פישי וסמנטי (אותנטי ומטפורי)

The distinction is a starting point, not an answer

• The objective is to distinguish between the literal and figurative meanings of words and phrases.
• Distinguishing is the skill; deciding which one applies is often not the point.
• In poetry both frequently apply at once, and that is where the analysis lives.

In a poem, “cold” may report the weather and the welcome at the same time.

Multiple meanings add complexity

• Words with multiple meanings or connotations add nuance or complexity that can contribute to interpretations of a text.
• So a word that could mean two things is not a problem to solve.
• It is a resource, and the poem usually put it there deliberately.

Denotation and connotation

• A word's literal meaning is what it denotes; its connotations are what it brings with it.
• Slender and scrawny denote nearly the same thing and connote opposite judgements.
• The CED's phrase is meanings or connotations — both count as evidence.

Start literal, always

• Before reading a phrase figuratively, say what it means literally.
• Many wrong readings come from leaping to symbolism over a sentence that had a plain sense.
• The figurative reading is stronger when it is built on top of the literal one, not instead of it.

A two-meaning pass

• For each key word: what does it denote, and what does it connote?
• Could it be read literally here? Could it be read figuratively?
• If both, say so — that is the nuance the CED is pointing at.