Poetry Booklet Poetry Index

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Lorraine Nicholson
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1 Poetry Booklet Poetry Index Imagery - Words or phrases that appeal to any sense or any combination of senses. Metaphor - A comparison between two objects with the intent of giving clearer meaning to one of them. Often forms of the "to be" verb are used, such as "is" or "was", to make the comparison. (When something is said to be something that it is not) Examples: a)when Chris ran, he was a speeding bullet racing along the track. b)a beast with eyes of moonlight, c)stars are as bright as a lighthouse on an icy, ocean night; Simile - A comparison between two objects using a specific word or comparison such as "like", "as", or "than". Examples: Chris was a record-setting runner and as fast as a speeding bullet. Your teeth are like stars, O my Luve's like a red, red rose Personification - A figure of speech which endows animals, ideas, or inanimate objects with human traits, emotions, or abilities. Example: a) The sun was shining on the sea, Shining with all his might: b) The moon was shining sulkily, Because she thought the sun Had got no business to be there Hyperbole - A large exaggeration, usually used with humour. Examples: a) The fish was a football field and a granny long. b) My dog s bark breaks the sound barrier, His nose is as cold as an ice box, A wag of his tail causes hurricanes. Alliteration - The repetition of initial consonant sounds. Assonance - The repetition of initial vowel sounds. Onomatopoeia - The use of words which imitate sound. Repetition - the repeating of words, phrases, lines, or stanzas. Rhyme - The similarity of ending sounds existing between two words. Rhyme scheme - The sequence in which the rhyme occurs. The first end sound is represented as the letter "a", the second is "b", etc. Meter - The recurrence of a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables. Stanza - a grouping of two or more lines of a poem in terms of length, metrical form, or rhyme scheme. (Verse)

2 Meter -is the recurring pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in poetry. The main type of we will see and use is called Iambic meter. Iambic Trochaic Every beat (foot) has 2 syllables and the second syllable of every pair of syllables is accented. Example: (da DAH, da DAH, da DUH, da DUH) Every beat (foot) has 2 syllables and the first syllable of every pair of syllables is accented. Example: (DUH da, DUH, da, DUH da, DUH da) The length of lines and thus the meter can also vary. Following are the types of meter and the line length: Monometer One Foot or Beat Dimeter Two Feet or Beats Trimeter Three Feet or Beats Tetrameter Four Feet or Beats Pentameter Five Feet or Beats Hexameter Six Feet or Beats Heptameter Seven Feet or Beats Octameter Eight Feet or Beats. Meter is determined by the type of foot (or beats) and the number of feet (or beats) in a line. Thus, a line with three iambic feet (or beats) is known as iambic trimeter. Rhyming Couplets A rhyming couplet is a set of lines, back to back, that rhyme. Usually each line has the same meter so that they appear as a coherent whole. They felt a little tense When King Kong jumped the fence - this rhyming couplet is in iambic trimeter (each line has 3 beats with 2 syllables per beat) "I have the measles and the mumps, - this rhyming couplet is in iambic tetrameter (Shel Silverstein) a gash, a rash and purple bumps." (each line has 4 beats with 2 syllables per beat) "I think that I shall never see A poem as lovely as a tree." - iambic tetrameter (Joyce Kilmer) Heroic Couplets are a special kind of rhyming couplet because they are only written in iambic pentameter. These following couplets are Heroic Couplets. Singing he was, or fluting all the day; He was as fresh as is the month of May -this rhyming couplet is in iambic pentameter (each line has 5 beats with 2 syllables per beat) -Geoffrey Chaucer Then share thy pain, allow that sad relief; Ah, more than share it, give me all thy grief. "Be not the first by whom the new are tried, Nor yet the last to lay the old aside." - Alexander Pope

3 Quatrain A rhyming quatrain is a set of four lines of poetry that follow a rhyme scheme. The rhyme schemes could be: AABB--(the first and second lines rhyme with each other and the third and fourth lines rhyme with each other. In other words, a pair of rhyming couplets together) ABAB--(the first and third lines rhyme with each other and the second and fourth lines rhyme with each other) ABBA--(the first and fourth lines rhyme with each other and the second and third rhyme with each other) ABCB--(the second and fourth rhyme with each other). Quatrains usually have a given meter so that they sound like they flow together. The Hippopotamus by Ogden Nash Behold the hippopotamus! We laugh at how he looks to us, And yet in moments dank and grim, I wonder how we look to him. Peace, peace, thou hippopotamus! We really look all right to us, As you no doubt delight the eye Of other hippopotami. Note the AABB rhyme scheme. The Grizzly Bear is huge and wild; He has devoured an infant child. The infant child is not aware It has been eaten by the bear. - A. E. Housman Look Back on Time with Kindly Eyes Look back on time with kindly eyes, He doubtless did his best; How softly sinks his trembling sun In human nature's west! by Emily Dickinson This is an ABCB rhyme scheme. Note that lines 2 and 4 have the same meter as each other although different from meter of lines 1 and 3 (poem still has balance) The rhyming couplet and the quatrain can be used as building blocks for your poems!

4 Free Verse Very simply, poetry does not have to rhyme or follow any pattern or meter. While there are many more concrete styles of rhyming poetry, poets sometimes feel that non-rhyming poetry can express ideas in ways that rhyming can't. Neither rhyming or non-rhyming poetry is better than the other--it is a matter of personal preference. Being unconstrained by a rhyme scheme may make it easier to find the right words for your thoughts; however, it is not necessarily easier to write non-rhyming poetry. Quality non-rhyming poetry requires as much effort and skill as good rhyming poetry. Look at free verse, which is essentially no-rules poetry: no rhyme scheme, no meter, no syllable limits. The poet abides by his or her own boundaries while writing. The best way to get an idea of free verse poetry is to look at a few examples: Earth, My Likeness by Walt Whitman EARTH, my likeness, Though you look so impassive, ample and spheric there, I now suspect that is not all; I now suspect there is something fierce in you eligible to burst forth, For an athlete is enamour'd of me, and I of him, But toward him there is something fierce and terrible in me eligible to burst forth, I dare not tell it in words, not even in these songs. There is no given meter (or arrangement of the words in the line), and no rhyme scheme, yet Whitman manages to put strong emotional sentiment into his words. When writing poetry, you want to put your thoughts into words in whatever way you think most adequately displays them. Blank Verse (unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter) Poetry that doesn't rhyme doesn't need to be free verse, though. Many poets keep a structured metre pattern but do not rhyme the lines. This is usually called blank verse. The fixed metre usually means a set number of syllables per line and/or a consistent pattern of stressed syllables. If you are looking to make your poetry flow well and sound consistent, using metre is often a great way to do this. Andrea del Sarto by Robert Browning: This poem follows iambic pentameter--each line has ten syllables. But do not let us quarrel any more, No, my Lucrezia; bear with me for once: Sit down and all shall happen as you wish. You turn your face, but does it bring your heart? I'll work then for your friend's friend, never fear, Treat his own subject after his own way, Fix his own time, accept too his own price, And shut the money into this small hand When next it takes mine. Will it? tenderly? Oh, I'll content him,--but to-morrow, Love! I often am much wearier than you think, This evening more than usual, and it seems As if--forgive now--should you let me sit

5 Sonnet A sonnet is a poem in iambic pentameter made up of fourteen lines. The Elizabethan, or English, sonnet uses quatrains and a couplet following this given rhyme scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG. It is three individual quatrains followed by a heroic couplet (all in one stanza). Shakespeare was an extremely prolific writer of sonnets, and some of his are extremely famous. Let's look at Sonnet 18, "Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day?" Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date: Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimm'd; And every fair from fair sometime declines, By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd; But thy eternal summer shall not fade Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest; Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou growest: So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this and this gives life to thee. Notice that each line is written in iambic pentameter The other type of sonnet is the Italian Sonnet.It follows a rhyme scheme of: ABBA ABBA CDE CDE Thou Art Not Lovelier Than Lilacs -by Edna St. Vincent Millay: Thou art not lovelier than lilacs,--no, Nor honeysuckle; thou art not more fair Than small white single poppies,--i can bear Thy beauty; though I bend before thee, though From left to right, not knowing where to go, I turn my troubled eyes, nor here nor there Find any refuge from thee, yet I swear So has it been with mist,--with moonlight so. Like him who day by day unto his draught Of delicate poison adds him one drop more Till he may drink unharmed the death of ten, Even so, inured to beauty, who have quaffed Each hour more deeply than the hour before, I drink--and live--what has destroyed some men. Some poets rearrange the rhyme scheme of the last six lines in their sonnets, so be on the lookout when reading the sonnet.

6 Writing a Ballad Structure and tone: The core structure for a ballad is a quatrain, written in either abcb or abab rhyme schemes. The first and third lines are iambic tetrameter, (four beats per line -8 syllables); the second and fourth lines are in iambic trimeter( three beats per line -6 syllables). The second ingredient is the story you want to tell. It can be about you, someone you know, a relationship, or an experience good, bad, triumphant, or tragic. To begin: sketch out the tale. Don t worry about beats per line, rhyme schemes, or stanza breaks. Simply write the story you want to present as a ballad. Once you ve written the narrative, pare down the length and strike all words that don t drive or describe the action. This bit of editing will make the conversion process much easier. Hook your reader: Now, look at your piece and listen for the beat. Re-form your language into balladic form, making sure to open with a stanza that sets the table for the story to unfold: I walked into the coffeehouse, I saw her sipping tea. She looked up with her forlorn eyes, Her sadness clear to me. This particular stanza could take the story in two directions: an elegiac tale of how she became sad and can t overcome it or a hopeful story of how interaction with the narrator can lift her from her malaise. Present a plot that can unfold in a number of ways, and you ll hook your reader s imagination and heart. She asked me please to take a seat, She had a tale to tell, About the day her husband left, The day love turned to hell. Tell your story: Finish setting the stage in the second quatrain, and then unfold the story with crafty emotion, letting the natural rhythm of the ballad seep from your mind and heart onto the page. She gave him everything she had, Her body, soul and heart, His habits got the best of him, He erred; she fell apart. Off he went on a bender, it seems, A blur of drugs and drink When she confronted him, he said, "Fine," and took off just think Of the pain it caused this woman, Her eyes folded into her face, Tears so sharp, and, bitter and fierce They re salting her in place. Close with authority: As your ballad winds toward its conclusion, you can retain the rhyme scheme for the closing stanza or go off-beat with an envoi, or refrain. Either way, use the penultimate(2nd last) quatrain to make the turn for home and the final quatrain to close the poem with authority.

7 How to Write an Ode Instructions An ode poem is a poem that is about only one specific thing that you think is truly amazing and praiseworthy. This type of poem can be centred upon an object, an idea, or even a person. The trick to writing an ode poem is to write using the same structure throughout, while using different words to communicate the one thing you are writing about. Remember, an ode poem can only be focused on one thing, so make sure that whatever you pick is something that you feel strongly about, so you have enough to write. 1. Write a 10-line stanza of iambic verse using an A-B-A-B-C-D-E-C-D-E rhyme scheme. 2. Proceed to write as many 10-line stanzas as desired. Use the same rhyme scheme pattern in the following stanzas, but with different rhymes. If you do this correctly, the "A" of a stanza will rhyme only with the "A" of that same stanza. 3. Revise as needed. Most odes have three of these stanzas, but if you want to write more, by all means do! DIAMANTE Diamantes are seven lines long. The first and last lines have just one word. The second and sixth lines have two words. The third and fifth lines have three words. And the fourth line has four words. Lines 1, 4, and 7 have nouns. Lines 2 and 6 have adjectives. Lines 3 and 5 have verbs. Here s an easy way to visualize all three rules: Noun Adjective, Adjective Verb, Verb, Verb Noun, Noun, Noun, Noun Verb, Verb, Verb Adjective, Adjective Noun There are two types of diamante poems :1. Synonym diamante 2. Antonym diamante. In a synonym diamante, the nouns at the beginning and end are two words that mean basically the same thing. In an antonym diamante, the two nouns are opposites. Here are a couple of examples:

8 SYNONYM DIAMANTE In this diamante, the words Monsters and Creatures mean the same thing, so they are synonyms. Monsters Evil, Spooky Howling, Shrieking, Wailing Ghosts, Vampires, Goblins, Witches Flying, Scaring, Terrifying Creepy, Crawly Creatures ANTONYM DIAMANTE In this diamante, you might say that the words Cat and Dog are opposites, or antonyms, so this is an antonym diamante. Haiku Cat Gentle, Sleepy Purring, Meowing, Scratching Whiskers, Fur, Collar, Leash Barking, Licking, Digging Slobbery, Playful Dog A haiku is an unrhymed three-line poem. It is based on a traditional Japanese poetic form. Though there are different ways to write haiku, the traditional pattern in English is to write the first and last lines with five syllables each, and the middle line with seven syllables. In other words, the pattern of syllables looks like this: Line 1: 5 syllables Line 2: 7 syllables Line 3: 5 syllables HAIKU ABOUT NATURE A haiku is often about nature. You could write about animals, plants, the sky, the ocean, streams, the wind, and so on. Start by selecting a topic decide what you want to say; what observation you want to make about it. Examples: Winter is coming. Snow will be arriving soon. We should rake the leaves My cat sleeps all night. He needs lots of rest for a Long day of napping.

9 FUNNY HAIKU Just because most haiku poems are about seasons or nature doesn t mean that s all they can be about. You can write humorous haiku poems. One way to make a haiku funny is to have an unexpected last line. If the last line says the opposite of what the reader expects, it becomes like the punchline of a joke. It also helps to write about a funny subject. My homework is late. My dog ate it this morning. I sure like my dog. Notice that this ending is unexpected. Most readers would expect the poem to end with something like can I turn it in tomorrow? or I m mad at my dog or something like that. By saying I sure like my dog, I am telling the reader something they don t expect, which will hopefully make them smile. Cinquain There are 3 ways to write a cinquain, Cinquains are five lines long. Cinquains do not need to rhyme, but you may include rhymes if you want to. Pattern 1 Line 1: One word Line 2: Two words Line 3: Three words Line 4: Four words Line 5: One word Example:Pattern 1 Dinosaurs Lived once, Long ago, but Only dust and dreams Remain Pattern 2 Line 1: A noun Line 2: Two adjectives Line 3: Three -ing words (verbs) Line 4: A phrase Line 5: Another word for the noun in line one. Example:Pattern 2 Spaghetti Messy, spicy Slurping, sliding,falling Between my plate and mouth Delicious

10 Pattern 3 Line 1: 2 syllables Line 2: 4 syllables Line 3: 6 syllables Line 4: 8 syllables Line 5: 2 syllables Example:Pattern 3 Baseball Bat cracks against The pitch sending it out Over the back fence, I did it Homerun Acrostic This kind of poem can be written in different ways, but the simplest form is to put the letters that spell your subject(one or more words) down the side of your page. When you have done this then you go back to each letter and think of a word, phrase or sentence that starts with that letter and describes your subject. Examples: Hockey Hockey is my favourite sport On the ice or street Cool and fun Keep on playing Exercise and strength You should try True Love True love is the purest gift Running away and being together Under the moon and stars Everyday and each night Love holds both hearts safe Over the vast distances and time Virtue and honour Ever it will keep them close and in love Focus on Imagery and use similes and metaphors to improve the quality of your Acrostic poem. Limericks They are five lines long. Rhyme scheme is AABBA They have a distinctive rhythm They are usually funny.

11 Line 1: da DUM da da DUM da da DUM A Line 2: da DUM da da DUM da da DUM A Line 3: da DUM da da DUM B Line 4: da DUM da da DUM B Line 5: da DUM da da DUM da da DUM A Examples: There was a young fellow named Hall Who fell in the spring in the fall. Twould have been a sad thing Had he died in the spring, But he didn t he died in the fall. Anonymous There was an old man of Nantucket Who kept all his cash in a bucket; But his daughter, named Nan, Ran away with a man, And as for the bucket, Nantucket. Anonymous A talkative man from Seattle Would spend his days speaking to cattle. When asked what he said, One cow shook her head, And replied, Why it s nothing but prattle!

Elements of Poetry. An introduction to the poetry unit

Elements of Poetry. An introduction to the poetry unit Elements of Poetry An introduction to the poetry unit Meter The stressed and unstressed syllables within the lines of a poem The stressed syllables are longer while the unstressed syllables are shorter