A poem explained by using Structuralist criticism

when we talk about the narrative elements of a novel, for example—things like plot, character, conflict, setting, point of view—we're borrowing the structuralist idea that there are certain principles or structures that can be found in all novels. The same goes for other types of literature.

scritics are not looking to interpret the work as the product of the poet's state of mind at a particular time or as a reflection of the period in which a poem was written. Historical, social, economic, and political concerns are not important to structuralism. Instead, a structuralist critic looks at the structure of a poem , its vocabulary and sentence structure, and its use of metaphorical language. Structuralism focuses on what is intrinsic to the work  and ignores extrinsic matter. It is like understanding the map of the world , not going country to COUNTRY to collect bits of information. It will never tell you the motifs or themes of a piece of writing . It only reads the warp and woof of a piece of work.

I have given below a sample of structural criticism on the poem , personal Helicon by Seamus Heaney , hope it helps you .

The poem is comprised upon 20 lines divided into five stanzas. The first line of every stanza rhymes with the third line and the second line with the fourth. The first four stanzas are in past tense whereas the last one is in present tense. Some words are not colloquial at all however the overall diction is easy and comprehensive. The poem is filled with the literary devices like Assonance, synesthesia, Imagery, metaphors, onomatopoeia, allusions etc