The Greek Word POESIS means "to make." A poet "makes a poem" by using imagination and words. A poem usually is a creation of images and figures of speech. Just as an artist uses mediums such as paint to "make a picture", a poet writes words for a poem. Thoughts and feelings, images and figurative language are utilized to create a poem.
IMAGERY Images are the mental pictures created by words in a poem. They are an expression of the writer's imagination. For example, think about a time when you have been very happy. You are not just thinking about the word happy, but you imagine specific kinds of happy images. In fact, just the thought or mention of what makes you happy might make you smile. You may see yourself in situations where people you enjoy are around you, or see yourself doing your favorite activity. These images or mental pictures of happiness, much like the images expressed in a poem. ANOTHER example would be to use the word hungry and imagine different pictures or scenarios regarding food. ANOTHER example is fright: seeing objects or situations that make you afraid.
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE A poet uses many images to describe one thing. Frequently, poets use figurative language to express an idea. Figurative language goes beyond the literal meaning to create a vivid effect or feeling in a piece of literature. Below, we will describe types of figurative language: 1. Simile and Metaphor 2. Personification 3. Hyperbole 4. Symbol
A SIMILE is a comparison between two things using the words "like" , "as" or "than". One will often hear somebody say things like "so-and-so does this like a ________." "Mr. Doe eats like a hog." This is a simile that compares eating habits to an image of a hog, one can imagine the sound of grunting, images of sloppy eating. Whenever one uses the word "like" they are showing two things are being compared. Another example of a simile is when using the word "as." When using "as," there are a few more words to illustrate, such as, "Mrs. Doe studies as earnestly as a regular scholar studies."
A METAPHOR does not include or use the word "like" or "as." For instance, one could say, "Mrs. Doe is a bomb!" or "The rain dances on the pane," or "Time flies by, it's a swift bird." Metaphors will often connect or compare two unlike objects. Again, one knows a metaphor from a simile when absent are the words "like" or "as" or "than."
PERSONIFICATION is a figure of speech where the writer or poet will transfer characteristics of a living thing to something that is not alive. This is also a use of words when human qualities are transferred to something that is not human. The examples of a personification of a bird: "her feathered fingers reach to massage the clouds," or "the cloud crawls unwanted into the city, sits still, then lifts away, like a rejected idea." We all know that birds do not have fingers and cannot massage, nor do clouds crawl or sit or have an understanding of the word rejection.
HYPERBOLE is a sentence or thought that is very exaggerated, such as: "Her voice was so big it shook the walls down," or "that tree is a distorted knobby freak." Writers use hyperboles for special effects or to amplify a meaning. For instance, one might write about a love they have for the way someone looks. "I savor the delicious miles of your eyes and grasp your milky fingers until the end of time." (What an exaggeration that was!)
SYMBOLS are things that represent something else. A few examples are: Peace signs, hearts, ying-yang, crosses, light-bulbs, smiley faces, question marks, and even a moving sign, like a nodding head or waving hand