Interpreting Poetry “What the heck does that mean?” Many people have found themselves asking that question when reading poetry. So in order to help get a general idea of what poems say, it is necessary to look at some examples of poetry and try to decide what, if anything, the poet is trying to say. Three poems, each by a different author, which all basically follow the same theme will be discussed. Each author uses various literary tools, but for now the main focus will be that of meaning. The first poet to be discussed is Shakespeare. The famous sonnet simply numbered eighteen, Shakespeare appears to writing