STUDY NOTES TONIGHT FOR TOMORROW’S QUIZ! Elements of Poetry

Introduction Analyzing a poem’s separate elements is fine, as long as you consider the poem as a whole. There are two kinds of poems: a. lyric: (orig. sung to a “lyre”) short, personal; examples include sonnets, odes, etc. b. Narrative: tells a story; long; example– epic * Both types of poems rely upon the same elements.

Elements of Poetry Listed 1. Language 2. Imagery 3. Tone 4. Rhythm and Rhyme 5. Metaphor/Figurative Language 6. Symbols 7. Form 8. Ideas

Language * Poems are either discursive (tell us something) or imagistic (show us something) or both Formal or informal, depending on the tone Euphony (words that sound good together) Cacophony (words that sound grating) Onomatopoeia (imitates the sound referred to Alliteration (repetition of consonant beginning of words) “Stern, stoic, Stella” Assonance (rhyming of vowel sounds- penitent/reticent Denotation/Connotation (dictionary/emotional)

Imagery Appeals to senses Imagist poets (used only images to appeal to reader) Synesthesia: appealing to 2 or more senses Example: “bitter wind”, “loud colors”, “gravel voice” Poets using imagery rely on their knowledge of readers’ experiences “cellophaned flowers” Most poets mix imagery with discursive elements

Tone Arises from the voice projected by poet The manner in which something is said Can be ironic, angry, satirical, judgmental, sympathetic, conversational, etc.

Rhythm and Rhyme Rhythm: pacing, with pauses, starts, and stops End-stopped lines: pause at end of line Run-on lines: thought cont. to next line (use of this is called enjambment) Caesura: break or pause within a line, usu. with a comma or other punct. “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.” Meter: regular rhythm of a poem; some poetry, however, does not have this element Verse: poetry that has both rhyme and meter Foot: basic unit of rhythm, consists of two or more syllables Iamb: unstressed followed by a stressed syllable

Rhythm and Rhyme continued Rhyme: regular sound patterns Masculine rhyme: only the last syllable of the first line echoes last syllable of second line; example “parade… displayed”; “still… fill” Feminine rhyme: two syllables rhyme “googly…moogly” Slant rhyme: sounds almost rhyme “mousse…clues” Assonantal rhyme: vowels within the words rhyme “tube…mood” Consonantal rhyme: consonants echo each other “klutz…blitz” Internal rhyme: end word rhymes w/ a word in the middle of the line or nearby line “Ah, distinctly I remember, it was in the bleak December.” (“The Rime…”) Eye rhyme: words look alike but don’t sound alike “blood…food”

Metaphor and figurative language Comparison not using “like” or “as” Noun metaphor: when a subject is compared to another noun “love is a sickness…” Implied metaphor: not stated directly “the autumn of my life”; “That image sparks an idea in her mind.” Simile: comparison using “like” or “as” Extended or “epic” simile: comparison is stretched over several lines; also called “Homeric” simile As when the shudder of the west wind suddenly rising scatters across the water, and the water darkens beneath it, so darkening were settled the ranks of Achaians and Trojans in the plain.

Other types of figurative language Irony (see notes on short fiction) Paradox: idea that seems to contradict itself; with true wisdom we realize how truly ignorant we are Personification: “the forest whispered…” Pun: play on words that depends on a word having several meanings; We almost got creamed by a milk truck. I was udderly terrified!/ The dentist’s alibi was so full of holes, that the police performed a full cavity search.

Other figurative language continued Metonymy: when you use one thing in place of something closely related to it; athlete=jock; casino=the house; police=the heat Synecdoche: uses a part for the whole; wheels to mean car; hands on deck to mean sailors Hyperbole: exaggeration or overstatement; I died from embarrassment! Litotes: understatement; WWII was a “little squabble”; “it was not unpopular= it was widely popular”

Symbols Specialized use of metaphor Some are specific and some conventional; scarlet letter = shame from sin (specific); west= death; fire=passion

Form All poems have some kind of form. Sonnet: 14 lines; set rhythm and rhyme scheme; 2 main types are Italian and English Stanza: group of lines in a poem Couplet: 2 lines that rhyme Tercet: 3-lined stanza Quatrain: 4-lined stanza Quintain: 5 –lined stanza Sestet: 6-lined stanza Septet: 7-lined stanza Octave: 8-lined stanza

Ideas Other elements of poetry help to emphasize the poem’s ideas Also called “theme” Simple, straightforward or complex, ambiguous Try not to be judgmental when examining a poem’s ideas; for example, if a poem’s theme is on loneliness, what the poet is claiming about loneliness (good, bad, inevitable, etc.) is up to interpretation Example: “Carpe diem” Parody: a mimic (either respectful or mocking) of another poem