How Do You Write An Essay Poem?
The essay poem, or lyric essay, blends poetry and essay. It may be as short as a prose poem or much longer and includes elements of lyric poetry, including imagery, strong verbs and evocative language. It does not always include the logical transitions of conventional essays. If it argues at all, it may argue by implication, not thesis development. The lyric essay moves forward “by association, leaping from one path of thought to another by way of imagery or connotation,” according to Seneca Review’s editor, Deborah Tall. Yet, it uses the paragraph and is often more expansive in its use of language than a poem can normally bear. Think of the lyric essay as a personal essay in which you will persuade the reader of the significance of something that happened, as suggested by Purdue University Online Writing Lab, if doing so helps you to get started–except that you will use tighter, more colorful language. Describe one moment in time, as Paul Lisicky does in his lyric essay “The Pillory,
