The Rhythm of Poetry:
Syllable - Poetic feet - Meter
Syllables • English words have clear syllables. • We can usually divide words into
syllables easily. • We can also determine which syllables to
emphasize, or “stress” in each word. § For example:
• Angel = AN-gel à (not an-GEL) • Complete = com-PLETE à (not COM-plete)
More Syllables • poem = PO-em…….(1 stressed + 1 unstressed)
• poetry = PO-e-try…….(1 stressed + 2 unstressed)
• relief = re-LIEF……. (1 unstressed + 1 stressed)
• recommend = re-com-MEND……. (2 unstressed + 1 stressed)
• discomfort = dis-COM-fort… (1 unstressed + 1 stressed + 1 unstressed)
• entertainment = en-ter-TAIN-ment (2 unstressed + 1 stressed + 1 unstressed)
Scansion • (1) the act of scanning, or analyzing poetry
in terms of its rhythmic components • (2) the graphic representation,
indicated by marked accents, feet, etc., of the rhythm of a line or lines of verse – You may have seen scansion marks like the
following: The curved lines are “unstressed” syllables while the straight slashes are “stressed”à
Poetic Meter • Meters are the rhythms within poems. • Meters are the arrangement of
stressed/unstressed syllables to occur at apparently equal intervals.
• Metered verse has prescribed rules as to the number and placement of syllables used per line.
Poetic Foot • A poetic foot is a repeated sequence of
rhythm comprised of two or more stressed and/or unstressed syllables.
• Poetic meter is comprised of poetic feet
Four main patterns to poetic feet:
1. Iambic (˘ ΄) or (U /) 2. Trochaic (΄ ˘) 3. Anapestic (˘ ˘ ΄) 4. Dactylic (΄ ˘ ˘) *5. Spondaic (΄ ΄) *6. Pyrrhic (˘ ˘)
Iambic pattern • 1 unstressed syllable followed by
1 stressed syllable • EXAMPLES:
– repose (re-POSE) – belief (be-LIEF) – complete (com-PLETE)
Trochaic Pattern • 1 stressed syllable followed by
1 unstressed syllable • EXAMPLES:
– garland (GAR-land) – speaking (SPEAK-ing) – value (VAL-ue)
Anapestic pattern • 2 unstressed syllables followed by
1 stressed syllable • EXAMPLES:
– on the road – interrupt (in-ter-RUPT) – unabridged, contradict, engineer,
masquerade, Galilee
Dactylic pattern • 1 stressed syllable followed by
2 unstressed syllables • EXAMPLE:
– happiness (HAP-pi-ness) – galloping (GAL-lop-ing) – fortunate, Saturday, daffodil, murmuring,
rhapsody
Spondaic Pattern • Syllables have equal stress • EXAMPLE:
– Heartbreak – “Out, out…” – "pen-knife," "ad hoc," "heartburn"
Pyrrhic Pattern • Syllables have equal lack of stress • Never used as the sole meter • EXAMPLE: combination of pyrrhic and
spondaic
– and the white breast of the dim sea, ˘ ˘ ΄ ΄ ˘ ˘ ΄ ΄
The Iambic Foot • The iamb = (1 unstressed syllable + 1 stressed syllable) is the
most common poetic foot in English verse. • iambic foot examples:
– behold – destroy – the sun (articles such as “the” would be considered unstressed syllables)
– and watch (conjunctions such as and would be considered unstressed syllables)
Lines containing iambic feet • Behold / and watch / the sun / destroy / and grow (5 iambs)
• When I / do COUNT / the CLOCK / that TELLS / the
TIME [Shakespeare’s Sonnet 12] (5 iambs)
• Shall I / compare /thee to / a sum / mer's day? [Shakespeare’s Sonnet 12] (5 iambs)
• Come live/ with me/ and be/ my love (4 iambs)
(poem by Christopher Marlowe)
Trochaic poem: a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed one
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's “The Song of Hiawatha” By the / shores of / Gitche / Gumee, By the / shining / Big-Sea /-Water, Stood the / wigwam / of No / komis, Daughter / of the / Moon, No / komis. Dark behind it rose the forest, Rose the black and gloomy pine-trees, Rose the firs with cones upon them; Bright before' it beat the water, Beat the clear and sunny water, Beat the shining Big-Sea-Water.
Anapestic poetry: 2 unstressed syllables + 1 stressed one
Limericks contain anapestic meter (in blue)
A Limerick by Edward Lear: There was / an Old Man / with a beard,
Who said, "It is just / as I feared! Two Owls / and a Hen, Four Larks / and a Wren, Have all / built their nests / in my beard!"
Dactylic poem: 1 stressed + 2 unstressed
Charge of the Light Brigade by Alfred, Lord Tennyson Half a league, / half a league, Half a league / onward, All in the / valley of / Death
Rode the / six hundred. "Forward, the / Light Brigade! Charge for the / guns!" he said: Into the / valley of / Death
Rode the / six hundred.
Spondaic Poem: 2 equal syllables • Because of the nature of the spondee,
a serious poem cannot be solely spondaic.
• It would be almost impossible to construct a poem entirely of stressed syllables.
• Therefore, the spondee usually occurs within a poem having another dominant rhythm scheme.
Combinations of Poetic Feet
• One foot per line: monometer • Two feet per line : dimeter • Three feet per line : trimeter • Four feet per line : tetrameter • Five feet per line : pentameter • Six feet per line : hexameter
Type + Number = Meter Types of Poetic Feet
• Iambic (1 unstressed + 1 stressed)
• Trochaic (1 stressed + 1 unstressed)
• Anapestic (2 unstressed + 1 stressed)
• Dactylic (1 stressed + 2 unstressed) • Spondaic (all syllables equal)
Number of feet per line
• Monometer • Dimeter • Trimeter • Tetrameter • Pentameter • Hexameter
Meters & Feet
• Q: If a poem had 1 foot per line, and the foot was iambic (1 unstressed + 1 stressed), what type of poem would it be?
• A: Iambic monometer
Meters & Feet
• Q: If a poem had 2 feet per line, and the foot was iambic (1 unstressed + 1 stressed), what type of poem would it be?
• A: Iambic dimeter
Meters & Feet
• Q: If a poem had 3 feet per line, and the foot was anapestic (2 unstressed + 1
stressed), what type of poem would it be?
• A: Anapestic trimeter
Meters & Feet
• Q: If a poem had 4 feet per line, and the foot was dactylic (1 stressed+2 unstressed), what type of poem would it be?
• A: Dactylic tetrameter
Meters & Feet
• Q: If a poem had 5 feet per line, and the foot was iambic (1 unstressed + 1 stressed), what type of poem would it be?
• A: Iambic pentameter
Meters & Feet
• Q: If a poem had 3 feet per line, and the foot was trochaic (1 stressed +1 unstressed), what type of poem would it be?
• A: Trochaic tetrameter
Go ahead… experiment with
different metric styles in your own poetry!
End of presentation.