All About Poetry

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Poets play with SOUND Poets make COMPARISONS

PoetryIt is difficult to give poetry a definition. A poem is an emotional experience.

It is a thought or feeling, transmitted by the imagination into images and expressed in a beautiful and usually patterned language.

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RhymeRhyme is the likeness of sound at the end of words. We piled, with care our nightly stack Of wood against the chimney-backThe oaken log, green, huge, and thick,And on its top the stout back-stick. - The Hearth Fire by John Greenleaf Whittier

Rhyme SchemeWe piled, with care our nightly stack (A)Of wood against the chimney-back (A) The oaken log, green, huge, and thick, (B)And on its top the stout back-stick. (B)- The Hearth Fire by John Greenleaf Whittier

When reading a poem, use a different letter to keep track of each rhyme sound. That is the poems rhyme scheme.

Rhythm/ Meter Rhythm is a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables. Also called meter. A rhythm can make a poem sound serious or silly.

Sisters Heart to Heart by Joanna DuchsFrom the time that we were little, I knew youd always be Not just a loving sister But a caring friend to me.A shoulder I could cry on, A helping hand in times of need, A cheerleader to lift me up, My angel in both word and deed.We told each other secrets; We giggled and we cried. We shared our joys and sorrows-- We were always side by side.We have a very special bond; I knew it from the start. Youll have my love forever-- Were sisters, heart to heart.

AssonanceAssonance is the repetition of vowel sounds followed by different consonants. Tune and June are rhymes; tune and food are assonant.Example: mad hatter

And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side Of my darling, my darling, my life and my bride. --Edgar Allan Poe, "Annabel Lee"

RepetitionRepetition is the recurring use of a sound, a word, a phrase or a line. It is used to appeal to our emotions and to emphasize important ideas.Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening Robert Frost Whose woods these are I think I know. His house is in the village though; He will not see me stopping here To watch his woods fill up with snow. My little horse must think it queer To stop without a farmhouse near Between the woods and frozen lake The darkest evening of the year. He gives his harness bells a shake To ask if there is some mistake. The only other sound's the sweep Of easy wind and downy flake. The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep.

MoodMood is the overall emotion created by a work of literature. Look at these two different moods:1) Winter Garden Stark naked flower stalks Stand shivering in the wind. The cheerless sun hides its black light Behind bleak, angry clouds, While trees vainly try To catch their escaping leaves. Carpets of grass turn brown, Blending morosely with the dreary day. Winter seems the death of life forever. 2)Spring Garden Stunningly dressed flower stalks Stand shimmering in the breeze. The cheerful sun hides playfully Behind white, fluffy, cotton-ball clouds, While trees whisper secrets To their rustling leaves. Carpets of grass greenly glow Blending joyfully with the day. Spring brings life to death.

Lines, Stanzas and VerseA Line of Poetrya single line of words in a poem

A Stanza in Poetry a group of lines of poetry (2 or more) arranged according to a fixed plan

Verse in Poetrya poem, or piece of poetry; part of a song following the introduction and preceding the chorus

StanzasCouplet: a two line stanza Triplet: a three line stanza (sometimes Tercet) Quatrain: a four line stanza Cinquain: a five line stanza

Quatrain Quatrains are four line poems. The lines usually rhyme in two patterns. Lines one and two and three and four (AABB) or lines one and three and two and four (ABAB).AnteaterA genuine anteater,The pet man told my dad.Turned out, it was an aunt eater,And now my uncles mad!-Shel Silverstein

Gumeye BallTheres an eyeball in the gumball machine, Right there between the red and the green, Lookin at me as if to say, You dont need anymore gum today. - Shel Silverstein

What would their rhyme scheme be?

Another Quatrain

Mix an onion milkshake,Take a hearty drink,Youll wind up with a headacheQuicker than you think!

Question: What is the rhyme scheme?

LimericksThe limerick takes its name from Limerick, Ireland. It is humorous and full of nonsense. It is a five line poem that consists of a triplet & a couplet. They often contain hyperbole, onomatopoeia, idioms and other figurative devices. The 1st, 2nd & 5th lines rhyme, with 3 beats per lineThe 3rd & 4th lines rhyme, with two beats per line. The last line is usually the punch line (the heart of the joke)

There once was a student at school (A)Who would not conform to the rule (A)He used all his time (B)To write funny rhyme (B)And limericks he used as his tool. (A)

SyllablesA unit of pronunciation having one vowel sound

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

How many syllables?

Haiku This is a form of Japanese poetry. A haiku has only three lines (triplet), with five, seven and five syllables. A haiku usually describes a season of the year or some aspect of nature.Cold as a snowballChilled colder than the white snowA lonely goodbye.---------------------------------------------Some snowflakes descendTo blanket a barren branchOthers kiss the earth.

Free VerseFree verse is just what it says it is - poetry that is written without proper rules about form, rhyme, rhythm, meter, etc. In free verse the writer makes his/her own rules. The writer decides how the poem should look, feel, and sound. Notice: i is not capitalized and there arent normal sentences.Its free verse.Winter Poem

once a snowflake fellon my brow and i lovedit so much and i kissedit and it was happy and called its cousinsand brothers and a webof snow engulfed me theni reached to love them alland i squeezed them and they becamea spring rain and i stood perfectlystill and was a flower - By Nikki Giovanni

More Free VerseA Dream

I dreamed the clouds were dragons.Billows of fluff, not fireCame toward me.I needed not my sword.

A long, serious poem that tells the story of a heroic or legendary figure. Two of the most famous epic poems are the Iliad and the Odyssey by Homer, which tell about the Trojan War and the adventures of Odysseus on his voyage home after the warEpic

Onomatopoeia in PoemsSOUND OF NATURE by Marie Josephine Smith Ticking, tocking. Head is rocking. Tippy toeing. Quietly. Snap, crack. Crushing branch. Helter, skelter. Run for shelter. Pitter, patter. Rain starts to fall. Gathering momentum. Becomes a roar. Thunder booms.

Acrostic Poetry An acrostic poem is one in which certain letters, often the first letter of every line, form a name or a theme.Apples are yummy. Pretty and juicy. Please pick only when ripe. Licking jelly apples are fun. Eat them day and night.

Shape Poems This is a shape poem. Ideally, it should describe the shape it is, and rhyme, but as you can see, this one doesn't. But this will give you the idea:

FUNNEL Here is a little poem ... well, maybe it's not so little, but it certainly is a poem ... although, come to think of it, this doesn't really rhyme, so maybe it's not a poem either; but anyway, here it is, and as you can see, it is of course funnel shaped, and before too long, quickly comes to the point, and right at about this place down here at the end !

More Shape Poems"Idea: Old Mazda Lamp, 50-100-150 W" By John Hollander

DIAMANTEsquare symmetrical, conventional shaping, measuring, balancing boxes, rooms, clocks, halos encircling, circumnavigating, enclosing round, continuous circleLine 5: three words (action verbs) that relate to line 7 Line 6: two words (adjectives) that describe line 7 Line 7: one word ( subject/noun that is contrasting to line 1)

Line 1: one word (subject/noun that is contrasting to line 7) Line 2: two words (adjectives) that describe line 1 Line 3: three words (action verbs) that relate to line 1 Line 4: four words (nouns) first 2 words relate to line 1 last 2 words relate to line 7