Poetry Basics

A poem is a composition in verse. It paints pictures by means of poetic devices such as

figurative language, rhythm and rhyme.

Poets and Their Times

Poets reflect the events and ideas of their times through poetry.Understanding of a poet’s time may lead to an understanding of his ideas.Knowledge of a poet’s background also gives us insight into his intention.We refer to “schools of poets”:Metaphysical Poets(John Donne)Romantic Poets(Wordsworth)War Poets(Rupert Brooke)

Analysis of Poetry

Theme/Main Idea Form Diction (Word Choice) Tone (Attitude) Imagery Rhythm Rhyme Metre

Poetic Forms

Narrative Poetry: Ballad, Epic, Allegory, Dramatic Monologue

Lyric: Sonnet (Petrarchan, Shakespearean, Modern), Ode, Elegy.

Analysis of Poetry

Theme/Idea

Each poem conveys the messages or intentions of the poet and these may be explicit (0bvious) or implicit (implied).

The poem may be a narrative, which tells a story, or a lyric, which describes the personal feelings of the poet.

Analysis of Poetry Form

A poem is written in a particular form.

Poems are usually written in lines.

These lines can be grouped into stanzas.

Enjambment or run-on lines occur in poetry where there is no punctuation at the end of a line. The poet’s thoughts remain unbroken.

Analysis of Poetry Diction

The poet’s use of words creates atmosphere and sets the poem in its correct time and place.

Word choice influences rhythm and mood.In a rhyming poem, appropriate word choice is crucial.

Jargon and slang may be used for effect.The use of repetition is also an effective device.

Analysis of Poetry Tone (Attitude)

The tone of the poem reveals the poet’s subjective views and attitude to the reader and to the subject.

Tone contributes to the mood or atmosphere of the poem.

Best descriptive words for tone:FriendlySharpSarcasticIronicAngryHumorousCondescending

(Image the poet’s TONE OF VOICE – “hear” the poet reading his/her poem out loud…)

Analysis of Poetry Imagery

Poetry is a combination of literal and figurative language.

Imagery conjures up word pictures – these affect us emotionally and intellectually.

Metaphors, similes, personifaction.

Alliteration, assonance, consonance, onomatopoeia.

Analysis of Poetry Rhythm

Rhythm sets the pace and should match the meaning.Slow rhythm = sombre meaning.Quick pace = happy mood.When reading a poem aloud, FEEL the change of pace and how it affects the mood of the poem.Pace (tempo) and pause affect rhythm.

Analysis of Poetry Rhyme

Rhyme depends on sound, not sight.

Rhyme schemes differ. Couplet: Two consecutive

rhyming lines. Quatrain: Four-lined

stanza.

Aabb = pair rhyme

Abab = alternate/cross rhyme

Aabb = enclosed rhyme

Abca = free verse

Analysis of Poetry Metre

Metre is the number of stresses, beats or feet in a line of poetry.

Shakespeare used the iambic (rising rhythm of two syllables) pentameter (five feet) to write his sonnets.

Poetic Forms

NARRATIVE POETRY

The Ballad The Epic The Allegory Dramatic Monologue

THE LYRIC

Elizabethan Sonnet Petrarchan Sonnet Modern Sonnet The Ode The Elegy

Poetic Forms: Narrative

A narrative form tells a story. It usually has a beginning, middle,

climax and conclusion. Direct and narrated speech can be

used. Often composed to record historical,

political and family events. Passed down from generation to

generation. Example: “The Pied Piper of

Hamelin”

Poetic Forms: The Lyric

The Lyric is a poem with a musical or song-like quality.

The Lyric conveys the personal thoughts of the poet.

The Lyric was originally accompanied by the lyre.

This form was favoured by romantic poets like Wordsworth, Keats and Shelley.

Narrative Poetry: The Ballad

Oldest form of narrative verse.

At one stage it was sung.

Subject matter: Love, death, war, bravery, adventure, action.

Rhythm has strong beat.

Today = songwriters.

Narrative Poetry: The Epic

Long, narrative poem telling the story of an historical figure or event.

Has been referred to as a “novel in verse”.

Narrative Poetry: The Allegory

The Allegory is a narrative poem that appears in the form of an extended metaphor.

It conveys a veiled moral meaning.

Example: “Faerie Queene” by Spencer.

Narrative Poetry: Dramatic Monologue

Spoken in the first person (“I”).

The speaker addresses an invisible recipient.

From his words, we learn more about the speaker.

Story line = narrative.

Example: Robert Browning

The Lyric: Elizabethan Sonnet

Shakespearean Sonnet

English Sonnet 14 Lines Three quatrains +

rhyming couplet. Iambic

pentameter. Couplet: Ties up

the images and feelings and states the philosophy of the poet.

The Lyric: Petrarchan Sonnet

Italian Sonnet Octave (8 lines) +

Sestet (6 lines). Octave: The

Problem Sestet: The

Solution Break = Volta Octave: abbaabba Sestet: cdecde or

cdcdc or cddcef.

The Lyric: Modern Sonnet

These often combine aspects of the Shakespearean and Petrarchan forms.

They may create their own forms, but always retain the 14 lines.

The Lyric: Sonnet Comparison

The Lyric: The Ode

The Ode is an address or tribute in praise of something.

It describes the personal feelings of the poet.

Originally sung as accompaniment to a Greek Dance.

Later: Praise of inanimate object.

The Lyric: The Elegy

A reflective poem or lament dealing with topics such as death or mourning.

Examples: “Elegy written in a Country Churchyard” by Gray and “Lycidas” by Milton.

Poetry - Concluding Thoughts

A poet is, before anything else, a person who is passionately in love with language.(W.H. Auden)

To have great poets, there must be great audiences.(Walt Whitman)

Poetry is nearer to vital truth than history.(Plato)