Poetry Terms
Poetry Definition A form of literature where words are chosen to create a special effect. It is no different than any other form of literature except the way it looks on the page.
Form Form is the way a poem looks on the page. A poem can be spotted easily, even without reading it.
#1 Old Age Sticks old age sticks up Keep off signs)& youth yanks them down(old age cries No Tres)&(pas) youth laughs (sing old age scolds Forbid den Stop Must n't Don't &)youth goes right on gr owing old.
The Birdman Long before the sun struck the face of Lookout Mountain, curls of smoke rose from the earth houses at its feet. Women hurried to the springs for water. Boys ran through the village. Dogs barked. The men brought out the weapons and gear of the hunt for admiration and repair. Today would begin the preparation for the ceremonial that would bring the buffalo from the land of the warm wind.
The Sidewalk Racer Skimming An asphalt sea I swerve, I curve, I Sway; I speed to whirring Sound an inch above the Ground; I’m the sailor And the sail, I'm the Driver and the wheel I’m the one and only Single engine Human auto Mobile.
I’ll Give You Law When I read the newspaper, there is always a must section in it that I never pas by. This is the lost and found advertisements usually buried in the back pages. This is a habit I picked up from my grandmother. She always took a keen interest in who had lost what, and who was honestly reporting on items found.
Speed Adjustments A man stopped by and he wanted to know Why my son John had become so slow. I looked out the window and there was John Running so fast he had been and gone Before I saw him. “Look at him go!” I said to the man. “Do you call that slow?” “He seems to be fast when he wants to be,” The man said.
Stanzas Groupings of lines in poetry. These are similar to paragraphs in fiction.
Rhyme The same sound at the ends of words. Roses are red, Violets are blue, I love me, And you do too.
Rhyme Scheme Pattern to the rhyme
Free Verse No rhyme or rhythm pattern to the poem. Sounds like regular conversation.
Rhythm A pattern to the stressed and unstressed syllables. He wrapped her in his seaman’s coat Against the stinging blast; He cut a rope from a broken spar, And bound her to the mast.
Rhyme? Rhythm? Repetition?
Speaker Voice of the poem
Language that is not taken literally. Figurative Language Language that is not taken literally. Example: I am so confused in biology, I can’t even write my name! I want to throw my book in a pond.
Simile A comparison of two unlike objects using the words “like” or “as”
Metaphor A comparison of two unlike objects NOT using “like” or “as”
Which is which?
Personification Giving human qualities to an animal, object or idea. The trees danced in the wind.
Exaggeration for effect. Hyperbole Exaggeration for effect. I was so bored I could have died. I have a ton of homework. I was so angry I thought my head would explode.
Imagery Words that are directed toward and appeal to one of the five senses.
Sounds in Poetry
Alliteration The repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words. Otherwise known as tongue twisters. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. Silly Sally sang a song of sixpence.
“I must confess that in my quest I felt depressed and restless.” Assonance The repetition of vowel sounds in non-rhyming words. “I must confess that in my quest I felt depressed and restless.”
Narrative Poetry Poems that tell a story, they have character, plot and setting.