Congratulations! You’ve been hired to rewrite your favorite song exactly as Shakespeare used to write! The work will be hard but the payment will be great.

But first, you will need to learn a few things:

Definitions:

Blank Verse: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Iambic Foot: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Iambic Pentameter: What do you think it means? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

What it really means: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Example: but soft, what light through yonder window breaks?

Break down: but SOFT, what LIGHT through YONder WINdow BREAKS?

Iambic Pentameter - Exercise Instructions: Stand up! 1 2 3 4 5 but SOFT/, what LIGHT/ through YON/der WIN/dow BREAKS? U / U / U / U / U /

U = raise foot / = stomp hard

U = _______________________________________________________________ / = _______________________________________________________________

Tip: This is the formula for Iambic Pentameter: iAM/iAM/iAM/iAM/iAM

Example:

That thou, her maid, are far more fair than she.

Practise Questions: For each of the following, break up the sentence into the Iambic Feet, then mark the unstressed and stressed syllables. Finally, translate the sentence into modern English.

1. Two households, both alike in dignity ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. A pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. O, teach me how I should forget to think _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

How would you translate modern language to Iambic Pentameter?

“I asked the nice lunch lady behind the counter for some more savory meat loaf”

You can rearrange, add, or remove words. You can also add contractions. All of this will help make modern language into blank verse.

For sav/’ry loaf/ of meat/, of la/dy fair Behind/ the count/er I/ did ask/, “Please! More!”

This is why Shakespeare’s plays are full of contractions and strange wording.

WHY did Shakespeare write this way? NOTES ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

It’s poetic

Check Your Understanding Circle the correct response.

Sample Assignment

Rolling in the Deep – Adele We could have had it all,

Rolling in the deep. You had my heart inside your hands,

And you played it to the beat.

In the Deep, We Are Now Rolling – Adele We might have been able to have it all. We are now rolling so far in the deep.

Really, you had my heart inside your hands. You played it to whatever song you chose.

The writing style is called blank verse. T/F

People in Elizabethan Times spoke like this. T/F

Blank verse was beautiful and poetic. T/F

Shakespeare’s writing is easier to understand in comparison to other writers of the same style.

T/F

Shakespeare is accredited with the advancement, organization, and canonization of the English language.

T/F

Assignment: Pick one song of the choices presented and translate it into Iambic Pentameter. Remember, you can remove, add, and rearrange words. You can also add contractions.

Copy your song choice here: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________

Translate it to Iambic Pentameter here: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________