1. A Sick Rose William Blake
Explication
A Sick Rose
William Blake

2. A Sick Rose O Rose, thou art sick, The invisible worm,
That flies in the night
In the howling storm
Has found out thy bed
Of crimson joy :
And his dark secret love
Does thy life destroy.

3. O Rose, thou art sick, Break the poem down
Choose the most important words
Brainstorm: do not second guess yourself at this point
Use a diagram or free-write
Sick: infection, disease, physical? mental?

4. Keep Brainstorming Remember: don’t edit yourself
There is no such thing as “wrong” at this point
Highlight, underline, circle, write in the margins, etc.

5. Modifiers = highlighted
Animal; fear? Frightening?
O Rose, thou art sick,
The invisible worm,
That flies in the night
In the howling storm
Has found out thy bed
Of crimson joy :
And his dark secret love
Does thy life destroy.
Mysterious; dark
Links with “night;” evil?
Destruction, chaos, link with “storm?”
Nouns = underlined
Verbs = circled
Modifiers = highlighted

6. Group and Analyze What words or phrases seem to “go together”:
Rose and crimson
Night and dark
Destroy, storm, worm, howling
Rose, love, bed, crimson, joy
What do these associations suggest to you?

7. Developing Themes Rose and crimson Night and dark
Love, passion
Night and dark
Evil, darkness
Destroy, storm, worm, howling
Destruction, death, chaos
Rose, love, bed, crimson, joy
Passion, sex, love

8. Developing Themes Choose one or more themes
Destruction/death/illness
Passion/love
Write about how the themes are linked
What do the themes have in common?
How might the themes contrast?
Examples
passion can be both positive and negative, destructive and creative
Love and passion can lead to both emotional and physical “illnesses” and “destruction,” i.e. jealousy, death of the relationship, unwanted pregnancy, STD’s, etc.

9. Time to Write Reconstruct the text
Organize thematically or chronologically
Retell “the story of the poem” using your new-found insights
Write about the implications, the things the poet didn’t say

10. Keep in Mind Explications are reader-response exercises
Reader response = what the poem means to you
You do NOT need to “research”
Explication is a skill
It CAN be learned
Anyone can do it
Explications are NOT writing-intensive exercises
You don’t have to be a “good” essay writer, just a “good” thinker