TP-CASTT Poetry Analysis

TITLE: Consider the title and make a prediction about what the poem is about.
The title Jade Flower Palace makes the poem sounds like its about something that was either
once beautiful or still is.
PARAPHRASE: Examine the poem line by line into your own words on a literal level. Look for
complete thoughts (sentences may be inverted) and look up unfamiliar words.
The stream flows around. The sound of the wind is very distinct as it moves through the pine
trees. Gray rats scamper over broken tiles. What prince built this palace, alongside the cliffs? The
black abandoned rooms are haunted. The pavement has all been washed away as the years went
by. The blasting sound coming from the palace is overpowering everything around it. The storm
moves the red leaves around. The people that were once in this palace have turned to dust. And
all memories of them have crumbled away. The princes items are lost. Only a statue of a horse is
left to tell his story. As I sit on the grass and start a poem, the quality of the palace overcomes
me. The future goes away without being noticed. Who knows what more time will bring?
CONNOTATION: Examine the poem for meaning beyond the literal. Look for figurative
language, imagery, and sound elements.
The connotation of this poem is sorrow. It is talking about what once was, and how you never
know what the future will bring. Only a stone horse is left of his/Glory (Tu Fu 14-15).
ATTITUDE/TONE: Notice the speakers tone and attitude. Humor? Sarcasm? Awe?

The authors attitude is heartfelt and sorrowful. This is because the author is mourning over
something that was lost a long time ago. I sit on the grass and/Start a poem, but the pathos of/It
overcomes me (Tu Fu 16-18).
SHIFTS: Note any shifts or changes in speaker or attitude. Look for key words, time change,
punctuation.
There is a shift in line 16. The author goes from describing what has become of the palace, to
telling the reader his feelings about the situation.
TITLE: Examine the title again, this time interpretive level.
The title of the poem is explaining the glory and beauty that the palace or a persons life once
had. The words jade and flower portray an upbeat and positive connotation. These words are
describing the palace or a persons in the past, and how wonderful it used to be.
THEME: Briefly state in your own words what the poem is about (subject), then what the poet
is saying about the subject (theme).
You cannot predict the future, because life is always changing.

In the poem, the author uses many literary elements to further describe the situation in the
poem. For example, Tu Fu uses his attitude to convey the theme of his poem. His attitude (or
tone) in Jade Flower Palace is sorrowful. This is evident in his writing when he says, His
dancing girls are yellow dust. / Their painted cheeks have crumbled/ Away because he is
explaining how the people that used to thrive in this palace are nowhere to be found (Tu Fu 1113). Dancing is a celebratory and happy word; however, it is used to describe the girls which are
not present anymore. Tu Fu is writing about the past, and how memories are the only things that
will survive time. Tu Fu says, I sit on the grass and/ Start a poem, but the pathos of/ It
overcomes me (Tu Fu 16-18). Pathos means something that evokes sorrow or compassion, so
Tu Fu is saying the sorrow takes over his mind and body. Sorrow he feels from remembering the
joyful past. All of those wonderful people and objects have been washed away, and only the
memories of them remain in his thoughts (Tu Fu 8). The connotation used in this poem also helps
portray the tone. There is negative connotation displayed in this poem, because Tu Fu is talking
about what once was, and how nobody will ever know what the future will bring. In this case, the
future brought despair, destruction, and emptiness. The title of the poem also makes the poem
easier to read and understand, because it gives a background of what the poem is going to be
about. Before reading the poem Jade Flower Palace, and only looking at the title, one could
suspect that the poem will be about something that is beautiful or was once beautiful. The words
jade and flower are words to describe beauty, and in the title these two words are used to
describe the palace. The palace was once a beautiful place full of pretty dancing girls, gold
chariots, magnificent horses, and handsome princes. All of which have blown away as the years
went on, and going back to the palace there is nothing left but the memories that will be
cherished forever.