writers got more specific with the outline to ease your writing process.

Reflective Essay Introduction

When wondering how to start a reflective essay, it is no surprise that you should begin writing your paper with an introductory paragraph. So, what's new and different with the reflection essay introduction? Let's dissect:

Open your intro with an attention-seizing hook that engages your audience into reflective thinking with you. It can be something like: 'As I was sitting on my bed with my notebook placed on my shaky lap waiting for the letter of acceptance, I could not help but reflect, was enrolling in college the path I wanted to take in the future?'
Provide context with a quick overview of the reflective essay topic. Don't reveal too much information at the start to prevent your audience from becoming discouraged to continue reading.
Make a claim with a strong thesis statement. It should be a simple explanation of the essay's main point, in this example, a specific event that had a big impact on you.

Reflective Essay Body Paragraphs

The next step is to develop the body of your essay. This section of the paper may be the most challenging because it's simple to ramble and replicate yourself both in the outline and the actual writing. Planning the body properly requires a lot of time and work, and the following advice can assist you in doing this effectively:

Consider using a sequential strategy. This entails reviewing everything you wish to discuss in the order it occurred. This method ensures that your work is structured and cohesive.
Make sure the body paragraph is well-rounded and employs the right amount of analysis. The body should go into the effects of the event on your life and the insights you've gained as a consequence.
Prioritize reflecting rather than summarizing your points. In addition to giving readers insight into your personal experience, a reflective stance will also show off your personality and demonstrate your ability to handle certain challenges.

Reflective Essay Conclusion

The goal of your conclusion should be to tie everything together by summarizing the key ideas raised throughout, as well as the lessons you were able to take away from experience.

Don't forget to include the reasons for and the methods used to improve your beliefs and actions. Think about how your personality and skills have changed as well.
What conclusions can you draw about your behavior in particular circumstances? What could you do differently if the conditions were the same in the future?

Remember that your instructor will be searching for clear signs of reflection.

Understanding a Reflection Paper Format

The format of reflective essay greatly differs from an argumentative or research paper. It is more of a well-structured story or a diary entry rife with insight and reflection. You might be required to arrange your essay using the APA style or the MLA format.

And the typical reflection paper length varies between 300 and 700 words, but ask your instructor about the word length if it was assigned to you. Even though this essay is about you, try to avoid too much informal language.

If your instructor asks you to use an APA or MLA style format for reflective essay, here are a few shortcuts:

Reflective Essay in MLA Format

Times New Roman 12pt font double spaced;
1" margins;
The top right includes the last name and page number on every page;
Titles are centered;
The header should include your name, your professor's name, course number, and the date (dd/mm/yy);
The last page includes a Works Cited.

Reflective Essay in APA Style

Include a page header on the top of every page;
Insert page number on the right;
It should be divided into four parts: Title Page, Abstract, Main Body, and References.

Writing Tips for Reflective Essay

You may think we've armed you with enough tips and pointers for reflective writing, but it doesn't stop here. Below we gathered some expert-approved tips for constructing uncontested reflection papers.

Be as detailed as possible while writing. To make your writing come to life, you should employ several tactics such as symbolism, sentence patterns, etc.
Keep your audience in mind. The reader will become frustrated if you continue writing in the first person without taking a moment to convey something more important, even though you will likely speak about something from your own perspective.
Put forth the effort to allow the reader to feel the situation or emotion you are attempting to explain.
Don't preach; demonstrate. Instead of just reporting what happened, use description appropriately to paint a clear picture of the event or sensation.
Plan the wording and structure of your reflective essay around a central emotion or subject, such as joy, pleasure, fear, or grief.
Avoid adding dull elements that can lessen the effect of your work. Why include it if it won't enhance the emotion or understanding you wish to convey?
There must be a constant sense of progression. Consider whether the event has transformed you or others around you.
Remember to double-check your grammar, syntax, and spelling.

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Reflective Essay Topic Ideas

As this essay should be about your own views and experiences, you generally can't use someone else's ideas. But to help you get started, here are some suggestions for writing topics:

An experience you will never forget.
The moment you overcame a fear.
The most difficult choice you had to make.
A time your beliefs were challenged.
A time something changed your life.
The happiest or most frightening moment of your life so far.
Ways you think you or people can make the world a better place.
A time you felt lost.
An introspective look at your choices or a time you made the wrong choice.
A moment in your life you would like to relive.

You may find it convenient to create a chart or table to keep track of your ideas. Split your chart into three parts:

In the first column, write key experiences or your main points. You can arrange them from most important to least important.
In the second column, list your response to the points you stated in the first column.
In the third column, write what, from your response, you would like to share in the essay.

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Reflective Essay Sample

Referring to reflective essay examples can help you a lot. A sample can provide you with useful insight into how your essay should look like. You can also buy an essay online if you need one customized to your specific requirements.

How to Conclude a Reflective Essay

As we come to an end, it's only logical to reflect on the main points discussed above in the article. By now, you should clearly understand what is a reflective essay and that the key to writing it is demonstrating what lessons you have taken away from your experiences and why and how these lessons have shaped you. It should also have a clear format, with an opening, development of ideas, and resolution.

Now that you have the tools to create a thorough and accurate reflective paper, you might want to hand over other tasks like writing definition essay examples to our experienced writers. In this case, feel free to buy an essay online on our platform and reflect on your past events without worrying about future assignments!

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is a seasoned educational writer focusing on scholarship guidance, research papers, and various forms of academic essays including reflective and narrative essays. His expertise also extends to detailed case studies. A scholar with a background in English Literature and Education, Daniel’s work on EssayPro blog aims to support students in achieving academic excellence and securing scholarships. His hobbies include reading classic literature and participating in academic forums.

is an expert in nursing and healthcare, with a strong background in history, law, and literature. Holding advanced degrees in nursing and public health, his analytical approach and comprehensive knowledge help students navigate complex topics. On EssayPro blog, Adam provides insightful articles on everything from historical analysis to the intricacies of healthcare policies. In his downtime, he enjoys historical documentaries and volunteering at local clinics.

What Is a Capstone Project: Definition, Types, Writing Steps

Reflective Poetry: Meaning and Examples

Basically, it is a poetry that shows how a poet sees the world. The poet thinks back on a thing, a person, or a time in his or her life. Simply put, It’s just a reflection of how the poet felt at the time, written in a poetic way.

Compared to lyrics, reflective poetry is longer, more thought-out, and harder to understand. Most of Pope’s and Wordsworth’s poetry, especially Prelude, is reflective. Elegy by Thomas Gray is one of the most reflective and meditative poems ever written in English.

Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard is made up of four lines of ten syllables each. It was written in 1750. The poem shows that the poet was feeling reflective. He is moved by his ancestors’ graves and the simple things they did. At the end of the poem, there is a personal note in which the poet imagines his own death, his burial in the churchyard, and the inscription on his own tombstone. This reflective poetry is great and popular because he writes about everything. The sad parts of human life and the people who live near a village church in a remote part of southern England are shown in a very quiet and reflective way.

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The poet adds his or her own style to the poem. He stays in the churchyard for a long time and thinks about life and death. Gray takes a sympathetic view of this complicated life-and-death situation and grows an interest in helping people, which is one of the most important parts of romantic poetry.

There is no clear line between poetry that is lyrical and poetry that is reflective. For example, if Wordsworth’s poem “The Rainbow” had talked about how nature affects people, it would not have been lyrical poetry, but reflective poetry. These two things often go together.

Wordsworth’s ‘Tintern Abbey’ and ‘ Immortality Ode’, as well as Keats’ three odes: ‘To a Nightingale’, ‘On a Grecian Urn,’ and ‘To autumn,’ are considered to be among the greatest examples of reflective poetry ever written.

In Memoriam (1850) by Tennyson is also the most important reflective poem written during the Victorian era. It talks about how the poet’s sadness and bitterness slowly go away over time as he learns more about Christianity.

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Thinking Through My Lens

Reflections on Writing Poetry

My thoughts seem to have coalesced into four categories: learning from poetry, learning from writing, learning from students, and learning from blogging.

Learning from Poetry:

Learning from Writing:

Learning from Students:

Learning from Blogging:

Reflection of Writing Poetry

Categories: Poetry

About this sample

Words: 1137 |

Published: Mar 19, 2024

Words: 1137 | Pages: 2 | 6 min read

I. introduction, ii. the creative process of writing poetry, iii. the reflective nature of poetry, iv. impact of writing poetry on personal growth, v. challenges and benefits of reflecting on one's writing, vi. conclusion, a. inspiration and ideas for poetry, b. techniques and styles of writing poetry, c. the role of emotions in poetry writing, a. exploring personal experiences and emotions through poetry, b. using poetry as a form of self-expression and self-discovery, c. reflecting on societal issues and personal beliefs through poetry, a. developing empathy and understanding through poetry, b. building self-awareness and self-acceptance through poetry, c. fostering creativity and critical thinking skills through poetry, a. overcoming writer's block and self-doubt in poetry writing, b. the therapeutic benefits of writing poetry for mental health, c. the importance of feedback and revision in poetry writing.

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How to Write a Reflection Paper: An Easy-to-Follow Guide

Last Updated: May 1, 2024 Fact Checked

Sample Outline and Paper

Brainstorming, organizing a reflection paper, as you write, expert q&a.

This article was co-authored by Alicia Cook . Alicia Cook is a Professional Writer based in Newark, New Jersey. With over 12 years of experience, Alicia specializes in poetry and uses her platform to advocate for families affected by addiction and to fight for breaking the stigma against addiction and mental illness. She holds a BA in English and Journalism from Georgian Court University and an MBA from Saint Peter’s University. Alicia is a bestselling poet with Andrews McMeel Publishing and her work has been featured in numerous media outlets including the NY Post, CNN, USA Today, the HuffPost, the LA Times, American Songwriter Magazine, and Bustle. She was named by Teen Vogue as one of the 10 social media poets to know and her poetry mixtape, “Stuff I’ve Been Feeling Lately” was a finalist in the 2016 Goodreads Choice Awards. There are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 3,822,768 times.

Reflection papers allow you to communicate with your instructor about how a specific article, lesson, lecture, or experience shapes your understanding of class-related material. Reflection papers are personal and subjective [1] X Research source , but they must still maintain a somewhat academic tone and must still be thoroughly and cohesively organized. Here's what you need to know about writing an effective reflection.

How to Start a Reflection Paper

To write a reflection paper, first write an introduction that outlines your expectations and thesis. Then, state your conclusions in the body paragraphs, explaining your findings with concrete details. Finally, conclude with a summary of your experience.

These sentences should be both descriptive yet straight to the point.

Step 2 Jot down material that stands out in your mind.

For lectures or readings, you can write down specific quotations or summarize passages.
For experiences, make a note of specific portions of your experience. You could even write a small summary or story of an event that happened during the experience that stands out. Images, sounds, or other sensory portions of your experience work, as well.

In the first column, list the main points or key experiences. These points can include anything that the author or speaker treated with importance as well as any specific details you found to be important. Divide each point into its own separate row.
In the second column, list your personal response to the points you brought up in the first column. Mention how your subjective values, experiences, and beliefs influence your response.
In the third and last column, describe how much of your personal response to share in your reflection paper.

Step 4 Ask yourself questions to guide your response.

Does the reading, lecture, or experience challenge you socially, culturally, emotionally, or theologically? If so, where and how? Why does it bother you or catch your attention?
Has the reading, lecture, or experience changed your way of thinking? Did it conflict with beliefs you held previously, and what evidence did it provide you with in order to change your thought process on the topic?
Does the reading, lecture, or experience leave you with any questions? Were these questions ones you had previously or ones you developed only after finishing?
Did the author, speaker, or those involved in the experience fail to address any important issues? Could a certain fact or idea have dramatically changed the impact or conclusion of the reading, lecture, or experience?
How do the issues or ideas brought up in this reading, lecture, or experience mesh with past experiences or readings? Do the ideas contradict or support each other?

Verify whether or not your instructor specified a word count for the paper instead of merely following this average.
If your instructor demands a word count outside of this range, meet your instructor's requirements.

For a reading or lecture, indicate what you expected based on the title, abstract, or introduction.
For an experience, indicate what you expected based on prior knowledge provided by similar experiences or information from others.

This is essentially a brief explanation of whether or not your expectations were met.
A thesis provides focus and cohesion for your reflection paper.
You could structure a reflection thesis along the following lines: “From this reading/experience, I learned...”

Step 4 Explain your conclusions in the body.

Your conclusions must be explained. You should provide details on how you arrived at those conclusions using logic and concrete details.
The focus of the paper is not a summary of the text, but you still need to draw concrete, specific details from the text or experience in order to provide context for your conclusions.
Write a separate paragraph for each conclusion or idea you developed.
Each paragraph should have its own topic sentence. This topic sentence should clearly identify your major points, conclusions, or understandings.

The conclusions or understandings explained in your body paragraphs should support your overall conclusion. One or two may conflict, but the majority should support your final conclusion.

If you feel uncomfortable about a personal issue that affects the conclusions you reached, it is wisest not to include personal details about it.
If a certain issue is unavoidable but you feel uncomfortable revealing your personal experiences or feelings regarding it, write about the issue in more general terms. Identify the issue itself and indicate concerns you have professionally or academically.

Step 2 Maintain a professional or academic tone.

Avoid dragging someone else down in your writing. If a particular person made the experience you are reflecting on difficult, unpleasant, or uncomfortable, you must still maintain a level of detachment as you describe that person's influence. Instead of stating something like, “Bob was such a rude jerk,” say something more along the lines of, “One man was abrupt and spoke harshly, making me feel as though I was not welcome there.” Describe the actions, not the person, and frame those actions within the context of how they influenced your conclusions.
A reflection paper is one of the few pieces of academic writing in which you can get away with using the first person pronoun “I.” That said, you should still relate your subjective feelings and opinions using specific evidence to explain them. [8] X Research source
Avoid slang and always use correct spelling and grammar. Internet abbreviations like “LOL” or “OMG” are fine to use personally among friends and family, but this is still an academic paper, so you need to treat it with the grammatical respect it deserves. Do not treat it as a personal journal entry.
Check and double-check your spelling and grammar after you finish your paper.

Step 3 Review your reflection paper at the sentence level.

Keep your sentences focused. Avoid squeezing multiple ideas into one sentence.
Avoid sentence fragments. Make sure that each sentence has a subject and a verb.
Vary your sentence length. Include both simple sentences with a single subject and verb and complex sentences with multiple clauses. Doing so makes your paper sound more conversational and natural, and prevents the writing from becoming too wooden. [9] X Research source

Common transitional phrases include "for example," "for instance," "as a result," "an opposite view is," and "a different perspective is."

Step 5 Relate relevant classroom information to the experience or reading.

For instance, if reflecting on a piece of literary criticism, you could mention how your beliefs and ideas about the literary theory addressed in the article relate to what your instructor taught you about it or how it applies to prose and poetry read in class.
As another example, if reflecting on a new social experience for a sociology class, you could relate that experience to specific ideas or social patterns discussed in class.

↑ https://www.csuohio.edu/writing-center/reflection-papers
↑ https://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/assignments/reflectionpaper
↑ Alicia Cook. Professional Writer. Expert Interview. 11 December 2020.
↑ https://www.trentu.ca/academicskills/how-guides/how-write-university/how-approach-any-assignment/how-write-reflection-paper
↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/thesis-statements/
↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/conclusions/
↑ https://www.anu.edu.au/students/academic-skills/writing-assessment/reflective-writing/reflective-essays
↑ https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/scholarlyvoice/sentencestructure

About This Article

To write a reflection paper, start with an introduction where you state any expectations you had for the reading, lesson, or experience you're reflecting on. At the end of your intro, include a thesis statement that explains how your views have changed. In the body of your essay, explain the conclusions you reached after the reading, lesson, or experience and discuss how you arrived at them. Finally, finish your paper with a succinct conclusion that explains what you've learned. To learn how to brainstorm for your paper, keep reading! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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A Reflection on English 2266: Writing of Poetry I

I enrolled in ENGLISH 2266: Writing of Poetry I for this SP17 semester after researching the Creative Writing minor. I knew I wanted to take a creative writing class sometime during my college years, but I wasn’t sure how I would go about fitting it into my schedule. When I discovered the Creative Writing minor, I immediately jumped at the chance to complete it.

The Creative Writing minor requires the student to explore two different genres within the three available in the creative writing program: nonfiction, fiction, and poetry. In order to complete the minor, the student must take two courses for each of the two genres chosen, adding up to be a total of four classes.

Enrolling in ENGLISH 2266 was my first step into the world of creative writing at OSU, and let me tell you: I was beyond excited. I had loved writing since I was a child, and had briefly taken a summer creative writing course during high school, but never one that focused on poetry. I was, quite literally, bouncing off the walls. (My roommate can vouch for that.)

My poetry professor was Babette Cieskowski. Dark haired, dark lipped, dark rimmed glasses, dark shoes. When she began speaking on the first day of class, her quirky and abundant personality flowed effortlessly into her speech and I couldn’t stop smiling. She had an energy that I knew would drive this class forward, and she was the reason why I knew I would love this class even then. She had a clearly written and fair course syllabus; every week, we would have a poetry response essay of 500 words due and in the midst of that we would have a total of 4 workshops in which we would give feedback on each other’s poems. The structure of the class was very straightforward and it was plain to see that it would be an easy A – as long as you did the work.

And that’s exactly how it was. Throughout the semester I made sure to finish the poetry responses on time each week, wrote my poems for workshops, gave feedback on my classmates’ poems, and participated in class discussions. It was simultaenously the easiest and the most enjoyable class I have ever taken so far.

As a student, this class quenched my newly awakened thirst for poetic knowledge; we read essays that discussed the importance of a certain craft (ex: imagery), we read poems that demonstrated that craft, and we were given free reign to write whatever type of poem we wanted for workshops. In my experience, it was the perfect blend of guidance and freedom for creativity that I think is crucial for a creative writing class.

As a learning poet, this class and this professor opened my eyes to what poetry really was: a form of art. I had always acknowledged it as some form of expression, but I had never truly been able to appreciate it as a writer. Before this class, I wrote poems purely for emotional release and logged them as journal entries that I refused to edit because I wanted that specific moment of myself to exist through that piece. But there was so much more that could be done that I wasn’t seeing. This course made me realize that the artistic beauty of poetry is within the poet’s use of craft; channeling one’s emotions into a carefully crafted poem that can convey the same message through different words is the amazing power of poetry.

I value the experience I had in this course because of how much it made me realize my passion for poetry. I knew going into the course that I appreciated poetry, but I didn’t understand the artistry that went along with it. In other words, the things about crafting poems that I learned in this course allowed me not only to become a better poet, but to gain a greater appreciation for others’ poems.

The following is one of the poems I submitted for workshop during this course. I revised it for my final portfolio in the class, and therefore this is my second draft. It is a little taste of what this class allowed me to accomplish:

exploration date Revision-1ch160a

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For everyone who tried on the slipper before cinderella.

after Anis Mojgani and Audre Lorde

For those making tea in the soft light of Saturday morning in the peaceful kitchen in the cool house For those with shrunken hearts still trying to love For those with large hearts trying to forget For those with terrors they cannot name upset stomachs and too tight pants For those who get cut off in traffic For those who spend all day making an elaborate meal that turns out mediocre For those who could not leave even when they knew they had to For those who never win the lottery or become famous For those getting groceries on Friday nights

There is something you know about living that you guard with your life your one fragile, wonderful life wonder, as in, awe, as in, I had no idea I would be here now .

For those who make plans and those who don’t For those driving across the country to a highway that knows them For the routes we take in the dark, trusting For the roads for the woods for the dead humming in prayer For an old record and a strong sun For teeth bared to the wind a pulse in the chest a body making love to itself

There is every reason to hate it here There is a list of things making it bearable: your friend’s shoulder Texas barbecue a new book a loud song a strong song a highway that knows you sweet tea an orange cat a helping hand an unforgettable dinner

a laugh that escapes you and deflates you like a pink balloon left soft with room for goodness to take hold

For those who have looked in the mirror and begged For those with weak knees and an attitude For those called “sensitive” or “too much” For those not called enough For the times you needed and went without For the photo of you as a child quietly icing cupcakes your hair a crackling thunderstorm

Love is coming. It’s on its way. Look—

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In a Poem, Just Who Is ‘the Speaker,’ Anyway?

Critics and readers love the term, but it can be awfully slippery to pin down. That’s what makes it so fun to try.

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This illustration shows a horizontal lineup of the letter I repeated four times, each in a different style. The third example, in pink, looks like a stick figure of a person.

By Elisa Gabbert

Elisa Gabbert’s collections of poetry and essays include, most recently, “Normal Distance” and the forthcoming “Any Person Is the Only Self.” Her On Poetry columns appear four times a year.

The pages of “A Little White Shadow,” by Mary Ruefle, house a lyric “I” — the ghost voice that emerges so often from what we call a poem. Yet the I belonged first to another book, a Christian text of the same name published in 1890, by Emily Malbone Morgan.

Ruefle “erased” most words of Morgan’s text with white paint, leaving what look like lines of verse on the yellowed pages: “my brain/grows weary/just thinking how to make/thought.” (My virgules are approximate — should I read all white gaps as line breaks, even if the words are in the same line of prose? Are larger gaps meant to form stanzas?)

On another page, we read (can I say Ruefle writes ?): “I was brought in contact/with the phenomenon/peculiar to/’A/shadow.’” It would be difficult to read Ruefle’s book without attributing that I to the author, to Ruefle, one way or another, although the book’s I existed long before she did.

This method of finding an I out there, already typed, to identify with, seems to me not much different from typing an I . An I on the page is abstract, symbolic, and not the same I as in speech, which in itself is not the same I as the I in the mind.

When an old friend asked me recently if I didn’t find the idea of “the speaker” to be somewhat underexamined, I was surprised by the force of the YES that rose up in me. I too had been following the critical convention of referring to whatever point of view a poem seems to generate as “the speaker” — a useful convention in that it (supposedly) prevents us from ascribing the views of the poem to its author. But in that moment I realized I feel a little fraudulent doing so. Why is that?

Perhaps because I never think of a “speaker” when writing a poem. I don’t posit some paper-doll self that I can make say things. It’s more true to say that the poem always gives my own I, my mind’s I, the magic ability to say things I wouldn’t in speech or in prose.

It’s not just that the poem, like a play or a novel, is fictive — that these genres offer plausible deniability, though they do. It’s also that formal constraints have the power to give us new thoughts. Sometimes, in order to make a line sound good, to fit the shape of the poem, I’m forced to cut a word or choose a different word, and what I thought I wanted to say gets more interesting. The poem has more surprising thoughts than I do.

“The speaker,” as a concept, makes two strong suggestions. One is that the voice of a poem is a kind of persona. In fact, when I looked for an entry on the subject in our New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics (a tome if there ever was one, at 1,383 pages), I found only: “Speaker: See PERSONA.” This latter term is an “ancient distinction,” writes the scholar Fabian Gudas, between poems in the poet’s “own voice” and those in which “characters” are speaking.

But, as the entry goes on to note, 20th-century critics have questioned whether we can ever look at a poem as “the direct utterance of its author.” While persona seems too strong to apply to some first-person lyrics, the speaker implies all lyrics wear a veil of persona, at least, if not a full mask.

The second implication is that the voice is a voice — that a poem has spokenness , even just lying there silent on the page.

The question here, the one I think my friend was asking, is this: Does our use of “the speaker” as shorthand — for responsible readership, respectful acknowledgment of distance between poet and text — sort of let us off the hook? Does it give us an excuse to think less deeply than we might about degrees of persona and spokenness in any given poem?

Take Louise Glück’s “The Wild Iris,” “a book in which flowers speak,” as Glück herself described it. One flower speaks this, in “Trillium”: “I woke up ignorant in a forest;/only a moment ago, I didn’t know my voice/if one were given me/would be so full of grief.” (I find a note that I’ve stuck on this page, at some point: The flowers give permission to express .)

“Flowers don’t have voices,” James Longenbach writes, in his essay “The Spokenness of Poetry” — “but it takes a flower to remind us that poems don’t really have voices either.”

They’re more like scores for voices, maybe. A score isn’t music — it’s paper, not sound — and, as Jos Charles writes in an essay in “Personal Best: Makers on Their Poems That Matter Most,” “the written poem is often mistaken for the poem itself.” A poem, like a piece of music, she writes, “is neither its score nor any one performance,” but what is repeatable across all performances. Any reader reading a poem performs it — we channel the ghost voice.

There are poems that have almost no spokenness — such as Aram Saroyan’s “minimal poems,” which might consist of a single nonword on the page (“lighght,” most famously, but see also “morni,ng” or “Blod”). Or consider Paul Violi’s “Index,” whose first line is “Hudney, Sutej IX, X, XI, 7, 9, 25, 58, 60, 61, 64.” Is anyone speaking the page numbers?

And there are poems that have almost no persona, as in the microgenre whose speaker is a poetry instructor (see “Introduction to Poetry,” by Billy Collins).

Yet I’m not interested only in edge cases. There are so many subtle gradations of “speaker” in the middle, so much room for permission. A speaker may seem threatening, as in June Jordan’s “Poem About My Rights”: “from now on my resistance … may very well cost you your life.” A speaker may seem dishonest — Tove Ditlevsen’s first published poem was called “To My Dead Child,” addressing a stillborn infant who had in fact never existed.

Auden would say it’s hard not to “tell lies” in a poem, where “all facts and all beliefs cease to be true or false and become interesting possibilities.” So, we might say, the “speaker” is the vessel for the full range of lies that the poet is willing to tell.

“Poetry is not for personal confessions,” George Seferis wrote in a journal; “it expresses another personality that belongs to everyone.” This suggests poetry comes from some underlying self. If, by invoking “the speaker,” I avoid a conflation of the I and its author, I may also crowd the page with more figures than I need: a speaker and an author, both outside the poem. I wonder sometimes if there’s anyone there, when I’m reading. Does the speaker speak the poem? Or does the poem just speak?

Explore More in Books

Want to know about the best books to read and the latest news start here..

An assault led to Chanel Miller’s best seller, “Know My Name,” but she had wanted to write children’s books since the second grade. She’s done that now with “Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All.”

When Reese Witherspoon is making selections for her book club , she wants books by women, with women at the center of the action who save themselves.

The Nobel Prize-winning author Alice Munro, who died on May 14 , specialized in exacting short stories that were novelistic in scope , spanning decades with intimacy and precision.

“The Light Eaters,” a new book by Zoë Schlanger, looks at how plants sense the world and the agency they have in their own lives.

Each week, top authors and critics join the Book Review’s podcast to talk about the latest news in the literary world. Listen here .

Poetry Is an Act of Hope

Through verse, we can perhaps come closest to capturing events that exist beyond our capacity to describe.

This is an edition of the Books Briefing, our editors’ weekly guide to the best in books. Sign up for it here.

Poetry is the art form that most expands my sense of what language can do. Today, so much daily English feels flat or distracted—politicians speak in clichés; friends are distracted in conversation by the tempting dinging of smartphones; TV dialogue and the sentences in books are frequently inelegant. This isn’t a disaster: Clichés endure because they convey ideas efficiently; not all small talk can be scintillating; a bad sentence here or there in a novel won’t necessarily condemn the whole work.

First, here are four new stories from The Atlantic ’s Books section:

When your every decision feels torturous
“Noon”: a poem by Li-Young Lee
A prominent free-speech group is fighting for its life.
The complicated ethics of rare-book collecting

Poetry is different, however. We expect more from it. Not a single word should be misused, not a single syllable misplaced—and, as a result, studying language within the poetic form can be particularly rewarding. In March and April of this year, two of America’s great poetry critics, Helen Vendler and Marjorie Perloff, died. In reading Adam Kirsch’s tribute to both, I was struck by how different their respective approaches to language were. Vendler was a “traditionalist,” per Kirsch; she liked poets who “communicated intimate thoughts and emotions in beautiful, complex language.” She was a famous close reader, carefully picking over poems to draw out every sense of meaning. For Vendler, Kirsch writes, poetry made language “more meaningful.”

Perloff wasn’t as interested in communicating meaning. Her favorite avant-garde poets used words in surprising and odd ways. As Kirsch writes, “At a time when television and advertising were making words smooth and empty, she argued that poets had a moral duty to resist by using language disruptively, forcing readers to sit up and pay attention.”

I’d reckon that neither Perloff nor Vendler relished lines that were smooth and empty, even though their preferred artists and attitudes toward reading might have differed. Ben Lerner has said that poetry represents a desire to “do something with words that we can’t actually do.” In that sense, poems are a declaration of hope in language: Even if we can’t pull off something magnificent, we can at least try.

Through poetry, we can perhaps come closest to capturing the events that feel so extreme as to exist beyond our capacity to describe them. In the February 8 issue of The New York Review of Books , Ann Lauterbach published a poem called “ War Zone ,” dedicated to Paul Auster, another literary great who died recently. The poem depicts not scenes of violence and gore but the hollow wordlessness many of us feel in the face of war or suffering—then it uses images of silence, blankness, and absence to fight against that unspeakability. The last line, which I won’t spoil here, points to this paradox: Words may not be able to capture everything—especially the worst things—but they can, and must, try.

When Poetry Could Define a Life

By Adam Kirsch

The close passing of the poetry critics Marjorie Perloff and Helen Vendler is a moment to recognize the end of an era.

Read the full article.

What to Read

The Taste of Country Cooking , by Edna Lewis

Lewis’s exemplary Southern cookbook is interspersed with essays on growing up in a farming community in Virginia; many of the recipes in the book unspool from these memories. Lewis, who worked as a chef in New York City as well as in North and South Carolina, writes with great sensual and emotional detail about growing up close to the land. Of springtime, she writes, “The quiet beauty in rebirth there was so enchanting it caused us to stand still in silence and absorb all we heard and saw. The palest liverwort, the elegant pink lady’s-slipper displayed against the velvety green path of moss leading endlessly through the woods.” Her book was ahead of its time in so many ways: It is a farm-to-table manifesto, a food memoir published decades before Ruth Reichl popularized the form, and an early, refined version of the cookbook-with-essays we’re now seeing from contemporary authors such as Eric Kim and Reem Assil. The recipes—ham biscuits, new cabbage with scallions, potted stuffed squab—are as alluring as the prose. — Marian Bull

From our list: eight cookbooks worth reading cover to cover

Out Next Week

📚 First Love , by Lilly Dancyger

📚 América del Norte , by Nicolás Medina Mora

📚 The Lady Waiting , by Magdalena Zyzak

Your Weekend Read

The Diminishing Returns of Having Good Taste

By W. David Marx

There are obvious, concrete advantages to a world with information equality, such as expanding global access to health and educational materials—with a stable internet connection, anyone can learn basic computer programming from online tutorials and lectures on YouTube. Finding the optimal place to eat at any moment is certainly easier than it used to be. And, in the case of Google, to “organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful” even serves as the company’s mission. The most commonly cited disadvantage to this extraordinary societal change, and for good reason, is that disinformation and misinformation can use the same easy pathways to spread unchecked. But after three decades of living with the internet, it’s clear that there are other, more subtle losses that come with instant access to knowledge, and we’ve yet to wrestle—interpersonally and culturally—with the implications.

When you buy a book using a link in this newsletter, we receive a commission. Thank you for supporting The Atlantic .

Explore all of our newsletters .

6 New Books to Add to Your Summer Reading List

All by Columbia alumni authors.

By Kara Swisher ’85JRN

Journalist and podcaster Kara Swisher has covered American tech since the dot-com boom in the early 1990s and has become known for holding industry leaders accountable in her no-holds-barred interviews. With thirty years of unparalleled access to a who’s who of Silicon Valley — from Jeff Bezos to Steve Jobs to Mark Zuckerberg — she has plenty of tea to spill in her much-hyped new book . But there’s more than just gossip here: it’s a thoughtful history of a period that has irrevocably changed our world and a surprisingly hopeful vision of the potential role of tech in our future.

Last House

By Jessica Shattuck ’01SOA

In her latest novel , Jessica Shattuck, the best-selling writer of The Women in the Castle , captures two generations, each caught up in the politics of their time. The book opens in 1953, when World War II vet Nick Taylor, a lawyer for a major American oil company, gets drawn into the Iranian coup d’état. Meanwhile, his wife, Bet, once an Army code-breaker, bides her time in the suburbs, raising their children, Katherine and Harry. Fifteen years later, those children are grown and protesting all that their parents stood for, Katherine at a liberal newspaper in Morningside Heights and Harry near the family’s country home in Vermont.

The Age of Grievance

By Frank Bruni ’88JRN

American politics has changed drastically over the last several decades. In his compelling new book , Frank Bruni argues that much of that change can be attributed to a cultural shift in attitude: we’ve become a nation of whiners. Bruni writes that Americans on both sides of the aisle feel victimized and aggrieved (though he is clear that he thinks the Right has weaponized this tactic in more dangerous ways), and politicians have responded in kind. Bruni contends that while grievance is not a new concept, and has historically often been good, this new era is different. Legitimate complaints are lost among exaggerated ones. And in a nation with broad gun ownership, the results can be devastating.

You Get What You Pay For

By Morgan Parker ’10CC

The author of three award-winning poetry collections and a young-adult novel, Morgan Parker has a bold, provocative, often hilarious voice, and her insights about Black womanhood in contemporary America have resonated with a wide audience. But in her personal life, Parker often feels isolated and alone: “I’m a poet who has never experienced true romantic love; I believe this is an American tragedy.” Her latest book , an essay collection, explores this and other intimate themes, with plenty of reflection on the greater societal contexts.

A Walk in the Park

By Kevin Fedarko ’88CC

Veteran journalist Kevin Fedarko is no stranger to the Grand Canyon: his first book, The Emerald Mile , told the story of a thrill seeker who rode a wooden boat the entire length of the Colorado River. But now, Fedarko himself is the adventurer. Accompanied by National Geographic photographer Pete McBride, Fedarko embarked on a 750-mile, end-to-end trek through the awe-inspiring gorge. With no marked trail, punishing temperatures, and death-defying cliffs, it’s considered one of the hardest hikes in the world — and indeed, the year-long trip nearly killed them both. Fedarko’s prose is often funny, but he also pays appropriate respect to both the land and the native people that have called it home for thousands of years.

The Age of Revolutions

By Nathan Perl-Rosenthal ’11GSAS

In an ambitious survey of what Thomas Paine called “the age of revolutions,” historian Nathan Perl-Rosenthal traces revolutionary movements of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries in North America, Spanish America, Europe, and Haiti. Producing the first narrative history of the era, Perl-Rosenthal assembles a cast of famous (John Adams, Napoleon, Toussaint Louverture) and lesser-known figures (Peruvian nun Maria De La Concepción Rivadeneyra) to show how two generations forged massive transformations and how political progress often came at the expense of racial and social equality.

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Section A Reflective essay Poetry Unit 2 Now that you have worked
Now that you have worked through Unit 2 (Poetry) in the study guide, write a reflective. essay of 250 - 350 words in which you discuss how this section of the work resonated. with your own personal experiences or memories, and what insight you gained from. studying this section. In your essay, please reflect on the questions below: 1.
Writing a Great Poetry Essay (Steps & Examples)
Poetry essay body paragraphs example. Body Paragraph 1: Identify and Explain Literary Devices. "Because I could not stop for Death" by Emily Dickinson employs various literary devices that contribute to the poem's themes. The poem employs personification, where Death is personified as a courteous carriage driver.
How To Write A Poetry Reflection
Describing the Poem. The first step in writing a reflection of a poem is to provide an accurate description of the piece. It is important to consider not just the literal meaning of the poem, but also the subtle nuances of the language that have been used. When you read the poem, take time to notice the imagery, language, and other literary ...
How to Write a Poetry Essay (Complete Guide)
Main Paragraphs. Now, we come to the main body of the essay, the quality of which will ultimately determine the strength of our essay. This section should comprise of 4-5 paragraphs, and each of these should analyze an aspect of the poem and then link the effect that aspect creates to the poem's themes or message.
PDF WRITING YOUR CRITICAL REFLECTION
Priscilla Morris. Writing reflectively develops your awareness of how you created a poem, story, script or piece of creative non-fiction. It deepens your understanding of your writing process and acknowledges the literary influences that fed into and shaped your writing. It's a myth that poems and stories are created in a burst of inspiration ...
How to Write a Reflection Paper in Poetry? Here Is a ...
Remember the difference between the essay analyzing the poem and a reflection paper expressing your thoughts on it. Once you have conducted research on the poet's life try to walk in his shoes. You can even highlight specific lines that caught your interest. Beware of writing in bold. By reinforcing your statements with a correct quote you ...
Reflective Poetry Essay
Reflective Poetry Essay Composing poetry is an artistic expression; subsequently it's a way of conveying everything that needs to be conveyed and finding importance in expressions. Through poetry words are illuminated to form a picture, express feeling and share a thought in so few words. Putting down on paper all the emotions going through ...
Poetry as a reflective tool
Take the "Descriptions", "Feelings" and "Evaluation" and write them side by side. Look for a rhythm. Fill in gaps using the rest of your reflections. Edit the poem so that it is true to your experience. Step 1: Take the 'Descriptions', 'Feelings' and 'Evaluation' and write them side by side. In my first ever lecture I ...
Poetry as Reflective Writing
Expressive writing of poetry was adopted as a way to cope and reflect on past experiences through the first year of Chan's ( 2003) Ph.D. A range of poems were written during an insight into higher education, qualitative research and self-reflection.
National Writing Project
Reflections on Writing Poetry. By Kim Douillard. Originally published at thinkingthroughmylens.com on May 2, 2018. After 30 days of writing a poem a day, I asked my students to take some time to reflect on what they learned from participating in the challenge. So, in the spirit of full participation, I am also taking the time to reflect on all ...
Reflective Poems
Poems can be personal reflections… Life is a pen, unerasable and permanent. Eventually the ink will run out, leaving only its memories behind. (Nadia) When I go up for the shot, nothing else in this world seems to matter. It doesn't matter that I have to go home and do hours of homework; it doesn't matter that my little brother will be mad at me because I used his pencil; it doesn't ...
Tips and Examples of Reflective Essay
In a reflective essay, you open up about your thoughts and emotions to uncover your mindset, personality, traits of character, and background. It should include a description of the experience/literature piece as well as explanations of your thoughts, feelings, and reactions. In this article, our essay writer service will share our ultimate ...
Reflective Poetry: Meaning and Examples
Reflective Poetry: Meaning and Examples. Basically, it is a poetry that shows how a poet sees the world. The poet thinks back on a thing, a person, or a time in his or her life. Simply put, It's just a reflection of how the poet felt at the time, written in a poetic way. Compared to lyrics, reflective poetry is longer, more thought-out, and ...
Reflections on Writing Poetry
Reflections on Writing Poetry. After 30 days of writing a poem a day, I asked my students to take some time to reflect on what they learned from participating in the challenge. So, in the spirit of full participation, I am also taking the time to reflect on all I learned from this poetry challenge. My thoughts seem to have coalesced into four ...
Reflection Of Writing Poetry: [Essay Example], 1137 words
In conclusion, writing poetry is a transformative and empowering experience that can lead to deep personal growth, self-discovery, and creative expression. By engaging in the reflective process of writing poetry, individuals can develop empathy, self-awareness, and creativity, leading to increased understanding of themselves and others.
How to Start a Reflection Paper: Examples & Templates
1. Keep it short and sweet. A typical reflection paper is between 300 and 700 words long. Verify whether or not your instructor specified a word count for the paper instead of merely following this average. If your instructor demands a word count outside of this range, meet your instructor's requirements. 2.
Developing Reflective Thinking through Poetry Writing: Views from
Aims and Objectives To explore student nurse and educator perspectives on the use of poetry writing as a way to reflect on important nursing practice issues. Background Reflective practice is a ...
Section A Reflective essay Poetry Unit 2 Now that you have worked
Now that you have worked through Unit 2 (Poetry) in the study guide, write a reflective essay of 250 - 350 words in which you discuss how this section of the work resonated with your own personal experiences or memories, and what insight you gained from studying this section. In your essay, please reflect on the questions below: 1.
A Reflection on English 2266: Writing of Poetry I
Enrolling in ENGLISH 2266 was my first step into the world of creative writing at OSU, and let me tell you: I was beyond excited. I had loved writing since I was a child, and had briefly taken a summer creative writing course during high school, but never one that focused on poetry. I was, quite literally, bouncing off the walls.
poems for reflection
a loud song a strong song a highway that knows you. sweet tea an orange cat a helping hand. an unforgettable dinner. a laugh that escapes you and deflates you. like a pink balloon left soft with room. for goodness to take hold. For those who have looked in the mirror and begged. For those with weak knees and an attitude.
An Example Of Poetry Reflective Essay
We connect to one another through ways of expression such as music or literature. Poetry as a form of writing is a way to express feelings through rhythm and the use of specific words. In every poem, the author conveys a certain topic or emotion to the reader. The use of language, metaphors, and recurring themes is essential to the poet in ...
Reflecting on My Poetry Writing Process
Reflecting on My Poetry Writing Process. The student reflects on and analyzes a group of three poems they have written themselves. The student discusses the intended themes, purposes, and messages and reflects on the experience of writing the poems, including redrafting. This essay received a C by one of Kibin's paper graders.
On Poetry: What Do We Mean by 'the Speaker'?
Elisa Gabbert's collections of poetry and essays include, most recently, "Normal Distance" and the forthcoming "Any Person Is the Only Self." Her On Poetry columns appear four times a ...
The Books Briefing: Poetry Is an Act of Hope
Illustration by The Atlantic. May 3, 2024. This is an edition of the Books Briefing, our editors' weekly guide to the best in books. Sign up for it here. Poetry is the art form that most expands ...
6 New Books to Add to Your Summer Reading List
The author of three award-winning poetry collections and a young-adult novel, Morgan Parker has a bold, provocative, often hilarious voice, and her insights about Black womanhood in contemporary America have resonated with a wide audience. ... an essay collection, explores this and other intimate themes, with plenty of reflection on the greater ...

How to write a poetry essay

Choose a poem

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Understand the poem

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Thesis statement for poetry essays

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Analyze language and imagery

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Discuss themes in body paragraphs

Poetry essay body paragraphs example

Provide evidence from the poem

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Write a conclusion

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Proofread and revise your essay

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How To Write A Poetry Reflection

Introduction

Describing the Poem

Interpreting the Poem

Using Metaphors and Similes

Exploring Connections

Using Quotations

Avoiding Plagiarism

The Role of Imagery

The Poet’s Meaning

The Power of Language

The Use of Symbolism

Exploring Theme and Message

Exploring Emotion

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Learned words: using poetry to reflect on practices in higher education

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Step 1: Take the ‘Descriptions’, ‘Feelings’ and ‘Evaluation’ and write them side by side

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Step 3: Fill in gaps using the rest of your reflections

Step 4: Edit the poem so that it is true to your experience

Rather than restrict the use of AI, embrace the challenge

Poetry as Reflective Writing

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