Rhythm in poetry in generaland in the works of Will Shakespeare

in particular.

We’ve got the beat!

Some poetry has a very specific rhythm

called “METER.”

This rhythm is achieved through the use ofstressed and unstressed syllables.

Rhythm in poetry?

Syllables are the building blocks of words.You say all of the letters in one syllable

together.When you move your mouth to say another group of letters, you are moving to the next

syllable.

SYL – LA - BLE

Syll-a-WHAT-able?

You say all of the letters in the word “stressed” together in one syllable:

STRESST.

“I’m STRESSED!”

Chances are, you said the word “stressed” louder and

with greater emphasis than the word “I’m.”

That makes “stressed” a stressed syllable!

“I’m STRESSED!”

Now say those two words aloud:

…Think of stressed and unstressed words as the boxes on a hopscotch board.

The squares you land on with one foot are unstressed syllables.

The rectangles you land on with both feet are stressed syllables.

Word Hopscotch

Say the word “horizon” out loud.How many syllables does it have?

Which syllable did you stress the mostwhen you said it?

Try this…

“Horizon” has three syllables.The middle syllable is stressed.

The other two syllables are unstressed.

hor- I - zon

On a hopscotch board, “horizon” would look like this:

.

ho

r I zon

This is how you would mark up the meter of word “horizon”.

The unstressed syllables have a above them.

The stressed syllable has a above it.

hŏr- i - zŏn

Marking up meter in this way is called scansion.

The two symbols have names:

= breve (pronounced “breeve”)

= ictus

Bar bar a Jen nes

Now, write your name

and mark up its scansion.

Sometimes poets use repeating units of rhythm in their poems.

These units are called “feet”(a single unit is called a “foot”).

Speaking of feet…

Iamb: (today, because)

Trochee: (happy, lightly, yonder)

Anapest: (understand, interrupt)

Dactyl: (strawberry, obvious)

Spondee: (love song, ding-dong)

Common poetic feet:

The iambic foot is one of the most popular “building blocks” of meter

used in poetry.It has a driving rhythm:

Da-DUM-da-DUM-da-DUM

I am an iamb:

Shakespeare used iambic meter extensively in his plays.

He worked in a form called “blank verse” – unrhymed iambic

pentameter.

Will-i-amb?

Look at the term above.If iambic means “using iamb feet”

and meter means “rhythm,”what’s the “penta” part for?

iambic pentameter

Pentagon

Pentagram

Pentadactyl

penta = five

I am a pi- rate with a wood en leg

iambic pentameter =

having five iamb feet

1 2 3 4 5

i AM a

P I-

rate

WIT

H a

WO

OD

- en

LE

G

i AM a PI- rate WITH a WOOD- en LEG

that

DO

G

is

RA

-

bid

,

PL

EA

SE

don

’t

TA

KE

its

BO

NE

that DOG is RA- bid, PLEASE don’t TAKE its BONE

o RO

S- a-

LIND

thes

e

TR

EE

S

shal

l BE

my

BO

OK

S

o, ROS - a - LIND these TREES shall BE my BOOKS

and

ON

E

man

IN

his

TIM

E

pla

ys

MA

N-

y

PA

RT

S

and ONE man IN his TIME plays MAN- y PARTS

TRY IT YOURSELF!

Q: WHY DO POETS WRITE POEMS

THAT ADHERE TO STRICT METER

PATTERNS?(like iambic pentameter)