The Significance of Figurative Language in Teaching Poetry

Abstract

Generally speaking, comprehending the use of figurative language has a big impact on the learning literature in overall, and poetry in particular. The understanding and enjoyment of poetry is greatly aided by instruction that emphasizes the use of figurative language. Poems are works of literature, and the language used in them is often very symbolic and metaphorical (Booth & Moore, 2003). It's a powerful tool for education and a source of enjoyment in the forms of reading, writing, and listening. Poetry does not seem to be as widespread a teaching tool in today's classrooms as one might expect. A lot of educators don't think poetry has a place in the classroom. Because of their personal poor experience, some educators are uneasy with the idea of teaching this genre in general and therefore avoid doing so (Linaberger, 2005, p.366). Children can make the transition from daily language to "an engagement with compressed ideas, connotation, and ambiguity" (Catt, cited in Fisher and Williams, 2000, p. 29) through studying poetry in the lower elementary school. Specifically, teachers of foreign languages no longer include poetry in their curricula because of its complexity as a literary form (Denman, 1988) and a lack of methods for teaching it to students (Stulajterová, 2010). In spite of the fact that "poetry is the style that the majority of English instructors seem least comfortable with" (Lockward, 1994, p.65), when incorporated into a language classroom, poetry becomes a large repertory comprising various nuanced aspects necessary for every language course. Several benefits of employing poetry in language instruction are outlined by Saraç (2003). He explains that literature not only helps students develop an appreciation for beauty, but also provides opportunities to reflect on how to apply novel grammar, syntax, text organization, and vocabulary in their own writing. Additionally, it casually introduces students to literary devices (Hismanoglu, 2005). Hedge (2000) argues that poetry are credible sources that can be utilized to hone readers' ability to take in information passively. Reading sonnets can be a great way to practice close reading, in addition to other reading abilities, such as inferencing, summing up, and so on. In addition, having students rewrite, report on, or translate a poem is a great way to improve their writing abilities (Sheila, Hessler, & Konrad, 2007). 2. The aims of the research: This study aims at finding out: 1. the importance of poetry in teaching English language for EFL learners and whether figurative language poses a challenge to students of poetry or not. 2. the type of figurative language that makes it challenging for English as a Foreign Language learners to understand poetry