Poetry Terminology Flashcards
(31 cards)
Volta
Pause or break between two stanzas in Petrarchan Sonnet
Iambic Pentameter
Line of ten syllables alternating unstressed and stressed syllables according to iambic rhythm
Ballad Meter
Four lined stanza rhymed abcd with:
•four feet in line 1 and 3
•three feet in line 2 and 4
Blank Verse
Unrhymed iambic pentameter (e.g. Most Shakespeare plays)
Caesura
A pause usually in the middle of a line, indicated by sense of the line. Typically greater than normal pause.
Conceit
Ingenious and fanciful notion and conception expressed theough analogy and by showing parallels between 2 different things. This can be a brief metaphor or framework of entire poem.
Couplet
2 line stanza that usually has same end-rhymes
Didactic Poem
A poem that is primarily meant to teach a lesson. It’s hard to distinguish from non-didactic so this is subjective to reader.
Dramatic Poem
A poem that uses dramatic form or some element of dramatic technique to achieve poetic ends. e.g dramatic monologue
End-stopped
a line with a pause at the end (have period, comma, colon, semi-colon, exclamation point or question mark)
Eye Rhyme
Rhyme that appears correct from spelling but is a slant-rhyme when pronounced (e.g. watch and match)
Feminine Rhyme
A rhyme of two syllables with one stressed and one unstressed (e.g. waken and forsaken). AKA double rhyme.
Heroic Couplet
Two end-stopped iambic pentameter lines with the rhyme schem: aa bb cc. Thoughts are completed at the end of each two-line unit.
Internal Rhyme
A rhyme that occurs within a line instead of at the end.
Lyric Poem
Short poem with a single speaker expressing their thoughts and feelings. (e.g. Sonnets and odes)
Masculine Rhyme
A rhyme rhat falls on the stressed and concluding syllables of the rhyme-words. (i.e. keep and sleep)
Meter
Repitition of regular rhytmic unit in a line. It emphasizes musical quality of language and relates to subject matter. Every meter is known as a foot
Mixed Metaphors
Mingling of a metaphor with another immediately following the first which is incongruous
Narrative Poem
Non-dramatic poem that tells a story or presents narrative. They can be simple, complex, short or long. ie Epics and Ballads
Octave
Eight line stanza
Poetic Foot
Group of syllables consisting of one accented syllable and two accented syllables. Most Common Example: iambic u/ trochaic /u anapestic uu/ dactylic / uu pyrrhic uu spondaic //
Rhyme Royal
Seven-line stanza of iambic pentameter rhymed ababbcc used by medieval poets
Rhythm
Use of stressed and unstressed syllables
Satire
Writing that arouses reader’s disapproval by means of ridicule. Used often by poet Alexander Pope
