Elements of Poetry Poets have many tools they use to add to the poem’s sound, meaning, and emotional effect on the reader.

Poetry is…  The art of expressing one’s thoughts in verse.  Meant to be read aloud.  Mainly about arousing emotions.

Lines  Often organized into stanzas.  2 lines – couplet  3 lines – triplet  4 lines – quatrain  5 lines – cinquain “To a Snow Flake” 1 Hello little snowflake! 2 Where are all your friends? 3 Should I expect a lot of them 4 Before the morning ends? 5 I love it when you come to me 6 and you all fall down together, 7 and I get dressed to visit you, 8 toasty warm in cold, cold weather The poem above has 8 lines. The lines are organized into quatrains.

Stanzas  A group of lines  Gives poems structure  Often have 4, 5, or 6 lines.  Each stanza signals a new image “First and Last” by David Cord 1 A tadpole hasn’t a pole at all, And he doesn’t live in a whole in the wall And he doesn’t live in a whole in the wall 2 You’ve got it wrong: a polecat’s not A cat on a pole. And I’ll tell you what: A cat on a pole. And I’ll tell you what: 3 A bullfrog’s never a bull; and how Could a cowbird possibly be a cow? Could a cowbird possibly be a cow? 4 A kingbird, though, is a kind of king, And he chases a crow like anything. And he chases a crow like anything. Four stanzas in Couplets

Meter  Meter is the rhythmical pattern, or the arrangement and number of stressed and unstressed syllables.

Rhyme “Ten Minutes til the Bus” By David L. Harrison Ten whole minutes, Til the bus, Scads of time, What’s the fuss? Two to dress, One to flush, Two to eat, One to brush, That leaves four To catch the bus, Scads of time, What’s the fuss?  Words rhyme when they have the same sound  Rhyme scheme is a pattern of rhymes in a poem. A A B B A A

Rhyme Scheme  Rhyme Scheme is the pattern of rhyme in a poem. It is written in letters; aabb is a stanza whose first two and last two lines rhyme. End Rhyme: occurs when the end of the lines share the same sound. End Rhyme: occurs when the end of the lines share the same sound. Internal Rhyme: is when a rhyme occurs within a single line, as in This Samuel Coleridge line: “In mist or cloud, on mast or shroud.” Internal Rhyme: is when a rhyme occurs within a single line, as in This Samuel Coleridge line: “In mist or cloud, on mast or shroud.” Rhyming Couplets: are a pair of rhyming lines that usually have the same meter and length. Rhyming Couplets: are a pair of rhyming lines that usually have the same meter and length.

Rhythm  Patterns of beats or a series of stressed an unstressed syllables in poem. “Windy Nights” by Robert Louis Stevenson Whenever the moon and stars are set, Whenever the wind is high, All night long in the dark and wet, A man goes riding by. Late in the night when the fires are out, Why does he gallop and gallop about?

Free Verse  Poetry written without a regular rhyme, rhythm, or form.  Poets use free verse because it allows them to experiment with the shapes and sounds of poetry.