WHAT IS THE POETIC RECIPIENT? (WITH EXAMPLES) - LITERATURE - 2025

The poetic recipient in literature is the person to whom a poem is addressed. This term is related to the lyrical subject, which is the narrating voice within a poem and should not be confused with the poet.

In this sense, the lyrical subject emits a message for a poetic recipient, who can be both an idealized person, who exists solely for the purposes of the work, as well as a real individual.

The poetic addressee differs from the common addressee, since the latter can be anyone who reads the work while the former is the ideal individual for whom the poem was written.

Examples of poetic recipient

"Soldier" by Giuseppe Ungaretti

It's like

in autumn

over the trees

leaves.

Poetic recipient

To understand the addressee of this work, it is first necessary to understand the meaning of it, which is a bit cryptic because it is a poem of the Hermetic movement.

This poem refers to war and means that the soldiers at the front resemble the leaves in autumn: at any moment they could fall.

In this work by the Italian Giuseppe Ungaretti, the poetic recipient is a soldier, as the title expresses it, who has participated in the war.

However, it could also be said that the poetic addressee is anyone who is not aware of the damage that war causes on the individuals who must experience it.

"Rima XVI" by Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer

If when rocking the blue bells

of your balcony, Do you think the wind passes by sighing

gossip, knows that hidden between the green leaves

I sigh.

If the confused resonating behind your back

vague rumor, do you think that by your name he called you

distant voice, know that between the shadows that surround you

I'll call you.

If he becomes fearful at night

your heart, when you feel a breath on your lips

burning, know that although invisible next to you

I breathe.

Poetic recipient

In this rhyme by Bécquer, the poetic addressee is the person being observed, the one who thinks he hears the sigh of the wind, a distant voice calling him and who feels a burning breath on his lips.

"Oh, captain, my captain!" by Walt Whitman

Poetic recipient

The poetic addressee in this poem is the captain to whom the poetic voice is addressing:

A little more in-depth study of Whitman's work shows that this poem is dedicated to Abraham Lincoln, this being the “captain” and, therefore, the poetic recipient.

"Song of Death" by José de Espronceda

Poetic recipient

In this work by the Spanish poet José de Espronceda, the poetic voice is death that addresses mortal beings, specifically human beings, these being the poetic recipients. This is evidenced from the first stanza of the poem, in which it is expressed:

References

1. Language poetry and the lyric subject. Retrieved on June 14, 2017, from wings.buffalo.edu.
2. Lyrical subject / object. Retrieved on June 14, 2017, from enotes.com.
3. Lyric poetry. Retrieved on June 14, 2017, from en.wikipedia.org.
4. Types of poetry. Retrieved on June 14, 2017, from www2.anglistik.uni-freiburg.de.
5. Poetry. Retrieved on June 14, 2017, from study.com.
6. Poetry. Retrieved on June 14, 2017, from en.wikipedia.org.
7. Lyric poetry. Retrieved on June 14, 2017, from study.com.