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TERMS
USED IN POETRY
Teachers may use this in Classroom : Copy+Paste+Print for
circulating to students (as per Grade levels & their
understanding) while teaching
'How
to Write a Poetry'
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Alliteration : When
two or more words begin with same sound
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Limerick : a five
line form of humorous verse. It is written in a measure which
consists of 13 beats and a rhyme scheme of aabba.(Some Limericks
Here)
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Alexandrine : A line
of verse having 12 syllables. It is the most common metre in
french poetry
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Metre : Means the
pattern of rhythm in a poem
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Assonance : The
repetition of vowel sounds with varying consonant sounds. The
words mine and night, for eg., have assonance of
i sounds.
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Monometer : a line
that consists of one foot
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Anacrusis : one or
more unstressed syllabus at the beginning of a line that do not
form part of the regular metre
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Octameter : a line
of eight feet
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Anapest : refers to
three syllable foot in which the greatest stress falls on final
syllable
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Octave : an eight
line stanza. It commonly refers to the first eight lines of an
Italian sonnet
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Blank verse : means
poetry in unrhymed iambic pentameter
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pantameter : a line
of five feet
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Ceasura : a pause
indicated by a comma, full stop or other punctuation mark
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Onomatopoeia : a
word whose sound suggests the sound it refers to. For eg. the word
buzz suggests as well as refers to the sound made by bees
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Catalexis or
truncation : omission of an expected unstressed syllable from the
end of a line
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Quatrain : a four
line stanza or four line poem
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Consonance : occurs
when same consonant sound is repeated
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Rhyme scheme : means
the patterns of rhyme in a stanza or poem
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Couplet : a pair of
rhyming lines. Close couplet complete a sentence in two lines.Open
couplets continue the sentence from one pair of lines to another.
Heroic couplets are in iambic pantameter
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Rondel : a 13 or 14
line poem in which the first line A and second line B are repeated
near the middle and at the end. The 14 line form rhymes ABba abAB
abbaAB
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Dactyl : a three
syllable foot in which the first syllable receives the strongest
stress
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Sestex : is the
latest six lines of an Italian sonnet. It also refers to any six
line stanza or six line poem
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Dimeter : line of
two feet
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Tetrameter : a line
of four feet
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Double Rhyme : has
two rhyming syllables, as in dreary and weary or market and park
it
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Stanza : is a
repeated pattern of lines, usually with a metre and a rhyme scheme
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Elision : combining
of two syllables into one, as in ne'er for never
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Tercet or triplet :
three line poem
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foot : is a metrical
unit of two or more syllabus
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Tetrameter : line of
four feet
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Free verse : Poetry
without metre or without rhyme
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Trimeter : a line of
three feet
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Haiku : A Japanese
form consisting of 17 syllables arranged in three lines
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Triolet : a complex
eight line French form, in which the first line, A, is repeated
twice and the second line, B, once. Its rhyme scheme is ABaAabAB
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Heptameter : is a
line of seven feet
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Trochee : is a two
syllable foot in which the first syllable is more stressed than
the second
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Hexameter : a line
of six feet
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Villanelle : an
elaborate 18 line French form. It repeats two rhyming lines A and
A', in an intricate pattern AbA'abAabA'abAabA'abAA'
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lamb : a two
syllable foot in which the second syllable has more stress than
first
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lambic pentameter :
consists of a line of five iambs
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Sonnet : a 14 line
form with several possible rhyme schemes. The Italian sonnet, also
called Petrarchan sonnet, usually rhymes abbaabba cdecde or
abbaabba cdcdcd. The English Sonnet or Shakespearean Sonnet,
rhymes abab cdcd efef gg
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Sonnet Sequence : is
a series of sonnets with a similar subject
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Kinds of Poetry:
Through the years, poets have developed many kinds of poetry.
However, there are three main kinds that I refer here : Lyric,
Narrative and Dramatic.
Lyric
Poetry:
The most common type - the word lyric comes from lyre, a harplike
instrument played by ancient Greek Poets during recitals or
shorter poems. Today, lyric means any short poem. The haiku,
Japanese form, is one of the shortest types of lyric poetry. 17
syllables arranged in 3 lines. The first has 5 syllables, second 7
and third 5. Here is a Haiku of Japanese Poet Issa translated by
Australian poet Harold Stewart, two lines of 10 syllables each:
In these
degenerate later days, I stare
Astounded cherry blossoms everywhere!
The Ode is a serious, elaborate lyric full of high praise and
noble feeling. Many odes mark important public event. Classic ode,
also called the Pindaric ode or choral ode, was developed and
Ancient Greeks. It consist of three parts. First two parts, the
strophe and antistrophe, have same pattern of rhyme. The third
part, the epod, has a different pattern. Most odes later developed
which consist of stanzas with the same pattern of rhythm and
rhyme.
The
elegy, a common lyric, is a meditation on life and death. Mourning
of friend or famous person. The Sonnet is 14 line lyric with
certain pattern of rhyme and rhythm. Many sonnets are love poems.
Other lyric forms include the limerick, rondel, triolet and
villanelle.
Narrative
Poetry :
Tells stories. Two main forms are Epics and Ballads.
Epics: These are long poems with most epics describing the deeds
of heroes in battle or conflicts between human beings and natural
or divine forces. Many epics also tells us of the origin or
history of people. The oldest surviving form of poetry, Epics were
composed during the 700s B.C.Iliad and the Odyssey were the two
most famous epics in Western Literature and scholars have a point
of their say as these two works are traditionally attributed to
the Greek poet Homer. The Iliad describes events in the last year
of the Trojan War, which was fought between Greece and the City of
Troy. The Odyssey tells of the adventures of Odysseus, King of
Ithaca, on his return home after having fought for Greece in the
Trojan War.
Ballads: They tell shorter stories about a particular person. Many
Ballads in English Literature describe Robin Hood adventures, a
legendary outlaw who stole from the rich people and gave to the
poor. Some ballads date back to 1300s.
Dramatic
Poetry :
Tells stories like narrative poems. But in dramatic poetry, the
poet lets one or more of the story's characters act out the story.
Many plays are written as dramatic poetry. If the dialogue of a
play rhymes, has repeating rhythms, or features about distinct
poetic elements, the play is considered to be dramatic poetry.
William Shakespeare, the English playwright is famous for being a
dramatic poet. Robert Browning wrote many poems in dramatic
monologue, in which the story is told in the words of only one
character.
(
For more on Elements of poetry, please come back soon as I
have yet to work on this)
LIMERICK : A form of humorous verse. It takes it's name from
the city of Limerick, Ireland. No one knows how or where the form
originated. It became known after Edward Lear made the form
popular with his first "A Book of Nonsense (1846). The Limerick is
a poem of five lines, with strong beat and rough anapaestic rhythm
(i.e. de-de-DUMM). It is written in Poulter's measure, a Folk
Metre that consists of 13 beats. The first two lines rhyme with
the fifth, the third line rhymes with the fourth.
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