Read to check imagery against theme . Translate the stated and the unstated parts of imagery into everyday words. Paraphrase the poem in plain English. State a theme for the poem that is consistent with all of it. To appreciate the craft of the poem, assume that nothing in it is there accidentally.
Emphasis is built into a poem's structure.
So do other sound effects, like alliteration and assonance . Symbols and allusions show up in subtle word choices that are easy to overlook and can be very subjective elements. In a great tempest and with shrouds unkempt. In Maynard Mack and others, eds. World Masterpieces , 6th ed.