Poem interpretation: Instructions for teaching German

The interpretation of the poem is an essential part of the German lessons and often very unpopular. In this article you can read what the poem interpretation is all about and how you write it.

What is an interpretation of a poem?

The poem interpretation is part of a poem analysis. The interpretation of the poem is about understanding and explaining a text.

• The poem interpretation is often confused with a poem analysis. In most German work, the job is mostly "analyze and interpret". Therefore, the two types of text are not clearly differentiated.
• Poem analysis is about dividing the poem into its individual components and examining them for lyrical peculiarities. In contrast, the poem interpretation tries to make an interpretation. The analysis is therefore the basis for the interpretation.

Writing an interpretation of a poem: How to proceed

It is best to start by reading through the poem to get an overview of the content. Then read the poem carefully a second time.

• When you have grasped the content of the poem, you can write the introduction to the interpretation of the poem. This should not be longer than two to three sentences. It only serves to provide the reader with the most important information and to explain the situation to him.
• In the introduction you should provide information on the title, author, text type and subject of the poem. In connection with this, the type of poetry can also be specified. You should also make a hypothesis that you should use arguments to confirm or refute at the end of the interpretation. The hypothesis should include your assumption about the meaning or the statement of the work.
• An example of an introduction would be, for example: "The poem ... by ... dates from ... and deals with the subject .... The author's main message is ...".
• Before writing the main part, you should write down the aspects and arguments of the poem. Then the main part will also be easier for you. The main part consists of the content, formal and linguistic analysis of the poem. All arguments should also be quoted. For example with the words "... you can see that in the quote ...".
• After the content analysis, you should proceed to the interpretation, which is the most important part of the interpretation. Here it should be explained what the poet wants to say with what. The conclusions you draw should be linked to the linguistic and formal analysis.
• The end of the interpretation can be just as short and concise as the introduction. In the end, you should only write a conclusion about the poem. Avoid expressing your own opinion, it has no place in the interpretation of the poem.

Poem: Formal, linguistic and content analysis

The main part of the formal, linguistic and content analysis should be:

• The formal analysis includes meter and rhythm, the construction of verses and stanzas, the rhyme scheme and the rhetorical means.
• Linguistic analysis should include vocabulary and linguistic stylistic devices. In the context of the linguistic analysis, you should also deal with linguistic peculiarities, with sentence structure and with sentence beginnings.
• In the content analysis, you should ask yourself what the title makes and what it refers to. You should also give a more detailed explanation of the topic. In this part, you should also draw conclusions about the content and the interpretation.

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