Literary Device Usage – Poetry

Purpose:
To learn to write an analysis about a poem for a general audience.
To analyze a poem using literary terminology. Prompt:
Write an essay on ONE of the poems listed below where you analyze it, using up to 4 literary devices, in order to interpret the poem’s overall meaning.
For your poetry essay, you can use up to 4 literary devices. However, more is not necessarily better, as you want to give multiple examples of each literary device you plan to use. For example, 3 paragraphs of 3 different elements is not as thorough as, say, 4 or 5 paragraphs focused on just 1 or 2 literary devices.
Poem Choices: Having a Coke with You by Frank O’hara https://poets.org/poem/having-coke-you
Requirements:
1000+ words (approx. 4 pages) not including the Works Cited page; MLA formatting (Links to an external site.).

Remember to include your word count at the end of your essay, and also a Works Cited page that cites your poem. Outside/additional sources are not required, but if you choose to use one to help you with your analysis, then you must make sure to quote and cite it, and include it on your Works Cited page. Failing to do this can look like plagiarism and you risk failing the assignment.
Reminders:
Use your chosen literary devices (examples: tone, word choice, imagery) to explain what the poem “means.”
If you only analyze the above ^^ then you are using new criticism as the literary theory for your analysis. You have the option to use another literary theory to guide your analysis.
Use examples from the text to convincingly support the claims you’re making.
When quoting extensively, take time to explain the specific parts (letters, sounds, words, punctuation, etc.) in the quote that prove your point.
Avoid simply restating each line, but analyze and discuss the words/lines with a purpose.
Use the present tense when describing or discussing events in the poem. In writing about literature, the convention is to always use the present tense throughout. The idea is that the poet is currently communicating thoughts to you in the present time.
Ensure you have correctly spelled all names and titles. Put the name of the poem in double-quotation marks. When referring to the poet, write out his/her full name (and later references can be last name only).
Don’t confuse the poet with the speaker of the poem – they are different.
Remember to put quotation marks at the beginniaqwng and end of each quoted part.