From Ballad to Blank Verse, Elegy, Epic, Free Verse, Haiku, Limerick, and Sonnets, Poetry is...
1. The art of rhythmical composition, written or spoken, for exciting pleasure by beautiful, imaginative, or elevated thoughts. 2. Literary work in metrical form; verse. 3. (The site says Prose but we’ll say) Text with poetic qualities. From What some poets say it is: "Poetry is when emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words“ - Robert Frost “Poetry at its best uses words to say more than words can say.” - Marvin Bell "Poetry is what in a poem makes you laugh, cry, prickle, be silent, makes your toe nails twinkle...“ -Dylan Thomas
Simile Metaphor Personification Alliteration Onomatopoeia Hyperbole Symbolism Connotative Meaning Denotative Meaning
Direct comparison of two things which by their general nature are different from each other Uses “like” or “as”
Implied comparison between two unlike things Usually uses a form of “to be” verb (is, are, was, were) Does not use “like” or “as”
Giving human characteristics to an animal, object, or idea
Repeating consonant sounds in two or more words or syllables ◦ Karl cooks cookies. ◦ Carl can catch. ◦ Mommy makes me mad! ◦ Phil fired Fanny Fay.
Words that imitate sounds ◦ Snap! Crackle! Pop! ◦ Slam! Zip! Zoom! Pow! ◦ Buzz! Bang! Zap! ◦ Clank! Clang! Drip! Drop!
Extreme exaggeration ◦ I’m so hungry I could eat an entire horse!! ◦ Your uncle’s so fat, he walked in front of my TV and I missed 3 episodes!
Something concrete, such as an object, person, place or happening, that stands for something abstract such as an idea, quality, concept, or condition ◦ Heart=lovePeace sign=Peace ◦ 4-leaf clover=luck Flag=freedom
Emotional meaning of a word beyond the dictionary meaning of the word ◦ Euphemism: A nicer way to say something (positive connotation or spin) passed away slender Husky or big boned A face only a mother could love Wise or aged
Dictionary meaning of a word—literal meaning
Concrete details that appeal to the five senses ◦ Touch, sight, sound, smell, taste
Lines Stanzas Rhyme and Rhyme Scheme Couplets Quatrains Rhythm Meter Iambic Pentameter
Correspondence, in two or more words, of ending sounds ◦ End Rhyme: a rhyme that occurs in the last syllable of lines ◦ Internal Rhyme: Rhyme between a word within a line and another word at the end of the same line
A regular pattern of rhyming words Corresponding lines that rhyme with each other in a stanza— represented by letters of the alphabet for each new rhyme Line 1: Roses are red A Line 2: Violets are blue B Line 3: Sugar is sweet C Line 4: And so are you B
A formal division of lines in a poem, considered as a unit ◦ “Poetry Paragraph”
Two successive lines of poetry marked by end rhyme – usually expresses a single idea: My love for you Will always be true You are mine And that is just fine
A stanza made up of 4 lines usually with a definite rhythm and rhyme scheme
Pattern of accented and unaccented syllables in spoken and written language Used to pace the poem
The meter of the poem is its rhythmical pattern determined by the number and types of stresses or beats English verse is described as being made up of rhythmical units called “feet” A foot consists of some combination of unstressed (˘) and stressed (´) syllables
One unaccented syllable followed by an accented syllable English speech—natural iambic beat Sounds like a heartbeat “Her deck/ once red/with he/rose blood” ˘ ˘ ˘ ˘ ´ ´ ´ ´
Ballad Blank Verse Elegy Epic Free Verse Haiku Limerick Sonnets Shakespearian or English Sonnets
A 14-line lyric poem usually written in rhymed iambic pentameter
Three quatrains and a couplet Rhyme scheme: abab cdcd efef gg Written in iambic pentameter
Unrhymed verse written in iambic pentameter (an unstressed syllable usually begins the line)
Poetry that follows no set patterns of rhyme, meter, or line length
A traditional Japanese 3-line poem containing 5 syllables in the first line, 7 in the second, and 5 again in the third It presents a picture, or image, in order to around specific emotions in the reader
A single narrative poem in 4- line stanzas, usually meant to be sung and usually rhyming abcb
A poem that laments the dead, frequently long and formal in tone
A long story, often told in verse, involving heroes and gods Grand in length and scope, an epic provides a portrait of an entire culture, of the legends, beliefs, values, laws, arts and ways of life of a people Example: The Odyssey
Short, 5-line humorous poem Rhyme scheme: aabba There was an old man of the isles Who suffered severely from piles He couldn’t sit down Without a deep frown So he had to row standing for miles (Contributed by Natalie Moffitt) Found on