How to write about poetry / The TPCASTT template
TPCASTT
T-title: The meaning of the title without reference to the poem.
P-paraphrase: Put the poem, line by line, in your own words. DO NOT READ INTO THE POEM. Only read on surface level.
C-connotation: looking for deeper meaning.
S-shifts: Looking for shifts in tone, action, and rhythm. Don’t just write the number. Discuss how the shift(s) affects the poem.
T-title: reevaluate the title as it pertains to the poem
T-theme: What does the poem mean? What is it saying? How does it relate to life?
T-title: The meaning of the title without reference to the poem.
P-paraphrase: Put the poem, line by line, in your own words. DO NOT READ INTO THE POEM. Only read on surface level.
C-connotation: looking for deeper meaning.
- Diction and symbolism
- Imagery
- Metaphors and similes
- Rhyme scheme
- End rhymes and internal rhymes
- End stop
- Enjambment
- Alliteration
- Assonance
- Consonance
- Mood
- Allusions
- Punctuation
- Personification
S-shifts: Looking for shifts in tone, action, and rhythm. Don’t just write the number. Discuss how the shift(s) affects the poem.
T-title: reevaluate the title as it pertains to the poem
T-theme: What does the poem mean? What is it saying? How does it relate to life?