2.1.Poetry:why?

Eventhoughapoemmaybeshort,mostofthetimeyoucan’treaditfast.

It’slikemolasses.Orketchup.

Withpoetry,therearesomanythingstotakeintoconsideration.Thereistheaspectofhowitsounds,ofwhatitmeans,andoftenofhowitlooks.

Insomecircles,thereisacertainaversiontopoetry.Someconsideritoutdated,toodifficult,ornotworththetime.Theyask:Whydoesittakesolongtoreadsomethingsoshort?Well,yes,itisifyouareusedtoTwitter,ornotusedtopoetry.

Thinkabouttheconnectionspoetryhastomusic.Couldn’tyouconsidersomeofyourfavoritelyricspoetry?2Pac,forexample,wrote abookofpoetrycalledTheRosethatGrewfromConcrete.Atmanypointsinhistoryacrossmanycultures,poetrywasconsideredthehighestformofexpression.

Whydopeoplewritepoetry?Becausetheywanttoandbecausetheycan…(takingtheideafromFedericoGarcíaLorcaenhispoem“Lucía Martínez”:“porquequiero,yporquepuedo”)

Youaskyourself:WhydoIneedtoreadpoetry?BecauseyouaregoingtotaketheCLEPexam.

Onceyoumovebeyondthat,itwillbeeasier.

Somereasonswhywewrite/readpoetry:• Tobecomeaware• Toseethingsinadifferentway

• Toputtogetheramentaljigsawpuzzle

• Tomovethesenses• Toprovokeemotions• Tofindorder

2.2.Poetry:how?

Ifyouarenotfamiliarwithpoetry,youshoulddefinitelypracticereadingsomebeforeyoutaketheexam.Herearesomeideasofwhatyoucando:

• Makealistofpoemsyouknow.Thiscanbefromanythingfromnurseryrhymestosonglyricstoclassicpoems.Thinkaboutwhatmightlink themtopoetryandwhatseparatesthemfromothertypesofwriting.

• Findaclassicpoemunknowntoyou.Youcanselectoneoftheonesmentionedinthisclassoronefromananthologyofpoetry.Thereasonwhyitisrecommendedthatyoutakeonefromananthologyisbecauseitsselectionofpoemsismorelikelytohavemorethingstolookat.

• Whatyoushouldlookforinthepoem: rhyme,punctuation,grammar,wordselection,rhetoricaltechniques,multiplemeanings.

• Writeyourownpoem.Thinkaboutwhatmakesiteasyorhardforyoutowriteit.

Evenifyouhavehadlittleexposuretopoetryinthepast,myaimisthatasyoureviewthismaterialmultipletimes,youwillunderstandmoreaboutpoetryandrecognizepoetsandpoemsintheprocess.

2.3.Poetry:tone

Thetone ofthepoemcanbelikethetoneofanythingelse,andonlyafewwordscanswaythefeeling:

RobertFrost,“TheRoadNotTaken”Ishallbetellingthiswithasigh

Somewhereagesandageshence:

HenryDavidThoreau,“Inspiration”Aclearandancientharmony

Piercesmysoulthroughallitsdin

DylanThomas,“NotFromThisAnger”

Notfromthisanger,anticlimax

after

Refusalstruckherloinandthe

lameflower

Bentlikeabeasttolapthesingular

floods

Inalandstrappedbyhunger

Shallshereceiveabellyfulofweeds

Hafiz,“AlltheHemispheres”

OpenuptotheRoof.

Makeanewwater-markonyour

excitement

Andlove.

Likeabloomingnightflower,

Bestowyourvitalfragranceof

Happinessandgiving

Uponourintimateassembly.

Thetone ofthepoemcanvarygreatly.

CheckouttheamountofdifferenttonesthepoemcantakeonintheCanadianPoetryinVoicewebsite!http://www.poetryinvoice.com/teachers/lesson-plans/tone-map/tone-list

2.4.Poetry:verseandrhyme

Let’stakealookatallthesecomponentsofverseandrhyme:

– verse– stanza– rhymescheme– endrhyme/internalrhyme– slantrhyme– masculinerhyme/feminine

rhyme– freeverse– blankverse

Verseandstanza:– Verse:averseisalineinapoem

– Stanza:astanzaisagroupofverses,likea“paragraph”withinapoem,manytimeswithsomesortofmeterandorder.

Verseandstanza

EmilyDickinson,“ABird,camedowntheWalk”

ABird,camedowntheWalk-

HedidnotknowIsaw-

HebitanAngleWorminhalves

Andatethefellow,raw,

Andthen,hedrankaDew

FromaconvenientGrass-

AndthenhoppedsidewisetotheWall

ToletaBeetlepass-

Rhymescheme– arhymeschemeisapatternthattherhymesinapoemfollow.Hereareafewexamples:

ABABrhyme

RobertFrost,“NeitherOutFarNorDeep”Thepeoplealong thesand

Allturn andlookoneway.

They turn their backontheland.

They lookat thesea allday.

Anotherexample:ABBArhyme

JohnMilton,“OnHisBeingArrivedtotheAgeofTwenty-Three”

Perhapsmysemblancemight

deceivethetruth,

ThatItomanhoodamarrivedso

near,

Andinwardripenessdothmuchless

appear,

Thatsomemoretimely-happy

spiritsindu’th.

InternalrhymeandEndrhyme

Internalrhyme:

EdgarAllenPoe,TheRavenOnceuponamidnight

dreary,whileIpondered,

weakandweary,

InternalrhymeandEndrhyme

Endrhyme:

WilliamBlake,“TheAngel”Idreamtadream!Whatcanitmean?

AndthatIwasamaidenQueen

GuardedbyanAngelmild:

Witlesswoewasne'erbeguiled!

Aslantrhyme(alsocalledhalfrhyme,nearrhyme,imperfectrhyme,obliquerhyme)iswhenthestressedsyllablesoftheconsonantsmatchbuttheprecedingvowelsdon’t:

Slantrhyme:

EmilyDickinson,“HopeIstheThingwithFeathers”

"Hope"isthethingwithfeathers

Thatperchesinthesoul

Andsingsthetunewithoutthewords

Andneverstopsatall,

Thisisnotonlyfoundinpoetry,butalsoinhip-hop.ArtistslikeNotoriousB.I.G.andNas haveusedit.

Masculineand

Femininerhyme.Thesearenotmodernterms,butyoumayrunintotheminyourstudies.

Femininerhyme(double rhyme):arhymethatmatchestwoormoresyllables.Thefinalsyllable(s)is/areunstressed,anditisusuallyattheendof theline.

WilliamWordsworth, “London, 1802”

Milton!thoushouldst belivingatthishour:

Englandhathneedofthee:sheisafen

Ofstagnantwaters:altar,sword,andpen,

Fireside,theheroicwealthofhalland

bower,

HaveforfeitedtheirancientEnglishdower

Masculinerhyme:arhymethatmatchesonlyonesyllable.Usually,thefinalsyllableis stressed,anditisusuallyattheendoftheline.ThesearethemajorityofallrhymesinEnglish-languagepoetry.

JohnDonne, “Deathbenotproud”Death,benotproud,thoughsomehave

calledthee

Mightyanddreadful, forthouartnotso;

Forthosewhomthouthink'st thoudost

overthrow

Dienot,poorDeath,noryetcanstthoukill

me.

Fromrestandsleep,whichbutthypictures

be,

Freeverse(fromvers libre inFrench)Itdoesn’tfollowaregularmeterorrhythm.It’stheclosestformtoimitatingconversation.

WaltWhitman,“ANoiseless,PatientSpider”

Anoiseless,patientspider,Imark’d,where,onalittlepromontory,itstood,isolated;Mark’d how,toexplore thevacant,vastsurrounding,Itlaunch’d forthfilament, filament,filament,outofitself;Everunreeling them—evertirelessly speeding them.

Blankverse

Thisisaversethatdoesnotrhyme,writteniniambicpentameter(10syllables).Itisusedinpoemsanddramas.Itisoftenusedincharactermonologues.

WilliamShakespeare,“Macbeth”Tomorrow,andtomorrow,andtomorrow,

Creepsinthispettypacefromdaytoday,

Tothelastsyllableofrecordedtime;

Andallouryesterdayshavelightedfools

2.5.Poetry:meter

Meter:– meter– iambicpentameter– iambicmeter– iambicfoot– anapest– trochee

Themeter isthepatternofstressedwordsinaverse.Readingaloudifpossibleisbetterthaninyourheadbecausethestressfallsonsyllables.Naturalspeechusuallyfallsonthestresspoints.

Shakespeare,“Sonnet18”ShallI compare theeto asummer’s

day?

Ifthepatternisstressedthenunstressedinsequence, thenthatiscallediambic

rhythm.Ifthewholeversefollowsthisstructure,thenthat’sreferredtoastheiambicmeter.Themostcommonoftheseistheiambicpentameter (five stresses,tensyllablesinall).

JohnMilton,ParadiseLost

Invokethyaidtomyadventuroussong,

Thatwithnomiddleflightintendstosoar.

Ifaniambicpentameterhas5stressedsyllables,howmaystressesdothesehave?:• Hexameter• Diameter• Heptameter• Octameter• Tetrameter• Monometer• Trimeter

Ifaniambicpentameterhas5stressedsyllables,howmaystressesdothesehave?:• Hexameter- 6• Diameter- 2• Heptameter- 7• Octameter - 8• Tetrameter- 4• Monometer-1• Trimeter - 3

Othertypesofmeterare:

Anapest – unstressed,unstressed,stressed:Twas thenightbeforeChristmas

whenallthroughthehouse.

Trochee – stressed,unstressed:Double,double,toilandtrouble;

Fireburnandcauldronbubble.

2.6.1Poetry:form

Form isthedesignofapoem.

Closedform(fixedform)followsasetdesigninmeterandverse.Poetsmustfollowthepatternsandstructurewiththisform.Anexampleofthisisthesonnet (explainedinfutureslides):

Openform poetry,asthenameholds,doesnotfollowtherulesofestablishedpoeticstructuresofmeterandverse.Therearenoregularstanzastructures.Sometimestheycanbetrickybecausetheymayhavesomeelementsofpatterninsoundorwords.Openformissometimesconsideredfreeverse,butothersdisagreeandstatethattherearesomedifferences.

Concretepoetry,alsocalledshapepoetry,iswhenthepoemitselftakesonaphysicalform.Thiscanhelpthereaderunderstandmoreofthepoet’sthinking.

Concretepoetry:HereisanexampleofGuillaumedeApollinaire’sCalligrammes

from1918.

2.6.2Poetry:typesofpoetry

Differenttypesofpoems• sonnet• octave/sestet/quatrains/couplets• heroiccouplet• alexandrine• mock-heroic• epic• ballads– balladstanza,literaryballads• elegy• ode• villanelle• epigram• doggerel• limerick• Aubade

2.6.2.1Poetry:typesofpoetry-

Sonnet

Thesonnet isperhapsthemostfamousofpoetryforms.Theyare14lines,usuallyiniambicpentameter. Therearetwotypesofmainsonnets,thePetrarchansonnetandtheShakespeareansonnet.

ThePetrarchansonnetisapoemmadeuptwomajorsections,amajorgroupof8lines(theoctave)andaminorgroupofsixlines(thesestet).Therhymeschemeisusuallyabbaabba cde cde.

Petrarchansonnet

Milton,“OnHisBlindness”WhenIconsiderhowmylightisspent(a)

Erehalfmydays,inthisdarkworldandwide,(b)

Andthatonetalentwhichisdeathtohide,(b)

Lodgedwithmeuseless,thoughmysoulmorebent

(a)

ToservetherewithmyMaker,andpresent(a)

Mytrueaccount,lesthereturningchide;(b)

"DothGodexactday-labor,lightdenied?"(b)

Ifondlyask;butPatiencetoprevent(a)

Thatmurmur,soonreplies,"Goddothnotneed(c)

Eitherman'sworkorhisowngifts;whobest(d)

Bearhismildyoke,theyservehimbest.Hisstate(e)

IsKingly.Thousandsathisbiddingspeed(c)

Andposto'erlandandoceanwithoutrest;(d)

Theyalsoservewhoonlystandandwait."(e)

TheShakespeareansonnetisapoemmadeupthreequatrains(averseoffourlines)andacouplet(averseoftwolines).Therhymeschemeusuallyisababcdcd efef gg.

Shakespeareansonnet

Shalespeare, “SonnetIX”Isitforfeartowetawidow'seye

Thatthouconsumest thyselfinsinglelife?

Ah!ifthouissuelessshalthaptodie.

Theworldwillwailthee,likeamakeless wife;

Theworldwillbethywidowandstillweep

Thatthounoformoftheehastleftbehind,

Wheneveryprivatewidowwellmaykeep

Bychildren'seyesherhusband'sshapeinmind.

Look,whatanunthriftintheworlddothspend

Shiftsbuthisplace,forstill theworldenjoysit;

Butbeauty'swastehathintheworldanend,

Andkeptunused,theusersodestroysit.

Nolovetowardothersinthatbosomsits

Thatonhimselfsuchmurderousshamecommits.

Octave – eightlinesofiambicpentameter(orofhendecasyllables– 11syllables-in the Italianstyle).Themostcommonrhymeschemeisabbaabba.It’sthefirstpartofaShakespeareansonnet.Sestet – generallytheseconddivisionofaShakespeareansonnet,whichconsistsof6lines.

2.6.2.2.Poetry:typesofpoetry–

somemorestanzas

Quatrain – thiscanbeastanzaoratypeofpoemthatconsistsof4lines.Couplet – twolinesusuallywiththesamerhymeandmeter

Fromthecouplettheheroiccoupletemerged.ThisisatraditionalformforEnglishpoetrywhichwasusedinnarrativeandepicpoetry.YoucanseethisexampleinGeoffreyChaucer’sCanterburyTales:

Whan thataprill withhisshoures

soote

Thedroghte ofmarchhathperced

totheroote,

2.6.2.3.Poetry:typesofpoetry-

Epicpoetry

Theepicpoemisalongnarrativepoemusuallyabouttheheroicdeedsofapersonornation,likeHomer’sTheOdysseyorTheIliad.Thesearesuperlong,soIwouldimagineyouwouldonlybegivenanexcerpttoanalyze.

Theepicpoemisusuallyintheformofacoupletwiththesamerhymestructure,asthatwastheeasiestwayforthetravellingbardstosingthemastheywentfromtowntotowninmedievaltimes.

Themockepic(mockheroic)iswritteninheroiccouplets,asweseeherewithAlexanderPope’s,“theRapeoftheLock”

Thislock,theMuseshall

consecratetofame,

Andmid’st thestars

inscribeBelinda’sname!

2.6.2.4.Poetry:typesofpoetry-

Ballads

Anotheroldtypeofpoetryistheballad.Theseweresunginmedievaltimesandhavebeenpopulareversince.Theyareusuallyanonymousandnotcomplicated.Theversesaregenerallyshortandnarrateapersonalstoryaboutlove,hate,knights,fantasy,etc.Liketheepic,theygenerallyholdsimpleformandrepetition.

HereweseeanoldEnglishballad entitled“TheDouglasTragedy”

"RISEup,riseup,now,LordDouglas," she

says,

"Andputonyourarmour sobright;

SweetWilliamwillhae LadyMargaretawi'

Beforethatitbelight.

"Riseup,riseup,mysevenboldsons,

Andputonyourarmour sobright,

Andtakebettercareofyouryoungestsistèr,

Foryoureldest's awa'thelastnight."

Fromtheballadtheredevelopedtheballadstanza,whichisacbcrhymeoffourlines.Iand3haveeightsyllablesand2and4have6.HerewehaveSamuelTaylorCooleridge in“TheRimeoftheAncientMariner”:

Allinahotandcoppersky!

ThebloodySun,atnoon,

Rightupabovethemastdid

stand,

NobiggerthantheMoon.

2.6.2.5.Poetry:typesofpoetry-

Lyricalpoetry

Aristotlepointedoutthreebroadcategoriesofpoetry:dramatic,narrativeandlyrical.Wehavediscussednarrativepoetrytoacertainextent,asseeinepicpoetry.Let’stakealooknowatlyricalpoetry.

FromGreektimestomoderntimes,lyricalpoetryhasbeenpopularwithmanypoetsbecauseitinvolvesemotionsandfeelings.Itismorepersonalthanothertypesofpoetryandismostlyinfirstperson.

Onetypeoflyricalpoemistheelegy.Itisasadpoemusuallywrittentopraiseorweepforsomeonewhohaspassed.Itissimilartotheeulogy,whichisaspeechforsomeoneatafuneral.Elegiescanalsobeaboutalostloveoralosttime.

Anothertypeoflyricalpoemistheode,similartotheelegy,butusuallytopraisesomeoneorsomething.Itisnotlimitedtothethemeofdeathorloss.Itcanhavecomplexstanzaformsandtherearemanytypesofodes.

HerewehavepartofJohnKeat’s,“OdetoaNightingale”:

Myheartaches,andadrowsy

numbnesspains

Mysense,asthoughof

hemlockIhaddrunk,

Oremptiedsomedullopiateto

thedrains

Oneminutepast,and

Lethe-wardshadsunk:

'Tis notthroughenvyofthy

happylot,

Anotherpoeticformisthevillanelle. Ithasnineteenlinesoffivetercets (astanzaofthreelines)followedbyaquatrain (astanzaoffourlines).Therearetworefrains (alinerepeatedinverse)andtworepeatinglines.Thisisafixedverseform.

Hereisanexampleofthevillanelle.ThisisSylviaPlath’s“MadGirl’sLoveSong”

Ishutmyeyesandalltheworlddropsdead,Iliftmylidsandallisbornagain.(IthinkImadeyouupinsidemyhead)

Thestarsgowaltzingoutinblueandred,Andarbitrarydarknessgallopsin.Ishutmyeyesandalltheworlddropsdead.

2.6.2.6.Poetry:typesofpoetry-

Sestina

Evenmoreconfininginitsformthanthevillanelleisthesestina.Itisaclosedformofsixstanzasofsixlineseach,followedbythreelines.Theendwordsofeachverseofthefirststanzaarethenusedtoendsubsequentstanzas,rotatedinapattern

Hereisthepatternofthesestina:

• 123456• 615243• 364125• 532614• 451362• 246531• (62)(14)(53)

Here isanexampleofthesestina inW.H.Auden’s“PaysageMoralisé” (firsttwostanzasonly):

Hearingofharvestsrottinginthevalleys,

Seeingatendofstreetthebarrenmountains,

Roundcornerscomingsuddenlyonwater,

Knowingthemshipwreckedwhowerelaunchedfor

islands,

Wehonour foundersofthesestarvingcities

Whosehonour istheimageofoursorrow,

Whichcannotseeitslikenessintheirsorrow

Thatbroughtthemdesperatetothebrinkof

valleys;

Dreamingofeveningwalksthroughlearnedcities

Theyreinedtheirviolenthorsesonthemountains,

Thosefieldslikeshipstocastawaysonislands,

Visionsofgreentothemwhocravedforwater.

2.6.2.7.Poetry:typesofpoetry–

others

TheAlexandrineverseisaclassicFrenchversefromthe12th centurythathasbeenusedovertimebyotherpoets.Mostalexandrinesaremadeupoftwohemistich sections(thesearehalflines)ofsixsyllableseach.

Thesetwosectionsarebrokenupbyacaesura (awordbreakorasyntacticbreak).TheyarerareinEnglish,buttheydoexist.HereisoneinFrenchbyNicolasBoileau,inL’Artpoétique:

Que toujours, dans vos vers lesens coupant les

mots,

Suspende l'hémistiche,enmarquelerepos.

Anepigram isashort,wittysayinginversewithasatiricaltwistattheend.FamouspoetssuchasJohnDonne,AlexanderPope,LordByron,EzraPound,Voltaire,WilliamButlerYeats,amongothers,wrotethem.HereisonebyTaylorColeridge:

Sir,Iadmityourgeneral

rule,

Thateverypoetisa

fool,

Butyouyourselfmay

servetoshowit,

Thateveryfoolisnota

poet.

Adoggerel isapoemthathasanirregularrhythmandrhyme,sometimesonpurpose,sometimesnot.

Adoggerelexample.ByWilliamMcGonagall’s“TheTay BridgeDisaster”:

Itmusthavebeenanawfulsight,

Towitnessintheduskymoonlight,

WhiletheStormFienddidlaugh,andangrydidbray,

AlongtheRailwayBridgeoftheSilv’ry Tay,

Oh!ill-fatedBridgeoftheSilv’ry Tay,

Imustnowconcludemylay

Bytellingtheworldfearlesslywithouttheleastdismay,

Thatyourcentralgirderswouldnothavegivenway,

Atleastmanysensiblemendosay,

Hadtheybeensupportedoneachsidewithbuttresses,

Atleastmanysensiblemenconfesses,

Forthestrongerweourhousesdobuild,

Thelesschancewehaveofbeingkilled.

Adoggerelwrittenonpurposeisthelimerick.Thisisastanzaoffivelines.Thefirst,secondandfifthlinesrhyme.Hereisananonymousone:

Thereoncewasayoungladynamed

bright

Whosespeedwasmuchfasterthan

light

Shesetoutoneday

Inarelativeway

Andreturnedonthepreviousnight.

Somepoetrystylesconnectedwiththetimeofdayaretheaubade andtheserenade.Theaubade isamorninglovesong/poem,oroneaboutloversinseparationatthathour.Theserenade istheeveninglovesong/poem.HereisanexcerptofJohnDonne’saubade “TheRisingSun”:

Aubade

Busyoldfool,unrulysun,

Whydostthouthus,

Throughwindows,andthrough

curtainscallonus?

Musttothymotionslovers'

seasons run?

2.7Poetry:meaning

Denotation –thedirectmeaningofawordorexpression.Itistheexplicitandliteralmeaningofthatword.Connotation – theindirectmeaningoftheword,whatisimplied.

Denotationand

connotation

Thinkaboutthedifferencebetweenthesewords:House/homeExpensive/priceySlender/thin/skinny

Denotationandconnotation

GustavoAdolfoBécquer,“RimaVII”

Inthedarkcorneroftheroom,

perhapsforgottenbyitsowner,

silentandcoveredwithdust,

onecanseeaharp.

Howmanynotessleepinitscords,

likethebirdthatsleepsinthe

branches,

waitingforasnowywhitehand

thatcanawakenthem!

Symbol – whenthewordsrepresentaconcept,relationshiporobject.

Somestocksymbolsareeasilyrecognizable:therose,aflag,askull,white,etc.

Thenextlevelisobservingsymbolsinpoetry,Checkoutthispoem“PoeticArt”byVicenteHuidobro:

Verseislikeakey

Thatopensathousanddoors

Apageturns,somethingtakesflight

Howmanybelievingeyeslook

Andthehearingsoulremainstrembling

Inventnewworldsandcarefortheirword

Theadjective,whenitdoesnotgivelife,kills

Weareinacycleofnerves

Themusclecluster,

LikeIremember, inthemuseums;

Nomoredobutwehavelessforce;

Thetruevigor

Residesinthemind

Whydoyoutherose,ohpoets!

Itwillflourishinthepoem

Onlyforus

Liveallthingsunderthesun

Thepoetisasmallgod.

Think,forexample,about:• Denotation• Connotation• SymbolFortheword“Table”

2.8Poetry:

moreonconstruction

Whatmakesapoemapoem?Mostofalllanguageandhowitisused.Atthebeginningofallthis,Isaidthatpoetrywaslikemolasses,orketchup.Thatwouldbeanexampleoffigurativelanguage.

Wealwayshavetothinkaboutdiction (wordchoice)andsyntax (grammar).Dictionisalwaysimportant.Modernpoets,however,havehadmoreflexibilityinmanipulatingsyntaxbecausetheyarenotrestrictedbyclosedform.Checkoutthispoem“ToRoosevelt”byRubénDarío

ItiswiththevoiceoftheBible,ortheverseofWaltWhitman,thatIshouldcometoyou,Hunter,primitiveandmodern,simpleandcomplicated,withsomethingofWashingtonandmoreofNimrod.

YouaretheUnitedStates,youarethefutureinvaderofthenaiveAmericathathasIndianblood,thatstillpraystoJesusChristandstillspeaksSpanish.

Youaretheproudandstrongexemplarofyourrace;youarecultured,youareskillful;youopposeTolstoy.Andbreakinghorses,ormurderingtigers,youareanAlexander-Nebuchadnezzar.(YouareaprofessorofEnergyastoday'smadmensay.)

Youthinkthatlifeisfire,thatprogressiseruption,thatwhereveryoushootyouhitthefuture.

No.

TheUnitedStatesispotentandgreat.Whenyoushakethereisadeeptremblor

Gettingbacktotalkingaboutrhymes,thesearetwowordsyoushouldlearn:Assonance andConsonance

Assonance istherepetitionofvowelsoundssothatthereisinternalrhyminginverses.HereisanexamplebyE.E.Cummings:Onaproudroundcloudin

whitehighnight

Consonance istherepetitionofidenticalorsimilarconsonants.Thisisthecounterpartofassonance.HereisanexamplefromWilliamBlake’s“TheChimneySweeper”

WhenmymotherdiedIwas

veryyoung,

Andmyfathersoldme

whileyetmytongue

Couldscarcelycry"'weep!

'weep!'weep!'weep!"

SoyourchimneysIsweep&

insootIsleep.

2.9Poetry:

Rhetoricaltechniques

Metaphor– afigureofspeechthatreferstoonethingbymentioninganother.“Alltheworld’sastage”“Pig”(deadmetaphor)

Simile– acomparisonusing“like”or“as”.

“Yourteetharelikepearls”

Allusion – afigureofspeechthatmakesreferencetoanevent,aplaceoraperson.

“ThatisherAchilles’heel.”

“WhatanEdenthatplacewas.”

Personification– givinghumancharacteristicstoathingoranabstraction.

“Thewindcarriedmehome”

“Thesuncreptthroughtheshades.”

Alliterationistherepetitionofsimilarsounds(likewesawinconsonanceandassonance)

“Shesellsseashellsbytheseashore”

Apostropheiswhenawriterdetachesherselffromrealityandtalkstoanimaginarycharacter,likewiththisexamplefromMacbeth:

IsthisadaggerwhichIseebefore

me,

Thehandletowardmyhand?

Come,letmeclutchthee!

Ihavetheenot,andyetIseethee

still.

Hyperbole– anexaggeration(overstatement).

“I’mstarving”“Iwasgoing1000milesanhourtogethereontime”

Irony– whenintendedmeaningisdifferentformactualmeaning.

Whensomeoneputstheirhighbeamsinyourface,yousay,“Great,nowIcanseebetter”

Metonymy – whenathingorconceptisnotcalledbyitsnamebutratherbyametonym.

“Dish”“IvyLeague”

Onomatopoeia– theformationofwordsthatsoundliketheobjecttowhichtheyrefer.

“Chickadee”“Bobwhite”“Buzz”“Cuckoo”

Oxymoron– whenaseeminglyself-contradictoryeffectisproduced.

“Prettyugly”“Jumboshrimp”“Darklight”

Paradox – anotherself-contradictorystatement,butonethatmightexpressatruth.Forexample,fromGeorgeOrwell’sAnimal

Farm”

"Allanimalsareequal,butsomearemoreequalthanothers"

Sarcasm - theuseofwordsthatmeantheoppositeofwhatyouwanttosay,usuallytoshowirritationorbefunny.

“IworkaroundtheclocksoIcanbepoor”

“Notthesharpesttoolintheshed”

Synecdoche– whenthepartistakenforthewhole,orviceversa.

“Nicewheels”“Askforherhandinmarriage”

Answerthesegeneralquestionsonpoetry(fromthesametext)• https://clep.collegeboard.org/exam/literature/questions/6

• https://clep.collegeboard.org/exam/literature/questions/7

• https://clep.collegeboard.org/exam/literature/questions/8

• https://clep.collegeboard.org/exam/literature/questions/9

Answerquestions6-10(whichareallfromthesametext)onpoetryfromtheCLEP2016ExaminationGuideonAnalyzingandInterpretingLiterature.

Answerquestions1-10ofthe“20supplementalquestions”