POETRY

Poetry is all about 5 things… Expression Observation Ideas Emotions Words and Opinions

The way a poem sounds is a big part of what a poem is about.

Some poems have a musical sound. That is largely due to rhythm, rhyme, and meter.

Rhythm

The beat of the poem that helps to keep the poems pace. It is the actual sound the poem makes when reading. Rhythm is established by stressed and

unstressed syllables.

Rhyme

Words that share sounds together End Rhyme: Rhyming at the ends of lines Internal Rhyme: Rhyming within a line.

Rhyme Scheme

The alternating or repeating sounds at the ends of lines. It is the pattern of rhyme at the end of a line.

Meter

The repeated pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables.

Stanza

A group of lines put together by often a single thought. A stanza is like a paragraph in prose.

What 2 things work together to create a special structure in a poem?

Rhyme Meter

Couplet

Two lines together that rhyme. A pair of rhyming lines usually with the

same meter.

Quatrain

Four lines that have a specific rhyme scheme

Figurative Language

A literary device used throughout literature. Figurative language includes words,

phrases, and symbols or ideas, comparisons, elaborate expressions, and sound devices.

Simile

A comparison between 2 unlike things with the words “like” or “as”. EX: He is as strong as a ox.

Metaphor

A comparison between two unlike things EX: That man is an ox

* Extended Metaphor: a metaphor that is extended over several lines or throughout the poem.

Sensory Details

Using the senses to create images.

Symbolism

A visible object that stands for something not clearly visible.

Symbolism adds a layer of meaning.

Repetition

Repeating of sounds. Alliteration: repeating of consonant sounds

at the beginning of words Blue Black Cold

Assonance: Repeating of vowel sounds in the middle of words. Moses Supposes his toeses is roses.

Poetry may use language and symbols in surprising and unconventional ways.

They can manipulate the look through sound and punctuation.

Kinds of Poems

Limerick: a five line humorous poem. Limericks have a regular meter and rhyme scheme.

Sonnets: a 14 line rhyming poem written in Iambic Pentameter. Iambic Pentameter: an alternating 5

stressed and 5 unstressed syllables.* Lyric Poetry: a poem that draws on

emotions and feelings.

Kinds of Poems

Blank Verse: an unrhymed iambic pentameter poem.

Free verse: unrhymed/unmetered poem. Narrative Poem: tells a complete story

and sometimes is very long. Epic: a poem about an adventure

typically of a superhuman hero. EX: Iliad and Odyssey & Beowulf

Poetry expresses the ebb and flow of life in an uniquely personal voice that reachers across form and time.

Major Themes in Poetry

Death/Loss Love Family/ Friendship Hardship/Humor Growing Old Growing Up

7 things you should notice while reading poetry.

Read Out Loud Rhythm Rhyme Schemes Theme Words/Phrases Punctuation Mood/Feeling Format