{"id":33,"date":"2015-11-23T13:11:05","date_gmt":"2015-11-23T13:11:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.candelalearning.com\/englishcomp2x74x2\/?post_type=chapter&p=33"},"modified":"2018-04-11T00:22:51","modified_gmt":"2018-04-11T00:22:51","slug":"literary-terms-a-guide","status":"web-only","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-jeffersoncc-introliterature\/chapter\/literary-terms-a-guide\/","title":{"raw":"Poetry Literary Terms: A Guide","rendered":"Poetry Literary Terms: A Guide"},"content":{"raw":"

Metre<\/h2>\r\nMetre<\/strong> refers to the rhythmic structure of lines of verse. The majority of English verse since Chaucer is inaccentual-syllabic metre<\/strong>, which consists of alternating stressed and unstressed syllables within a fixed total number of syllables in each line. The metrical rhythm is thus the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in each line. Groups of syllables are known as metrical feet<\/strong>; each line of verse is made up of a set number of feet. Thus:\r\n

Monometer<\/strong>: one foot per line\r\nDimeter<\/strong>: two feet per line\r\nTrimeter<\/strong>: three feet per line\r\nTetrameter<\/strong>: four feet per line\r\nPentameter<\/strong>: five feet per line\r\nHexameter<\/strong>: six feet per line\r\nHeptameter<\/strong>: seven feet per line\r\nOctameter<\/strong>: eight feet per line<\/p>\r\nEach foot usually consists of a single stressed syllable\u2014though there are some important variations\u2014therefore these patterns correspond to the number of stressed syllables in a line; thus tetrameter has four, pentameter five, etc.\r\n\r\nThere are two types of metrical feet in English accentual-syllabic metre:\u00a0duple metre<\/strong>, consisting of disyllabic (2-syllable) feet, in which stressed syllables (x<\/strong>) and unstressed syllables (o<\/strong>) alternate in pairs; and triple metre<\/strong>, consisting of trisyllabic (3-syllable) feet, in which single stressed syllables are grouped with a pair of unstressed syllables. Duple metre is the metre most commonly found in English verse.\r\n\r\nThe following metrical feet make up the most common rhythmical patterns:\r\n

Duple metre<\/strong>:<\/p>\r\n

Iamb<\/strong> (iambic foot): o x\r\n<\/strong>Trochee<\/strong> (trochaic foot): x o\r\n<\/strong>Spondee<\/strong> (spondaic foot): x x\r\n<\/strong>Pyrrhus<\/strong> \/ dibrach (pyrrhic foot): o o<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

Triple metre<\/strong>:<\/p>\r\n

Dactyl<\/strong> (dactylic foot): x o o\r\n<\/strong>Anapaest<\/strong> (anapaestic foot): o o x\r\n<\/strong>Amphibrach<\/strong>: o x o\r\n<\/strong>Molossus<\/strong>: x x x<\/strong><\/p>\r\nNote that the spondee, pyrrhus and molossus do not usually form the basis for whole lines of verse, but are considered forms of\u00a0substitution<\/strong>: that is, when a foot required by the metrical pattern being used is replaced by a different sort of foot. A frequently-found example of substitution is the replacement of the initial iamb in an iambic line by a trochee, e.g. (underlined syllables represent stressed syllables):\r\n

In\u00a0me<\/span> thou seest the twi<\/span>light of<\/span> such day\r\n<\/span>As af<\/span>ter sun<\/span>set fa<\/span>deth in<\/span> the west<\/span>,\r\nWhich\u00a0by<\/span> and by<\/span> black night<\/span> doth take<\/span> away<\/span>,\r\nDeath\u2019s<\/span> second self<\/span>, that seals<\/span> up all<\/span> in rest<\/span>.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Shakespeare, Sonnet 73<\/p>\r\n(The first three lines of this quatrain are perfectly iambic; the initial foot of the fourth line is an example of trochaic substitution, also known as\u00a0inversion<\/strong>.)\r\n\r\nOther variations in metrical rhythm include\u00a0acephalexis<\/strong>, in which the first syllable of a line that would be expected according to the regular metre of the line, is lacking; and catalexis<\/strong>, in which a line lacks the final syllable expected by its metrical pattern. Amasculine ending<\/strong> is a line that ends on a stressed syllable, while a feminine ending<\/strong> is a line that ends on an unstressed syllable.\r\n\r\nFree<\/strong> verse<\/strong> is poetry that does not conform to any regular metre.\r\n\r\nExamples of different meters and metrical substitutions:<\/strong>\r\n\r\nIambic pentameter:\r\n

We\u00a0few<\/span>, we hap<\/span>py few<\/span>, we band<\/span> of bro<\/span>thers.\r\nFor\u00a0he<\/span> today <\/span>that sheds<\/span> his blood<\/span> with me\r\n<\/span>Shall be<\/span> my bro<\/span>ther; be<\/span> he ne\u2019er<\/span> so vile<\/span>,\r\nThis\u00a0day<\/span> shall gen<\/span>tle his<\/span> condi<\/span>tion.\r\nShall\u00a0think<\/span> themselves<\/span> accursed<\/span> they were<\/span> not here<\/span>,\r\nAnd hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks\r\nThat\u00a0fought<\/span> with us<\/span> upon<\/span> Saint Cris<\/span>pin\u2019s day<\/span>.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Shakespeare,\u00a0Henry V<\/i>, IV.iii<\/p>\r\nAn example of perfect iambic pentameter. Note the feminine ending in l.1 (in iambic metre a feminine ending adds an extra syllable to the line), and how the stresses follow the sense of the lines.\r\n\r\nTrochaic tetrameter:\r\n

In<\/span> what dis<\/span>tant deeps<\/span> or skies\r\n<\/span>Burnt<\/span> the fi<\/span>re of<\/span> thine eyes<\/span>?\r\nOn<\/span> what wings<\/span> dare he<\/span> aspire<\/span>?\r\nWhat<\/span> the hand<\/span> dare seize<\/span> the fi<\/span>re?<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Blake, \u201cThe Tyger\u201d<\/p>\r\nThe first two lines exhibit masculine endings, and thus are catalectic according to the regular pattern of trochaic metre; that is, they lack their final syllable. Arguably, the second foot in l.4 could be read as a spondaic substitution (if\u00a0dare<\/em> is stressed).\r\n\r\nSpondaic substitution in iambic pentameter (l.3):\r\n

Or\u00a0if<\/span> thy mis<\/span>tress some<\/span> rich an<\/span>ger shows<\/span>,\r\nEm\u00a0pri<\/span>son her<\/span> soft hand<\/span>, and let<\/span> her rave<\/span>,\r\nAnd\u00a0feed<\/span> deep<\/span>, deep<\/span> upon<\/span> her peer<\/span>less eyes<\/span>.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Keats, \u201cOde on Melancholy\u201d<\/p>\r\nPyrrhic substitution in iambic tetrameter (l.2):\r\n

The\u00a0woods<\/span> are love<\/span>ly, dark<\/span> and deep<\/span>.\r\nBut\u00a0I <\/span>have pro<\/span>mises to keep<\/span>,\r\nAnd\u00a0miles<\/span> to go<\/span> before<\/span> I sleep<\/span>,\r\nAnd\u00a0miles<\/span> to go<\/span> before<\/span> I sleep<\/span>.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Frost, \u201cStopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening\u201d<\/p>\r\nDactylic dimeter:\r\n

Theirs<\/span> not to make<\/span> reply,\r\nTheirs<\/span> not to rea<\/span>son why,\r\nTheirs<\/span> but to do<\/span> and die<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Tennyson, \u201cThe Charge of the Light Brigade\u201d<\/p>\r\nAnapaestic metre:\r\n

There\u00a0was<\/span> an Old La<\/span>dy of Chert<\/span>sey,\r\nWho\u00a0made<\/span> a remark<\/span>able curt<\/span>sey;\r\nShe\u00a0twirled<\/span> round and round<\/span>,\r\nTill she\u00a0sunk<\/span> underground<\/span>,\r\nWhich distressed<\/span> all the people of Chert<\/span>sey.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Edward Lear, \u201cThere Was an Old Lady of Chertsey\u201d<\/p>\r\nAs is common in limericks, this example includes multiple iambic substitutions, here in the initial syllables of lines 1-3.\r\n\r\nAmphibrach:\r\n

And\u00a0now<\/span> comes an act<\/span> of enorm<\/span>ous enorm<\/span>ance!\r\nNo\u00a0form<\/span>er perform<\/span>er\u2019s performed<\/span> this perform<\/span>ance!<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Dr. Seuss, If I Ran the Circus<\/em><\/p>\r\nMolossus:\r\n

Break<\/span>, break<\/span>, break<\/span>,\r\nOn thy\u00a0cold<\/span> gray<\/span> stones<\/span>, O Sea<\/span>!\r\nAnd I\u00a0would<\/span> that my tongue<\/span> could ut<\/span>ter\r\nThe\u00a0thoughts<\/span> that arise<\/span> in me<\/span>.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Tennyson, \u201cBreak, Break, Break\u201d<\/p>\r\nThe first line is an example of a molossus; it is also an example of epizeuxis (see below).\r\n

Stanzas<\/h2>\r\nWhen a poem is divided into sections, each section is known as a stanza. Stanzas usually share the same structure as the other stanzas within the poem.\r\n

Tercet<\/strong>: a unit or stanza of three verse lines\r\nQuatrain<\/strong>: a unit or stanza of four verse lines\r\nQuintain<\/strong>: a stanza of five verse lines\r\nSestet<\/strong>: a unit or stanza of six verse lines\r\nSeptet<\/strong> or heptastich<\/strong>: a stanza of seven lines\r\nOctave<\/strong>: a unit or stanza of eight verse lines\r\nDecastich<\/strong>: a stanza or poem of ten lines<\/p>\r\nNote that many of these terms refer to a unit of this number of lines within a larger stanza or within a poem not divided into stanzas (e.g. a Shakespearean sonnet, which consists of three quatrains followed by a couplet).\r\n\r\nRefrain<\/strong>: a line or lines regularly repeated throughout a poem, traditionally at the end of each stanza. Very often found in ballads; it was also used to great effect by Yeats (see for example \u2018The Withering of the Boughs\u2019 or \u2018The Black Tower\u2019). Usually nowadays printed in italic <\/em>to distinguish it from the main body of the poem.\r\n\r\nEnjambment<\/strong>: when the sense of a verse line runs over into the next line with no punctuated pause. The opposite is known as an end-stopped<\/strong> line. An example of enjambment in iambic pentameter:\r\n

A dungeon horrible, on all sides round<\/p>\r\n

As one great furnace flamed, yet from those flames<\/p>\r\n

No light, but rather darkness visible<\/p>\r\n

Served only to discover sights of woe<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Milton,\u00a0Paradise Lost<\/em>, I<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Rhyme<\/h2>\r\nEnd rhyme<\/strong>: rhyme occurring on stressed syllables at the ends of verse lines. The most common form of rhyme. Couplet: a pair of end-rhyming verse lines, usually of the same length. E.g.:\r\n

Had we but World enough, and Time,<\/p>\r\n

This coyness Lady were no crime.<\/p>\r\n

We would sit down, and think which way<\/p>\r\n

To walk, and pass our long Loves Day.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Marvell, \u201cTo his Coy Mistress\u201d<\/p>\r\nInternal rhyme<\/strong>: rhyme occurring within a single verse line.\r\n\r\nCrossed rhyme<\/strong>: the rhyming of one word in the middle of a verse line with a word in the middle of the following line.\r\n\r\nHalf rhyme<\/strong>: also known as slant rhyme<\/strong>; an incomplete form of rhyme in which final consonants match but vowel sounds do not. E.g.:\r\n

I have heard that hysterical women say<\/p>\r\n

They are sick of the palette and fiddle-bow.<\/p>\r\n

Of poets that are always gay,<\/p>\r\n

For everybody knows or else should know<\/p>\r\n

That if nothing drastic is done<\/p>\r\n

Aeroplane and Zeppelin will come out.<\/p>\r\n

Pitch like King Billy bomb-balls in<\/p>\r\n

Until the town lie beaten flat.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Yeats, \u201cLapis Lazuli\u201d<\/p>\r\nThe first quatrain is an example of full end rhyme; the second quatrain an example of half rhyme.\r\n\r\nPara-rhyme<\/strong>: a form of half rhymel; when all the consonants of the relevant words match, not just the final consonants. E.g.:\r\n

It seemed that out of battle I escaped\r\nDown some profound dull tunnel, long since scooped\r\nThrough granites which titanic wars had groined.\r\nYet also there encumbered sleepers groaned,\r\nToo fast in thought or death to be bestirred.\r\nThen, as I probed them, one sprang up, and stared\r\nWith piteous recognition in fixed eyes,\r\nLifting distressful hands, as if to bless.\r\nAnd by his smile, I knew that sullen hall, \u2013\r\nBy his dead smile I knew we stood in Hell.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Wilfred Owen, \u201cStrange Meeting\u201d<\/p>\r\nEye rhyme<\/strong>: a visual-only rhyme; i.e. when spellings match but in pronunciation there is no rhyme, e.g. want\/pant, five\/give.\r\n\r\nDouble rhyme<\/strong>: a rhyme on two syllables, the first stressed, the second unstressed. E.g.\r\n

I want a hero: \u2014an uncommon want,<\/p>\r\n

When every year and month sends forth a new one,<\/p>\r\n

Till, after cloying the gazettes with can\u2019t,<\/p>\r\n

The age discovers he is not the true one<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Byron,\u00a0Don Juan<\/em>, I.i<\/p>\r\nThe second and fourth lines are double rhymes; the first and third lines are examples of half rhyme\/eye rhyme.\r\n\r\nAssonance<\/strong>: the recurrence of similar vowel sounds in neighbouring words where the consonants do not match. E.g.:\r\n

For the ra<\/strong>re and ra<\/strong>diant mai<\/strong>den whom the a<\/strong>ngels na<\/strong>me Lenore\u2014\r\nNa<\/strong>meless here for evermore.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Poe, \u201cThe Raven\u201d<\/p>\r\nConsonance<\/strong>: the recurrence of similar consonants in neighbouring words where the vowel sounds do not match. The most commonly found forms of consonance, other than half rhyme and para-rhyme, are alliteration and sibilance.\r\n\r\nAlliteration: the repetition of initial consonants in a sequence of neighbouring words. E.g.:\r\n

Hear the loud alarum bells\u2014<\/p>\r\n

B<\/strong>razen B<\/strong>ells!<\/p>\r\n

What a t<\/strong>ale of t<\/strong>error, now, their t<\/strong>urbulency t<\/strong>ells!<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Poe, \u201cThe Bells\u201d<\/p>\r\nSibilance<\/strong>: the repetition of sibilants, i.e. consonants producing a hissing sound. E.g.:\r\n

Ships that pass in the night, and speak each other in passing;<\/p>\r\n

Only a signal shown and a distant voice in the darkness<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Longfellow,\u00a0Tales of a Wayside Inn<\/em><\/p>\r\nBlank verse<\/strong>: metrical verse that does not rhyme. Milton\u2019s\u00a0Paradise Lost <\/em>is an example; the majority of Shakespeare is also in blank verse.\r\n

Figurative, rhetorical, and structural devices<\/h2>\r\nMetaphor<\/strong>: when one thing is said to be another thing, or is described in terms normally connected to another thing, in order to suggest a quality shared by both. E.g.:\r\n

Love, fame, ambition, avarice\u2014\u2019tis the same,<\/p>\r\n

Each idle, and all ill, and none the worst\u2014<\/p>\r\n

For all are meteors with a different name,<\/p>\r\n

And Death the sable smoke where vanishes the flame.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Byron,\u00a0Childe Harold\u2019s Pilgrimage<\/em>, IV<\/p>\r\nSimile<\/strong>: when one thing is directly compared with another thing; indicated by use of the words \u201cas\u201d or \u201clike.\u201d E.g.:\r\n

I wandered lonely as a cloud<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Wordsworth, \u201cDaffodils\u201d<\/p>\r\nMetonymy<\/strong>: when something is referred to by an aspect or attribute of it, or by something associated with it. E.g.:\r\n

Now is the winter of our discontent<\/p>\r\n

Made glorious summer by this son of York . . .<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Shakespeare,\u00a0Richard III<\/em>, I.i<\/p>\r\nHere \u201cwinter\u201d and \u201csummer\u201d are examples of metaphor; \u201cson of York\u201d is an example of metonymy, being an attribute of Richard\u2019s brother, Edward IV, here the person being referred to.\r\n\r\nSynecdoche<\/strong>: a form of metonymy in which something is referred to by a specific part of its whole. \u201cAll hands on deck\u201d is an example, in which the crew are being referred to by one specific part\u2014their hands. E.g.:\r\n

Take thy face hence.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Shakespeare,\u00a0Macbeth<\/em>, V.iii<\/p>\r\nPersonification<\/strong> or prosopopoeia<\/strong>: when inanimate objects, animals or ideas are referred to as if they were human. Similar terms are anthropomorphism, when human form is ascribed to something not human, e.g., a deity; and the pathetic fallacy, when natural phenomena are described as if they could feel as humans do. Shelley\u2019s \u2018Invocation to Misery\u2019 is an example.\r\n\r\nOnomatopoeia<\/strong>: a word that imitates the sound to which it refers. E.g. \u201cclang,\u201d \u201ccrackle,\u201d \u201cbang,\u201d etc.\r\n\r\nSynaesthesia<\/strong>: the application of terms relating to one sense to a different one, e.g., \u201ca warm sound.\" For example:\r\n

Odours there are . . . green as meadow grass<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Baudelaire, \u201cCorrespondences\u201d<\/p>\r\nOxymoron<\/strong>: the combination of two contradictory terms. E.g.:\r\n

Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health,<\/p>\r\n

Still-waking sleep that is not what it is!<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Shakespeare,\u00a0Romeo and Juliet<\/em>, I.i<\/p>\r\nHendiadys<\/strong>: when a single idea is expressed by two nouns, used in conjunction. E.g. \u201chouse and home\u201d or Hamlet\u2019s \u201cAngels and ministers of grace\u201d (Hamlet<\/em>, I.iv).\r\n\r\nAnaphora<\/strong>: the repetition of the same word or group of words at the beginnings of successive lines or clauses. E.g.:\r\n

Is\u00a0this<\/strong> the region, this<\/strong> the soil, the clime,<\/p>\r\n

Said then the lost archangel,\u00a0this<\/strong> the seat<\/p>\r\n

That we must change for heaven . . .<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Milton,\u00a0Paradise Lost<\/em>, I<\/p>\r\nEpistrophe<\/strong>: the repetition of the same word or group of words at the ends of successive lines or clauses. E.g.:\r\n

I know\u00a0thee<\/strong>, I have found thee<\/strong>, & I will not let thee<\/strong> go<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Blake, \u201cAmerica\u2014a Prophecy\u201d<\/p>\r\nEpizeuxis<\/strong>: the repetition of a word with no intervening words. E.g., Tennyson\u2019s \u201cBreak, break, break,\u201d quoted above.\r\n\r\nPolysyndeton<\/strong>: use of more than the required amount of conjunctions. E.g.:\r\n

Havoc and spoil and ruin are my gain.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Milton,\u00a0Paradise Lost<\/em>, II<\/p>\r\nThe opposite of asyndeton, which refers to the deliberate omission of conjunctions.\r\n\r\nAnachronism<\/strong>: when an object, custom or idea is misplaced outside of its proper historical time. A famous example is the clock in Shakespeare\u2019s\u00a0Julius Caesar<\/em>.\r\n\r\nApostrophe<\/strong>: an address to an inanimate object, abstraction, or a dead or absent person. E.g.:\r\n

Busie old foole, unruly Sunne,<\/p>\r\n

Why dost thou thus,<\/p>\r\n

Through windowes, and through curtaines call on us?<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Donne, \u201cThe Sunne Rising\u201d<\/p>\r\nHyperbole<\/strong>: extreme exaggeration, not intended literally. E.g.:\r\n

Since Hero\u2019s time hath half the world been black.<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Marlowe,\u00a0Hero and Leander<\/em><\/p>\r\nAdynaton<\/strong>: a form of hyperbole\u2014a figure of speech that stresses the inexpressibility of something, usually by stating that words cannot describe it. H. P. Lovecraft\u2019s short story \u201cThe Unnamable\u201d is essentially a riff on this figure of speech, satirizing Lovecraft\u2019s own regular use of it in his work.\r\n\r\nMeiosis<\/strong>: an intentional understatement in which something is described as less significant than it really is. A well-known example is found in\u00a0Romeo and Juliet <\/em>when Mercutio describes his death-wound as \u2018a scratch\u2019 (III.iii).\r\n\r\nLitotes<\/strong>: a form of meiosis; the affirmation of something by the denial of its opposite, e.g. \u201cnot uncommon,\u201d \u201cnot bad.\u201d Erotesis (rhetorical question): asking a question without requiring an answer, in order to assert or deny a statement. E.g.:\r\n

What though the field be lost? All is not lost . . .<\/p>\r\n

\u2014Paradise Lost<\/em>, I<\/p>\r\nIn medias res<\/strong><\/em>: the technique of beginning a narrative in the middle of the action, before relating preceding events at a later point.\u00a0Paradise Lost <\/em>is an example (following the convention of epic poetry).\r\n\r\nLeitmotif<\/strong>: a phrase, image or situation frequently repeated throughout a work, supporting a central theme. An example is the personification of the mine shaft lift as a devouring creature in Zola\u2019s\r\nGerminal<\/em>, repeated throughout the novel. Remember! Simply being able to identify the devices and knowing the terms is not enough. They are only a means to an end. You must always consider: why they are being used, what effect they have, and how they affect meaning(s).\r\n

Further reading<\/h2>\r\n

Baldick, C.,\u00a0Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms<\/em>, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008.<\/p>\r\n

Preminger, A., Brogan, T. and Warnke, F. (eds),\u00a0The New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics<\/em>, Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1993.<\/p>\r\n

Hollander, J.,\u00a0Rhyme\u2019s Reason: A Guide to English Verse<\/em>, New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2001.<\/p>\r\n

Attridge, D., Poetic Rhythm: An Introduction<\/em>, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.<\/p>\r\n

Strand, M.,\u00a0The Making of a Poem: A Norton Anthology of Poetic Forms<\/em>, New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 2001.<\/p>","rendered":"

Metre<\/h2>\n

Metre<\/strong> refers to the rhythmic structure of lines of verse. The majority of English verse since Chaucer is inaccentual-syllabic metre<\/strong>, which consists of alternating stressed and unstressed syllables within a fixed total number of syllables in each line. The metrical rhythm is thus the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in each line. Groups of syllables are known as metrical feet<\/strong>; each line of verse is made up of a set number of feet. Thus:<\/p>\n

Monometer<\/strong>: one foot per line
\nDimeter<\/strong>: two feet per line
\nTrimeter<\/strong>: three feet per line
\nTetrameter<\/strong>: four feet per line
\nPentameter<\/strong>: five feet per line
\nHexameter<\/strong>: six feet per line
\nHeptameter<\/strong>: seven feet per line
\nOctameter<\/strong>: eight feet per line<\/p>\n

Each foot usually consists of a single stressed syllable\u2014though there are some important variations\u2014therefore these patterns correspond to the number of stressed syllables in a line; thus tetrameter has four, pentameter five, etc.<\/p>\n

There are two types of metrical feet in English accentual-syllabic metre:\u00a0duple metre<\/strong>, consisting of disyllabic (2-syllable) feet, in which stressed syllables (x<\/strong>) and unstressed syllables (o<\/strong>) alternate in pairs; and triple metre<\/strong>, consisting of trisyllabic (3-syllable) feet, in which single stressed syllables are grouped with a pair of unstressed syllables. Duple metre is the metre most commonly found in English verse.<\/p>\n

The following metrical feet make up the most common rhythmical patterns:<\/p>\n

Duple metre<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

Iamb<\/strong> (iambic foot): o x
\n<\/strong>Trochee<\/strong> (trochaic foot): x o
\n<\/strong>Spondee<\/strong> (spondaic foot): x x
\n<\/strong>Pyrrhus<\/strong> \/ dibrach (pyrrhic foot): o o<\/strong><\/p>\n

Triple metre<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

Dactyl<\/strong> (dactylic foot): x o o
\n<\/strong>Anapaest<\/strong> (anapaestic foot): o o x
\n<\/strong>Amphibrach<\/strong>: o x o
\n<\/strong>Molossus<\/strong>: x x x<\/strong><\/p>\n

Note that the spondee, pyrrhus and molossus do not usually form the basis for whole lines of verse, but are considered forms of\u00a0substitution<\/strong>: that is, when a foot required by the metrical pattern being used is replaced by a different sort of foot. A frequently-found example of substitution is the replacement of the initial iamb in an iambic line by a trochee, e.g. (underlined syllables represent stressed syllables):<\/p>\n

In\u00a0me<\/span> thou seest the twi<\/span>light of<\/span> such day
\n<\/span>As af<\/span>ter sun<\/span>set fa<\/span>deth in<\/span> the west<\/span>,
\nWhich\u00a0by<\/span> and by<\/span> black night<\/span> doth take<\/span> away<\/span>,
\nDeath\u2019s<\/span> second self<\/span>, that seals<\/span> up all<\/span> in rest<\/span>.<\/p>\n

\u2014Shakespeare, Sonnet 73<\/p>\n

(The first three lines of this quatrain are perfectly iambic; the initial foot of the fourth line is an example of trochaic substitution, also known as\u00a0inversion<\/strong>.)<\/p>\n

Other variations in metrical rhythm include\u00a0acephalexis<\/strong>, in which the first syllable of a line that would be expected according to the regular metre of the line, is lacking; and catalexis<\/strong>, in which a line lacks the final syllable expected by its metrical pattern. Amasculine ending<\/strong> is a line that ends on a stressed syllable, while a feminine ending<\/strong> is a line that ends on an unstressed syllable.<\/p>\n

Free<\/strong> verse<\/strong> is poetry that does not conform to any regular metre.<\/p>\n

Examples of different meters and metrical substitutions:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Iambic pentameter:<\/p>\n

We\u00a0few<\/span>, we hap<\/span>py few<\/span>, we band<\/span> of bro<\/span>thers.
\nFor\u00a0he<\/span> today <\/span>that sheds<\/span> his blood<\/span> with me
\n<\/span>Shall be<\/span> my bro<\/span>ther; be<\/span> he ne\u2019er<\/span> so vile<\/span>,
\nThis\u00a0day<\/span> shall gen<\/span>tle his<\/span> condi<\/span>tion.
\nShall\u00a0think<\/span> themselves<\/span> accursed<\/span> they were<\/span> not here<\/span>,
\nAnd hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
\nThat\u00a0fought<\/span> with us<\/span> upon<\/span> Saint Cris<\/span>pin\u2019s day<\/span>.<\/p>\n

\u2014Shakespeare,\u00a0Henry V<\/i>, IV.iii<\/p>\n

An example of perfect iambic pentameter. Note the feminine ending in l.1 (in iambic metre a feminine ending adds an extra syllable to the line), and how the stresses follow the sense of the lines.<\/p>\n

Trochaic tetrameter:<\/p>\n

In<\/span> what dis<\/span>tant deeps<\/span> or skies
\n<\/span>Burnt<\/span> the fi<\/span>re of<\/span> thine eyes<\/span>?
\nOn<\/span> what wings<\/span> dare he<\/span> aspire<\/span>?
\nWhat<\/span> the hand<\/span> dare seize<\/span> the fi<\/span>re?<\/p>\n

\u2014Blake, \u201cThe Tyger\u201d<\/p>\n

The first two lines exhibit masculine endings, and thus are catalectic according to the regular pattern of trochaic metre; that is, they lack their final syllable. Arguably, the second foot in l.4 could be read as a spondaic substitution (if\u00a0dare<\/em> is stressed).<\/p>\n

Spondaic substitution in iambic pentameter (l.3):<\/p>\n

Or\u00a0if<\/span> thy mis<\/span>tress some<\/span> rich an<\/span>ger shows<\/span>,
\nEm\u00a0pri<\/span>son her<\/span> soft hand<\/span>, and let<\/span> her rave<\/span>,
\nAnd\u00a0feed<\/span> deep<\/span>, deep<\/span> upon<\/span> her peer<\/span>less eyes<\/span>.<\/p>\n

\u2014Keats, \u201cOde on Melancholy\u201d<\/p>\n

Pyrrhic substitution in iambic tetrameter (l.2):<\/p>\n

The\u00a0woods<\/span> are love<\/span>ly, dark<\/span> and deep<\/span>.
\nBut\u00a0I <\/span>have pro<\/span>mises to keep<\/span>,
\nAnd\u00a0miles<\/span> to go<\/span> before<\/span> I sleep<\/span>,
\nAnd\u00a0miles<\/span> to go<\/span> before<\/span> I sleep<\/span>.<\/p>\n

\u2014Frost, \u201cStopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening\u201d<\/p>\n

Dactylic dimeter:<\/p>\n

Theirs<\/span> not to make<\/span> reply,
\nTheirs<\/span> not to rea<\/span>son why,
\nTheirs<\/span> but to do<\/span> and die<\/p>\n

\u2014Tennyson, \u201cThe Charge of the Light Brigade\u201d<\/p>\n

Anapaestic metre:<\/p>\n

There\u00a0was<\/span> an Old La<\/span>dy of Chert<\/span>sey,
\nWho\u00a0made<\/span> a remark<\/span>able curt<\/span>sey;
\nShe\u00a0twirled<\/span> round and round<\/span>,
\nTill she\u00a0sunk<\/span> underground<\/span>,
\nWhich distressed<\/span> all the people of Chert<\/span>sey.<\/p>\n

\u2014Edward Lear, \u201cThere Was an Old Lady of Chertsey\u201d<\/p>\n

As is common in limericks, this example includes multiple iambic substitutions, here in the initial syllables of lines 1-3.<\/p>\n

Amphibrach:<\/p>\n

And\u00a0now<\/span> comes an act<\/span> of enorm<\/span>ous enorm<\/span>ance!
\nNo\u00a0form<\/span>er perform<\/span>er\u2019s performed<\/span> this perform<\/span>ance!<\/p>\n

\u2014Dr. Seuss, If I Ran the Circus<\/em><\/p>\n

Molossus:<\/p>\n

Break<\/span>, break<\/span>, break<\/span>,
\nOn thy\u00a0cold<\/span> gray<\/span> stones<\/span>, O Sea<\/span>!
\nAnd I\u00a0would<\/span> that my tongue<\/span> could ut<\/span>ter
\nThe\u00a0thoughts<\/span> that arise<\/span> in me<\/span>.<\/p>\n

\u2014Tennyson, \u201cBreak, Break, Break\u201d<\/p>\n

The first line is an example of a molossus; it is also an example of epizeuxis (see below).<\/p>\n

Stanzas<\/h2>\n

When a poem is divided into sections, each section is known as a stanza. Stanzas usually share the same structure as the other stanzas within the poem.<\/p>\n

Tercet<\/strong>: a unit or stanza of three verse lines
\nQuatrain<\/strong>: a unit or stanza of four verse lines
\nQuintain<\/strong>: a stanza of five verse lines
\nSestet<\/strong>: a unit or stanza of six verse lines
\nSeptet<\/strong> or heptastich<\/strong>: a stanza of seven lines
\nOctave<\/strong>: a unit or stanza of eight verse lines
\nDecastich<\/strong>: a stanza or poem of ten lines<\/p>\n

Note that many of these terms refer to a unit of this number of lines within a larger stanza or within a poem not divided into stanzas (e.g. a Shakespearean sonnet, which consists of three quatrains followed by a couplet).<\/p>\n

Refrain<\/strong>: a line or lines regularly repeated throughout a poem, traditionally at the end of each stanza. Very often found in ballads; it was also used to great effect by Yeats (see for example \u2018The Withering of the Boughs\u2019 or \u2018The Black Tower\u2019). Usually nowadays printed in italic <\/em>to distinguish it from the main body of the poem.<\/p>\n

Enjambment<\/strong>: when the sense of a verse line runs over into the next line with no punctuated pause. The opposite is known as an end-stopped<\/strong> line. An example of enjambment in iambic pentameter:<\/p>\n

A dungeon horrible, on all sides round<\/p>\n

As one great furnace flamed, yet from those flames<\/p>\n

No light, but rather darkness visible<\/p>\n

Served only to discover sights of woe<\/p>\n

\u2014Milton,\u00a0Paradise Lost<\/em>, I<\/p>\n

Rhyme<\/h2>\n

End rhyme<\/strong>: rhyme occurring on stressed syllables at the ends of verse lines. The most common form of rhyme. Couplet: a pair of end-rhyming verse lines, usually of the same length. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Had we but World enough, and Time,<\/p>\n

This coyness Lady were no crime.<\/p>\n

We would sit down, and think which way<\/p>\n

To walk, and pass our long Loves Day.<\/p>\n

\u2014Marvell, \u201cTo his Coy Mistress\u201d<\/p>\n

Internal rhyme<\/strong>: rhyme occurring within a single verse line.<\/p>\n

Crossed rhyme<\/strong>: the rhyming of one word in the middle of a verse line with a word in the middle of the following line.<\/p>\n

Half rhyme<\/strong>: also known as slant rhyme<\/strong>; an incomplete form of rhyme in which final consonants match but vowel sounds do not. E.g.:<\/p>\n

I have heard that hysterical women say<\/p>\n

They are sick of the palette and fiddle-bow.<\/p>\n

Of poets that are always gay,<\/p>\n

For everybody knows or else should know<\/p>\n

That if nothing drastic is done<\/p>\n

Aeroplane and Zeppelin will come out.<\/p>\n

Pitch like King Billy bomb-balls in<\/p>\n

Until the town lie beaten flat.<\/p>\n

\u2014Yeats, \u201cLapis Lazuli\u201d<\/p>\n

The first quatrain is an example of full end rhyme; the second quatrain an example of half rhyme.<\/p>\n

Para-rhyme<\/strong>: a form of half rhymel; when all the consonants of the relevant words match, not just the final consonants. E.g.:<\/p>\n

It seemed that out of battle I escaped
\nDown some profound dull tunnel, long since scooped
\nThrough granites which titanic wars had groined.
\nYet also there encumbered sleepers groaned,
\nToo fast in thought or death to be bestirred.
\nThen, as I probed them, one sprang up, and stared
\nWith piteous recognition in fixed eyes,
\nLifting distressful hands, as if to bless.
\nAnd by his smile, I knew that sullen hall, \u2013
\nBy his dead smile I knew we stood in Hell.<\/p>\n

\u2014Wilfred Owen, \u201cStrange Meeting\u201d<\/p>\n

Eye rhyme<\/strong>: a visual-only rhyme; i.e. when spellings match but in pronunciation there is no rhyme, e.g. want\/pant, five\/give.<\/p>\n

Double rhyme<\/strong>: a rhyme on two syllables, the first stressed, the second unstressed. E.g.<\/p>\n

I want a hero: \u2014an uncommon want,<\/p>\n

When every year and month sends forth a new one,<\/p>\n

Till, after cloying the gazettes with can\u2019t,<\/p>\n

The age discovers he is not the true one<\/p>\n

\u2014Byron,\u00a0Don Juan<\/em>, I.i<\/p>\n

The second and fourth lines are double rhymes; the first and third lines are examples of half rhyme\/eye rhyme.<\/p>\n

Assonance<\/strong>: the recurrence of similar vowel sounds in neighbouring words where the consonants do not match. E.g.:<\/p>\n

For the ra<\/strong>re and ra<\/strong>diant mai<\/strong>den whom the a<\/strong>ngels na<\/strong>me Lenore\u2014
\nNa<\/strong>meless here for evermore.<\/p>\n

\u2014Poe, \u201cThe Raven\u201d<\/p>\n

Consonance<\/strong>: the recurrence of similar consonants in neighbouring words where the vowel sounds do not match. The most commonly found forms of consonance, other than half rhyme and para-rhyme, are alliteration and sibilance.<\/p>\n

Alliteration: the repetition of initial consonants in a sequence of neighbouring words. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Hear the loud alarum bells\u2014<\/p>\n

B<\/strong>razen B<\/strong>ells!<\/p>\n

What a t<\/strong>ale of t<\/strong>error, now, their t<\/strong>urbulency t<\/strong>ells!<\/p>\n

\u2014Poe, \u201cThe Bells\u201d<\/p>\n

Sibilance<\/strong>: the repetition of sibilants, i.e. consonants producing a hissing sound. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Ships that pass in the night, and speak each other in passing;<\/p>\n

Only a signal shown and a distant voice in the darkness<\/p>\n

\u2014Longfellow,\u00a0Tales of a Wayside Inn<\/em><\/p>\n

Blank verse<\/strong>: metrical verse that does not rhyme. Milton\u2019s\u00a0Paradise Lost <\/em>is an example; the majority of Shakespeare is also in blank verse.<\/p>\n

Figurative, rhetorical, and structural devices<\/h2>\n

Metaphor<\/strong>: when one thing is said to be another thing, or is described in terms normally connected to another thing, in order to suggest a quality shared by both. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Love, fame, ambition, avarice\u2014\u2019tis the same,<\/p>\n

Each idle, and all ill, and none the worst\u2014<\/p>\n

For all are meteors with a different name,<\/p>\n

And Death the sable smoke where vanishes the flame.<\/p>\n

\u2014Byron,\u00a0Childe Harold\u2019s Pilgrimage<\/em>, IV<\/p>\n

Simile<\/strong>: when one thing is directly compared with another thing; indicated by use of the words \u201cas\u201d or \u201clike.\u201d E.g.:<\/p>\n

I wandered lonely as a cloud<\/p>\n

\u2014Wordsworth, \u201cDaffodils\u201d<\/p>\n

Metonymy<\/strong>: when something is referred to by an aspect or attribute of it, or by something associated with it. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Now is the winter of our discontent<\/p>\n

Made glorious summer by this son of York . . .<\/p>\n

\u2014Shakespeare,\u00a0Richard III<\/em>, I.i<\/p>\n

Here \u201cwinter\u201d and \u201csummer\u201d are examples of metaphor; \u201cson of York\u201d is an example of metonymy, being an attribute of Richard\u2019s brother, Edward IV, here the person being referred to.<\/p>\n

Synecdoche<\/strong>: a form of metonymy in which something is referred to by a specific part of its whole. \u201cAll hands on deck\u201d is an example, in which the crew are being referred to by one specific part\u2014their hands. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Take thy face hence.<\/p>\n

\u2014Shakespeare,\u00a0Macbeth<\/em>, V.iii<\/p>\n

Personification<\/strong> or prosopopoeia<\/strong>: when inanimate objects, animals or ideas are referred to as if they were human. Similar terms are anthropomorphism, when human form is ascribed to something not human, e.g., a deity; and the pathetic fallacy, when natural phenomena are described as if they could feel as humans do. Shelley\u2019s \u2018Invocation to Misery\u2019 is an example.<\/p>\n

Onomatopoeia<\/strong>: a word that imitates the sound to which it refers. E.g. \u201cclang,\u201d \u201ccrackle,\u201d \u201cbang,\u201d etc.<\/p>\n

Synaesthesia<\/strong>: the application of terms relating to one sense to a different one, e.g., \u201ca warm sound.” For example:<\/p>\n

Odours there are . . . green as meadow grass<\/p>\n

\u2014Baudelaire, \u201cCorrespondences\u201d<\/p>\n

Oxymoron<\/strong>: the combination of two contradictory terms. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health,<\/p>\n

Still-waking sleep that is not what it is!<\/p>\n

\u2014Shakespeare,\u00a0Romeo and Juliet<\/em>, I.i<\/p>\n

Hendiadys<\/strong>: when a single idea is expressed by two nouns, used in conjunction. E.g. \u201chouse and home\u201d or Hamlet\u2019s \u201cAngels and ministers of grace\u201d (Hamlet<\/em>, I.iv).<\/p>\n

Anaphora<\/strong>: the repetition of the same word or group of words at the beginnings of successive lines or clauses. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Is\u00a0this<\/strong> the region, this<\/strong> the soil, the clime,<\/p>\n

Said then the lost archangel,\u00a0this<\/strong> the seat<\/p>\n

That we must change for heaven . . .<\/p>\n

\u2014Milton,\u00a0Paradise Lost<\/em>, I<\/p>\n

Epistrophe<\/strong>: the repetition of the same word or group of words at the ends of successive lines or clauses. E.g.:<\/p>\n

I know\u00a0thee<\/strong>, I have found thee<\/strong>, & I will not let thee<\/strong> go<\/p>\n

\u2014Blake, \u201cAmerica\u2014a Prophecy\u201d<\/p>\n

Epizeuxis<\/strong>: the repetition of a word with no intervening words. E.g., Tennyson\u2019s \u201cBreak, break, break,\u201d quoted above.<\/p>\n

Polysyndeton<\/strong>: use of more than the required amount of conjunctions. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Havoc and spoil and ruin are my gain.<\/p>\n

\u2014Milton,\u00a0Paradise Lost<\/em>, II<\/p>\n

The opposite of asyndeton, which refers to the deliberate omission of conjunctions.<\/p>\n

Anachronism<\/strong>: when an object, custom or idea is misplaced outside of its proper historical time. A famous example is the clock in Shakespeare\u2019s\u00a0Julius Caesar<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Apostrophe<\/strong>: an address to an inanimate object, abstraction, or a dead or absent person. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Busie old foole, unruly Sunne,<\/p>\n

Why dost thou thus,<\/p>\n

Through windowes, and through curtaines call on us?<\/p>\n

\u2014Donne, \u201cThe Sunne Rising\u201d<\/p>\n

Hyperbole<\/strong>: extreme exaggeration, not intended literally. E.g.:<\/p>\n

Since Hero\u2019s time hath half the world been black.<\/p>\n

\u2014Marlowe,\u00a0Hero and Leander<\/em><\/p>\n

Adynaton<\/strong>: a form of hyperbole\u2014a figure of speech that stresses the inexpressibility of something, usually by stating that words cannot describe it. H. P. Lovecraft\u2019s short story \u201cThe Unnamable\u201d is essentially a riff on this figure of speech, satirizing Lovecraft\u2019s own regular use of it in his work.<\/p>\n

Meiosis<\/strong>: an intentional understatement in which something is described as less significant than it really is. A well-known example is found in\u00a0Romeo and Juliet <\/em>when Mercutio describes his death-wound as \u2018a scratch\u2019 (III.iii).<\/p>\n

Litotes<\/strong>: a form of meiosis; the affirmation of something by the denial of its opposite, e.g. \u201cnot uncommon,\u201d \u201cnot bad.\u201d Erotesis (rhetorical question): asking a question without requiring an answer, in order to assert or deny a statement. E.g.:<\/p>\n

What though the field be lost? All is not lost . . .<\/p>\n

\u2014Paradise Lost<\/em>, I<\/p>\n

In medias res<\/strong><\/em>: the technique of beginning a narrative in the middle of the action, before relating preceding events at a later point.\u00a0Paradise Lost <\/em>is an example (following the convention of epic poetry).<\/p>\n

Leitmotif<\/strong>: a phrase, image or situation frequently repeated throughout a work, supporting a central theme. An example is the personification of the mine shaft lift as a devouring creature in Zola\u2019s
\nGerminal<\/em>, repeated throughout the novel. Remember! Simply being able to identify the devices and knowing the terms is not enough. They are only a means to an end. You must always consider: why they are being used, what effect they have, and how they affect meaning(s).<\/p>\n

Further reading<\/h2>\n

Baldick, C.,\u00a0Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms<\/em>, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008.<\/p>\n

Preminger, A., Brogan, T. and Warnke, F. (eds),\u00a0The New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics<\/em>, Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1993.<\/p>\n

Hollander, J.,\u00a0Rhyme\u2019s Reason: A Guide to English Verse<\/em>, New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2001.<\/p>\n

Attridge, D., Poetic Rhythm: An Introduction<\/em>, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.<\/p>\n

Strand, M.,\u00a0The Making of a Poem: A Norton Anthology of Poetic Forms<\/em>, New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 2001.<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t

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