the SITUATION, SYNTAX, and SOUND in a POEM

SITUATION - The context in which the speaker finds him- or herself in the poem. This is roughly equivalent to SETTING and PLOT in fiction.

SYNTAX - The structure of language in a poem. A poem's lines may be long or short, simple or complex. Generally we look to the line length or the shape of the lines and stanzas as being related somehow to the poem's theme.

SOUND - The SOUND in poems is extremely important. Poems can be analyzed by rhythm or the internal sounds of words or phrases.