Exploring Poetry Dream Deferred by Langston Hughes What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up Like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore-- And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over-- like a syrupy sweet? Maybe it just sags like a heavy load. Or does it explode?

What is Poetry? Type of rhythmic, compressed language that uses figures of speech and imagery to appeal to the readers’s emotions and imagination

Elements of Poetry Poetry is literature in verse form, a controlled arrangement of lines and stanzas Poems use concise, musical, and emotionally charged language to express multiple layers of meaning Poets use figurative language to help readers recognize relationships and similarities among different things

Figurative Language Language that is used imaginatively , rather than literally to express ideas or feelings in new ways Figures of speech similes- comparisons between unlike things using the words, like, as or than Ex. She runs like the wind metaphors- comparisons that speaks of one thing in terms of another Ex. It is the east, and Juliet is the sun Personification- human traits given to nonhuman things Ex. The ocean snarled and pounded against the shore Imagery- descriptive language that makes vivid impressions Images developed through sensory language that relate to sight, sound, taste, touch, smell and movement

Poetic Sound Devices Poets use sound devices to achieve a musical quality Rhythm- the pattern created by stressed and unstressed syllables of words in sequence Meter- a pattern of rhythm Rhyme- the repetition of identical sounds in the last syllables of words Rhyme scheme- a pattern of rhyme at the ends of the lines Most common type is end rhyme Internal rhyme occurs within lines- ex. The warm sun is failing, the bleak wind is wailing Alliteration- the repetition of the initial consonant sounds of nearby words Ex. light and lemon Assonance- the repetition of vowel sounds in nearby words Ex. date and fade Consonance- the repetition of consonants within nearby words in which the preceding vowels differ Ex. milk and walk Onomatopeia- use of a word whose sound imitates or suggests its meaning; it reinforces meaning and create musical sound Ex. Buzz, Splash, Bark

Graphic Elements Poets use graphic elements to help readers understand the poem and strengthen the sound or visual appeal of the poem Stanza- group of consecutive lines that form a single unit in a poem; Similar to a paragraph and often expresses a unit of thought Punctuation- marks such as commas to show the reader where to slow down or pause Line length- help determine whether a poem has a flowing sound or a short, choppy sound Word position- show relationships between words and ideas Foot- a single rhythmical unit of verse Blank poetry- poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter Iambic pentameter- each line consists of five iambs Iamb- type of metrical foot that consists of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable

Types of Poetry Blank verse- poem written in unrhymed iambic pentameter line; verse form widely used by William Shakespeare Free verse- poetry not written in a regular pattern of meter or rhyme ex. Cornelius Eady’s “The Poetic Intepretation of the Twist” Narrative- tells a story with a plot, characters, and setting Ex. The Bridegroom Epic- long narrative poem about the feats of gods or heroes such as Beowulf Ballad- a songlike narrative with stanzas and a refrain Dramatic- tells a story using a character’s own thoughts or spoken statements Lyric- poems written in highly musical language that expresses the thoughts, observation and feelings of a single speaker Lyrics are the most common type of poem in modern literature Sonnet- a fourteen-line lyric poem with formal patterns of rhyme, rhythm, and line structure; Shakespearean sonnet consists of three quatrains (four- line stanzas) and a couplet (two lines at the end); usually rhyming abab cdcd efef gg

Poetry Vocabulary Allusion- reference to a well-known person, place, event literary work or work of art Apostrophe-breaking off from normal speech and speaking to an imaginary person or even to an abstract quality or idea; typically a question, an explanation or an expression of frustration Denotation- word in its dictionary meaning, independent of other associations that the word may have ex. Lake- an inland body of water Connotation- word is the set of ideas associated with it in addition to its explicit meaning ex. Vacation spot or place where the fishing is good Diction- author’s choice of words, especially with regard to vocabulary (formal or slang) Metonymy- figure of speech where a name of one thing is replaced with the name of something that is closely associated with it ex. He write with a fine hand Mood- the feeling created in the reader by a literary work or passage; suggested by descriptive details and can be described in a single word ex. Frightening feeling

Poetry Vocabulary Oxymoron- combination of words that contradict each other; device used to reveal the deeper truth ex. Bittersweet; wise fool Paradox- statement that seems contradictory but that actually may express a deeper truth; it catches the readers attention Speaker- an imaginary voice assumed by the writer of a poem; speaker is not identified by name and the speaker can be a person, animal, thing or an abstraction Tone- the writer’s attitude toward his/her audience and subject; described by a single adjective ex. Bitter tone Theme- central message or insight into life revealed through a literary work

Famous World Poets William Shakespeare Langston Hughes Emily Dickinson William Blake E.E. Cummings Lord Byron Maya Angelou Edmund Spenser Shel Silverstein Gwendolyn Brooks Walt Whitman