POETIC TERMSPOETIC TERMS

A reference to a A reference to a historical figure, historical figure, place, or eventplace, or event.

The teams competed in a

David and Goliath struggle.

A broad comparison between two basically

different things that have some points in common.

Aspirations toward space are not new. Consider the worm that becomes a butterfly.

Ballad and Blank VerseBallad:

A song-like poem that tells a storyBlank Verse:

Poetry written in unrhymed, ten-syllable lines

A Few More . . .Concrete Poem:

A poem with a shape that suggests its subjectFigurative Language:

Writing that is not meant to be taken literallyFree Verse:

Poetry not written in a regular rhythmical pattern or meter

Haiku: A three-lined Japanese verse

A direct comparison between two basically

different things. A simile is introduced by the words

“like” or “as”.

My love is like a red, red

rose.

An implied comparison between two basically different things. Is not

introduced with the words “like” or “as”.

His eyes were

daggers that cut

right through

me.

Lyric Poem

– Highly musical verse that expresses the observations and feelings of a single speaker

Extended Metaphora comparison developed over

several lines of poetry.

& More . . .Onomatopoeia:

The use of words that imitate sounds

Example: The buzz of the bee was very loud.

Narrative Poem

– A story told in verse

Four R’sRefrain:

A regularly repeated line or group of lines in a poem

Rhyme:Repetition of sounds at the end of words

Rhyme Scheme:A regular pattern of rhyming words in a

poemRhythm:

Pattern of beats or stresses in spoken or written language

Stanza

A formal division of lines in a poem considered as a unit

A great exaggeration to emphasize strong

feeling.

I will love you until all the seas go dry.

Human characteristics are given to non-human

animals, objects, or ideas.

My stereo walked out of

my car.

An absent person or inanimate object is

directly spoken to as though they were

present.

Brutus: “Ceasar, now

be still. I killed not thee with

half so good a will.”

A part stands for the whole or vice

versa.

The hands that created the work of

art were masterful.

Hints given to the reader of what is

to come.

“The stalwart hero was

doomed to suffer the

destined end of his days.”

The use of concrete details that appeal to

the five senses.

Cold, wet leaves

floating on moss-

colored water.

A contrast between what is said and what is meant.

Also, when things turn out different than what is

expected.

“The treacherous instrument is in

thy hand, unbated and envenomed. The foul practice has turned itself on me.” Laertes

The overall atmosphere or

prevailing emotional feeling of a work.

“It was the best of

times, it was the worst of

times.”

A seemingly self-contradictory

statement that still is true.

The more we

learn, the less

we know.

A series of events that present and

resolve a conflict. The story being told.

The plot of “The Most Dangerous Game” is that

Rainsford is being hunted by General

Zaroff.

The vantage point from which an author presents the action in

a work.

1st person-tale related by a character in the story. “I or me”

3rd person-story told by someone not participating in the plot. “he, she, they” Third person can be

omniscient; all-knowing, all-seeing

The repetition of identical sounds at the ends of lines of

poetry.

“He clasps the crag with

crooked handsClose to the sun in lonely lands”

from “The Eagle”

The repetition of identical sounds within a line of

poetry.

“We three shall flee across the sea to Italy.”

Or“Hold infinity in the palm of your hand

And eternity in an hour.”

A slant rhyme or half rhyme occurs when

the vowel sounds are not quite identical.

“And on that cheek and o’er that brow”

A mind at peace with all below”

The time (both the time of day and period in history) and place in which the action of a literary work takes

place.

“Tiger! Tiger!

burning brightIn the

forests of the night”

The repeating of a sound, word, phrase,

or more in a given literary work.

“I sprang to the stirrup, and Jarvis, and he;I galloped, Derrick galloped, we galloped all

three”

The repetition of consonant sounds

at the beginnings of words.

“Swiftly, swiftly

flew the ship”

The repetition of similar vowel sounds followed by different

consonant.

“. . .that hoard, and sleep, and feed, and know not

me.”

The repetition of consonant sounds

that are preceded by different vowel

sounds.

“Wherever we go

Silence will fall like dews”

The use of words whose sounds suggest the

sounds made by objects or activities.

“Blind eyes could

blaze like meteors”

Other examples:

buzz, hum, kiss

Something concrete, such as an object, character, or scene that stands for

something abstract such as a concept or an idea.

“Do not go gentle into that good nightRage, Rage against the dying of the

light”

Both phrases are symbols that

stand for death.

The main idea or underlying

meaning of a literary work.

“Don’t judge a

man until you’ve

walked a mile in his

shoes”

Comparing two very dissimilar things. Usually involves cleverness and

ingenuity.

“Our love is like

parallel lines”

This is also a simile.

A term naming an object is substituted for another

word with which it is closely associated.

“Only through the sweat of

your brow can you achieve

success”

“Sweat” stands for hard work.

A pair of rhymed verse lines that

contain a complete thought.

“But if the while I think on thee, dear friend,All losses are restor’d and sorrows end.”

Introduction to “Hearing” Poetry• meter – comes from the Greek term

for measure• poetry written in a regular pattern of

stressed and unstressed syllables• the recognition and naming of broad

wave patterns in lines of verse (like waves on the shore or the wave patterns of sounds in physics)

Meter continued• there are a succession of lines or sentences

that have the same metrical pattern, but is not necessarily exactly rhythmically identical

• lines are repeated again and again in the same broad rhythmical patterns, creating a rhythmical unit

 • eg: “To this I witness call the fools of Time• Which die for goodness, who have lived for

crime.”

Poetry has Feet• the technical meaning – has one

stressed syllable and one or more unstressed syllables

• is a measurable, patterned, conventional unit of poetic rhythm

• the non-technical meaning – connected to how we walk

• pattern and rhythm of steps equal to pattern and rhythm of poems

• rhythm of music connected to movement of body and rhythmical pattern of movement

Scansion • the system of using symbols to

represent stressed and unstressed patterns in a poem in order to be able to “read” the poem

• gives the broad wave pattern, but doesn’t define the individual wave or pattern

Kinds of patterns

iamb(ic) – unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable

• * ‘ * ‘• The way a crow • * ‘ * ‘• Shook down on me.

Trochee(trochaic) • stressed followed by unstressed • ‘ * ‘ * ‘ * ‘ *• Once upon a midnight dreary

Anapest (anapestic) • has two unstressed syllables

followed by a stressed one• * * ‘ * * ‘ * *

The Assyr/ ian came down/ like a • ‘ * * ‘• wolf/ on the fold,

Dactyl • one stressed followed by two

unstressed• ‘ * * ‘ * * ‘ **• Hickory, dickory, dock

Spondee (spondaic) • is a foot composed of stressed

syllables• ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘• We, real, cool. We left school.

Pyrrhic • three unstressed followed by a

stressed• * * * ‘ * * * ‘• At their/return,/up the/high strand,/