Graphic Elements in Poetry By Marsha Barrow

Punctuation Punctuation in poetry is similar to punctuation in prose. In many ways, it serves the same purpose as bar lines in music: without them, the words and notes flow all together. Punctuation assists in organizing the written word into discernable packages or units. Punctuation in poetry serves the same function as in prose: to encase thoughts and ideas to aid in meaning; to avoid confusion to signal when and where to breathe.

I often find myself longing to hear a poet read their work rather than “just listening” to it in my own mind or hearing it uttered by my own tongue. Why? Because we enter into that poet’s realm of interpretation. The result (hopefully) is that we can hear their emphasis. We are then part of the poetic experience. ! ? “ “ , ! – ( ) ! ? ‘ ? ! : ; , : ?

Capital Letters In poetry writing, the traditional rule is that the first letter of each line is capitalized regardless of whether or not it starts a new sentence. However, poets don’t always follow the rules, which is why poetry is attractive to writers who are extra creative and enjoy coloring outside the lines. Either way works, which is why poetry is more an art form that most other types of writing.

e. e. cummings, an American poet and painter, had his name legally changed to lowercase letters. He first attracted attention for his eccentric punctuation. i shall imagine life by e.e. cummings i shall imagine life is not worth dying,if (and when)roses complain their beauties are in vain but though mankind persuades itself that every weed's a rose,roses(you feel certain)will only smile

Line Length/Meter In verse and poetry, meter is a recurring pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in lines of a set length. For example, suppose a line contains ten syllables (set length) in which the first syllable is unstressed, the second is stressed, the third is unstressed, the fourth is stressed, and so on until the line reaches the tenth syllable.

The line would look like the following one (the opening line of Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 18") containing a pattern of unstressed and stressed syllables. The unstressed syllables are in blue and the stressed syllables in red: Shall I com PARE thee TO a SUM mer’s DAY? Each pair of unstressed and stressed syllables makes up a unit called a foot. The line contains five feet in all, as shown next: ....1.............. 2.................3..............4................ 5 Shall.I..|..com.PARE..|..thee.TO..|..a.SUM..|..mer’s DAY?

The line is a poem’s most basic unit The line is a poem’s most basic unit. The length of each line of a poem is part of its composition. The length of the lines in a poem will affect the meaning of the words within those lines, as well as the sound and rhythm as the poem is read. Some feet in verse and poetry have different stress patterns. The length of lines—and thus the meter—can also vary. Meter is determined by the type of foot and the number of feet in a line. Rarely is a line of a poem longer than eight feet seen in English language poetry.

What is the number of feet per line? Upon a Lilac Sea by Emily Dickinson   Upon a Lilac Sea To toss incessantly His Plush Alarm Who fleeing from the Spring The Spring avenging fling To Dooms of Balm

Word Position shows relationships between words and ideas. shows the different structures of poems

Word position is important in a Haiku. In English, Haiku is written in three lines with each line having an exact number of syllables. The first line contains five syllables, line two contains seven syllables, and line three contains five syllables: 3 lines : first line, 5 syllables second line, 7 syllables third line, 5 syllables Silence around us Our watchful eyes hear the world Hands do the talking

Word position is important in a Diamante. A diamante is a seven line poem, shaped like a diamond. square symmetrical, conventional shaping, measuring, balancing boxes, rooms, clocks, halos encircling, circumnavigating, enclosing round, continuous circle

Line 1: one word (subject/noun that is contrasting to line 7) Line 2: two words (adjectives) that describe line 1 Line 3: three words (action verbs) that relate to line 1 Line 4: four words (nouns) first 2 words relate to line 1, last 2 words relate to line 7 Line 5: three words (action verbs) that relate to line 7 Line 6: two words (adjectives) that describe line 7 Line 7: one word( subject/noun that is contrasting to line 1)

My Hand Word position is important in a Shape Poem. A Shape Poem takes on the shape of its subject. My Hand

The Plane

Eagles Own the Sky