Poetry (highlight the word) Poetry is the most compact form of literature. Using a few carefully chosen words, poets express a range of emotions, tell epic stories, and reveal truths. Key elements of poetry: –Form and Structure –Sound –Imagery –Figurative Language

Form and Structure (highlight the words) Poems are written in lines, which can vary in length. Lines are grouped together in stanzas. These are sections of the poem separated by a space. The way a poem’s lines and words are arranged on the page is its form. (Highlight the bold words in a second color)

Forms (first color) Ballad: a type of narrative poem that tells a story. A ballad is meant to be sung or recited. Because it tells a story, a ballad has a setting, a plot, and characters. Most have regular patterns of rhythm and rhyme. (highlight the bold words with second color highlighter) Ode A type of lyric poem that addresses broad, serious themes such as justice, truth, or beauty. Epic A long narrative poem about the adventures of a hero whose actions reflect the ideals and values of a nation or group.

Form, Continued Sonnet A poem that has a formal structure, containing fourteen lines and a specific rhyme scheme and meter. The sonnet, which means “little song,” can be used for a variety of topics. Free Verse Poetry without a regular pattern or rhyme, rhythm, or meter. Free verse is used for a variety of subjects. (highlight bold words with second color)

Speaker (highlight the word) The speaker of a poem is the voice that relates the story or ideas of the poem. The voice may include the use of dialect, a form of language spoken in a certain place by a certain group of people. The poet may also use idioms to make the speaker’s voice more realistic. An idiom is a descriptive expression that means something different than the combination of the words that make it up. (highlight in second color)

Sound (highlight in first color) Besides form, poets use sound devices to reinforce the meaning of a poem. Rhyme, meter, and word choice are the key sound devices in a poem.

Sound Rhyme is the repetition of sounds at the end of words. –Internal rhyme is the use of rhyming words within a line. –End rhyme is the use of rhymes at the ends of lines. –The pattern of end rhymes in a poem is called its rhyme scheme. (highlight bold words in second color) A poem’s rhythm is the pattern of sound created by stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry. –Stressed syllables are those word parts that are read with emphasis. –Unstressed syllables are less emphasized. Meter is a regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables which can be repeated from line to line. To hear the rhythmic pattern, read the poem aloud.

Sound, Continued Repetition refers to sounds, words, phrases, or lines that are stated or used more than once in a poem. Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginnings of words. (highlight bold words in second color)

Imagery (highlight in first color) Imagery refers to words and phrases that appeal to the five senses. Poets use imagery to create a picture in the reader’s mind or to remind the reader of a familiar sensation. (highlight bold words in second color)

Figurative Language (highlight in first color) Figurative language conveys a meaning beyond the ordinary, literal meaning Personification is the giving of human qualities to a an animal or object. Onomatopoeia is the use of words whose sounds suggest their meanings. (highlight bold words in second color) A simile is a comparison of two things with a common quality that is expressed using like or as. A metaphor is also a comparison of two things with a common quality, but it does not use the words like or as. An analogy is a comparison between two things that seem dissimilar, in order to show the ways in which they might be similar.

Symbol (highlight in first color) A symbol is a person, a place, an object, or an action that stands for something beyond itself. Readers can usually recognize what a symbol stands for. (underline the italicized words)