The Trouble With Poetry

They Can Be Structurally Distracting

Mary Edgington

The second practice poem of the section, "The Chambered Nautilus," rhymed like a song. It's a very musical piece with its rhythm. Reading it, I almost felt a little hypnotized and began reading for the melody and not taking in the words and their story. Sometimes the rhyming is distracting! Also, I can't help but pause at the end of the line, rather than the end of the sentence. So ideas get a little bent. I noticed because it was one of Peterson's suggestions. The author warned against getting tripped up by the lines. I'll have to keep myself very focused to avoid that problem. 

Also...

Read the poem four times? That is the first advice given by Peterson's, and he suggests first skimming, then reading for main ideas and idea flow, and then again for significant details, and again to hear the rhythm. I don't know about you guys, but there is no way I can read the poems that many times and answer all the questions without going into a panic during the test. I can't read quickly enough for that, so maybe that's the first thing I will start practicing as we prepare for the class and, ultimately, the exam. If I feel rushed I start blindly stumbling over the words and searching frantically for answers... It's a bad situation. So my #1 difficulty is understanding the poem in a timely manner.