Poetry Defining terminology

Alliteration The repetition of similar sounds, usually consonants or consonant clusters, in a group of words. Used for emphasis; can have a musical quality EXAMPLE “Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.”

Allusion A reference in a work of literature to a person, place, or event in another work of literature or in history, art, or music. EXAMPLE References to mythology or Shakespeare’s plays are very common. “He has the strength of Atlas.”

Assonance The repetition of similar vowel sounds, usually close together, in a group of words. Used to please the ear and emphasize certain sounds. EXAMPLE “free and easy” and “night tide”

Blank Verse Unrhymed iambic pentameter, where each line usually contains ten syllables and every other syllable is stressed. EXAMPLE “Bŭt sóft! Whăt ligh′t/through yon/der win/dow breaks?”

Couplet Two consecutive lines of poetry that rhyme. EXAMPLE “Did my heart love till now? Foreswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night.”

Diction A writer’s choice of words, particularly for clarity, effectiveness, and precision. Choosing the “right” word EXAMPLE “Three blind mice,/ See how they run.” “Three rodents with defective vision, Observe their rate of motion.”

Dramatic poetry Poetry in which one or more characters speak. Each speaker always addresses a specific listener. The listener may be silent or may be another character who speaks in reply.

Figurative language Language that is not intended to be interpreted in the literal sense. Always makes a comparison between different things. Interpretation of poetry often depends on recognizing its figurative meaning.

Free Verse Poetry that has no fixed meter or pattern and that depends on natural speech rhythms. It may or may not rhyme. Lines can be different lengths. May suddenly switch rhythms.

Iambic pentameter The most common verse line in English poetry. It consists of five feet, with each foot an iamb. In other words, an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. EXAMPLE “Alack the day! He’s gone, he’s killed, he’s dead.”

Imagery Language that appeals to any one or more of the senses. Visual is most common, but others are also used. Effective poets select words to create the most vivid images. EXAMPLE “Cold, wet leaves/ Floating on moss-colored water, / And the croaking of frogs— / Cracked bell-notes in the twilight.”

Internal Rhyme Rhyme within a line of the poem. EXAMPLE “And all the night tide, I lay down by her side.”

Lyric poetry Poetry that expresses a speaker’s personal thoughts or feelings. Often has a musical quality based on its musical origins—a poem sung to the lyre.

Metaphor A figure of speech that draws a comparison between two unlike things without the use of any special language. EXAMPLE “She is the olive in a South Dakota martini.”

Meter A regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in poetry. EXAMPLE Poe’s Eldorado Gaily bedight. A gallant knight In sunshine and in shadow.

Narrative poetry Poetry that tells a story. Epic poetry like the Odyssey is a long poem that tells the story of Odysseus. Ballads are another type of narrative poem.

Onomatopoeia The use of a word whose sound in some degree imitates or suggests its meaning. EXAMPLE Cuckoo Hiss Rustle snap

Personification A form of figurative language that gives human qualities to something nonhuman. EXAMPLE “The wind whistled through the dancing trees.”

Poetry Language arranged in lines with regular rhythm and often a definite rhyme scheme. The sound of its words and the strong feelings expressed by the lines distinguish poetry from other forms of literature.

Quatrain Usually a stanza or a poem of four lines. May also be a group of four lines in a poem unified by a rhyme scheme. EXAMPLE And the night shall be filled with music,/ And the cares, that infest the day,/ Shall fold their tents, like the Arabs,/ and silently steal away.

Refrain A word, phrase, line, or group of lines repeated regularly in a poem, usually at the end of each stanza.

Repetition The return of a word, phrase, stanza form, or affect in any form of literature. Poe believed that repetition was one of the most important and functional devices a poet could use to affect the reader.

Rhyme The repetition of sound in two or more words or phrases that usually appear close to each other in a poem. EXAMPLE River/shiver; song/long; leap/deep

Rhyme scheme The pattern of rhyme in a poem. Each line is assigned a specific letter of the alphabet to determine the pattern of rhyme. Mary had a little lamb ( ) Its fleece is white as snow, ( ) And everywhere that Mary went ( ) Her lamb was sure to go. ( )

Rhythm The arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllables in a pattern. Most apparent in poetry. Often gives a poem a certain musical quality.

Simile A figure of speech that compares two unlike things through the use of the words as, like, as if, than, such as. EXAMPLE “He eats like a bird.” “She’s cool as a cucumber.”

Sound patterns The way words are used to appeal to sense of sound. EXAMPLE Repetition of certain vowels can create a sad, lonely sound in a poem.

Speaker The voice in the poem. It may be the poet or a character (human or nonhuman) created by the poet.

Stanza A group of lines forming a unit in a poem. Its pattern may or may not be fixed.

Symbol / Symbolism Something that represents something beyond itself. EXAMPLE Rose=love and beauty Skull=death Spring and winter=youth and old age Dove=peace

Theme The main idea or the basic message or meaning of a literary piece. The theme is not the same as a subject.

Tone The attitude a writer/poet takes toward his/her subject, characters, and readers.

Line Words in a poem are written in lines which may or may not be sentences.

Form The way a poem looks and is arranged on a page.