Poetry Terms A Review with examples

Poetry is the most musical literary form Poetry is the most musical literary form. Poets choose words for both sound and meaning.

Sensory language is writing or speech that appeals to one or more of the five senses—sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. Sometimes it is called imagery. The apparition of these faces in the crowd; Petals on a wet, black bough. ~Ezra Pound, In a Station of the Metro

Figurative Language is writing that is imaginative and not meant to be taken literally. This includes metaphors, similes, and personification. The Eagle, by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1851)   He clasps the crag with crooked hands; Close to the sun in lonely lands, Ringed with the azure world, he stands. The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls; He watches from his mountain walls, And like a thunderbolt he falls.

Metaphors describe one thing as if it were another Her eyes were saucers, wide with expectation. Similes use like or as to compare two unlike things The drums were as loud as a fireworks display. Personification gives human qualities to something that is not human. The clarinets sang.

Sound devices add a musical quality to poetry Sound devices add a musical quality to poetry. You notice sound devices mostly when reading poetry aloud or listening to it.

Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginnings of words. Girl Help, by Janet Lewis Mild and slow and young, She moves about the room, And stirs the summer dust With her wide broom. In the warm, lofted air, Soft lips together pressed, Soft wispy hair, She stops to rest, And stops to breath, Amid the summer hum, The great white lilac bloom Scented with days to come.

Repetition is the repeated use of a sound, word, or phrase. Circles, by Myra Cohn Livingston I am speaking of circles. The circle we made around the table, our hands brushing as we passed potatoes. The circle we made in our potatoes to pour in gravy, whorling in its round bowl. The circle we made every evening finding our own place at the table with its own napkin in its own ring. I am speaking of circles broken.

Assonance is the repetition of a vowel sound followed by different consonants in stressed syllables. “Her goodly eyes like sapphires shining bright, Her forehead ivory white...” -Edmund Spenser

Consonance is the repetition of a consonant sound at the end of stressed syllables with different vowel sounds. “Now men will go content with what we spoiled Or, discontent, boil bloody, and be spilled... -Wilfred Owens

Onomatopoeia is the use of words that imitate sounds. Eskimos in Manitoba, Barracuda off Aruba, Cock an ear when Roger Bobo Starts to solo on the tuba. ~from “Recital,” by John Updike

Rhyme is the repetition of sounds at the ends of words. On My Boat on Lake Cayuga, by William Cole On my boat on Lake Cayuga I have a horn that goes “Ay-oogah!” I’m not the modern kind of creep Who has a horn that goes “beep beep.”

Meter is the rhythmical pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables. “But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?”

The structure of a poem determines its form The structure of a poem determines its form. Most poems are written in lines. Lines can be grouped into stanzas. Narrative poetry Lyric poetry Ballads Free verse Haiku Rhyming couplets Limericks

Lyric poetry expresses the thoughts and feelings of a single speaker. Tie crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves, Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves. He was my North, my South, my East and West, My working week and my Sunday rest, My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song; I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong. The stars are not wanted now: put out every one, pack up the moon and dismantle the sun, Pour away the ocean and sweep up the woods; For nothing now can ever come to any good. Lyric poetry expresses the thoughts and feelings of a single speaker. Funeral Blues, by W.H. Auden Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone, Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone, Silence the pianos and muffled drum Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come. Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead Scribbling on the sky the message He Is Dead,

stories, including characters, setting, and plot. Examples include “Describe Somebody” and “Almost a Summer Sky” Narrative poetry tells a story in verse. It often has the same elements that are found in short stories, including characters, setting, and plot.

Ballads are songlike poems that tell a story Ballads are songlike poems that tell a story. They often tell about adventure and romance. Examples: “The Highwayman,” by Alfred Noyes “The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere,” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Free verse is poetry that is defined by its lack of strict structure Free verse is poetry that is defined by its lack of strict structure. It does not have to rhyme or have regular meter. Lines do not have to be a specific length. There may be no specific stanza pattern. Six Variations, by Denise Levertov Shlup, shlup, the dog as it laps up water makes intelligent music, resting now and then to take breath in irregular measure.

Haiku is a three-line Japanese form Haiku is a three-line Japanese form. The first and third lines usually have five syllables each. The second line usually has seven syllables. Two concrete images (having to do with seasons and/or nature) are linked. The falling flower I saw drift back to the branch Was a butterfly. -Arakida Moritake

Rhyming couplets are a pair of rhyming lines that usually have the same meter and length. Fatigue, by Hilaire Belloc I’m tired of Love: I’m still more tired of Rhyme. But Money gives me pleasure all the time. Variation on Belloc’s “Fatigue,” by Wendy Cope I hardly ever tire of love or rhyme— That’s why I’m poor and have a rotten time.

Limericks are humorous poems with five lines Limericks are humorous poems with five lines. They have a specific rhythm pattern and rhyme scheme. The limerick packs laughs anatomical In space that is quite economical, But the good ones I've seen So seldom are clean, And the clean ones so seldom are comical. -Anonymous