Creative Writing

Lesson 4: Reading and Writing Poetry

Concept Notes:

Poetry is a form of literature which is written in verse form. It has lines, stanza and rhyme. It is an artistic way of
expression of ideas and thoughts.

STANZA, RHYMME, RHYME SCHEME AND METER

Stanza is a group of lines in a poem.
2 lines - couplet
3 lines - tercet
4 lines - quatrain
5 lines - cinquain
6 lines - sestet
7 lines - septet
8 lines - octave
Rhyme is known as the two or more words in a poem that have the same sound. There are two types of rhyme. If the
rhyming words can be seen at the end of lines, it is known as End Rhyme; meanwhile if the rhyming words are located
within a single line, it is known as Internal Rhyme.

Example of End Rhyme

Who’s that pilot driving under the sun?
Who’s that pilot soaring on a winter time?
Who’s that pilot traveling after a fall sign?
And even working on a summer’s rhyme.
Example of Internal Rhyme
I was dreaming, praying and hoping a spring tonight.

Rhyme Scheme- is the pattern of rhyme at the end of each line. We use letters to identify the rhyme
scheme. Words that are rhymed shall have the same letter, new rhymed words will be the next letter. See the
sample below.

Trees
Joyce Kilmer
I think that I shall never see, - (A)
A poem as lovely as a tree - (A)

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest - (B)

Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast, - (B)

A tree that looks at God all day, - (C)

And lifts her leafy arms to pray, - (C)

A tree that may in Summer wear - (D)

A nest of robins in her hair; - (D)

Upon whose bosom snow has lain; -( E )

Who intimately lives with rain -(E)

Poems are made by fools like me, -(A)

But only God can make a tree. -(A)

Meter is the stressed and unstressed syllabic pattern that can be found in the lines of a poem.
The Five Basic Meters in English Poetry

1. iambic meter ( unstressed/ stressed)

2. trochaic meter ( stressed/ unstressed)
3. spondaic meter ( stressed/ stressed)
4. anapestic meter ( unstressed, unstressed, stressed)
5. dactylic meter ( stressed, unstressed, unstressed)

Theme and Tone

Theme is the message or main idea presented in a literary piece. It is what the piece all about.
Meanwhile, the tone is the write’s attitude towards the subject of the piece. It refers to what the author feels
about the topic or subject of the poem.
Types of Poetry
There are three main forma of poetry; they are narrative poetry, lyric poetry and dramatic poetry.

1. Narrative Poetry
a. Epic - poem narrating adventures and heroic deeds wherein the character has supernatural
ability. Examples are Indarapatra aand Sulayman and the oldest English Epic, Beowulf.
b. Metrical Tale - is a poem that tells a story such as the home tales, love tales, etc.
c. Ballads - they are the shortest and simplest poems. They could be love ballads, war
ballads, mythical ballads and others.

2. Lyric Poetry
a. Folksongs or Awiting Bayan - they are poems that are being sungs. Examples are Bahay
Kubo, Paru-Parung Bukid and Chitchiritchit.
b. Elegy - it is a poem expressing grief and melancholy wherein the theme is death.
c. Sonnet - it is a poem consisting of 14 lines. It has 3 kinds.
1. Petrarchan Sonnet - is also known as Italina Sonnet, it is named after the Italian
poet, Francesco Petrarch. The rhyme scheme of this sonnet is abba-abba-cdecde or cdcdcd.
2. Shakespearean Sonnet- the rhyme scheme of this sonnet is abab- cdcd-efef-gg
3. Spenserian Sonnet - it is invented by Sir Edmund Spenser, the rhyme scheme of this
sonnet is abab-bcbc-cdcd-ee
d. Ode- a poem of noble feeling expressed with dignity. Example is Ode to a Nightingale by John Keats.

e. Psalms- are poems expressed to praise God or the Virgin Mary. Example is Dalit kay Maria.

f. Awit or Song- a poem with measure of twelve syllables . Example is Florante at Laura.

g. Corrido- a poem with measure of eight syllables. Example is Ibong Adarna.

3. Dramatic Poetry
a. Comedy - it is amusing in tone; it ends happily.
b. Melodrama- this type is mostly sad but has a happy ending.
c. Tragedy - deals with a serious theme. The main character suffers from many struggles. It ends
unhappy.
d. Farce - it is an exaggerated comedy.
e. Social Poems- it could be tragic or comic; it pictures the social conditions.

Other Forms of Poetry

a. Haiku – it is a Japanese poem with 17 syllables divided into 3 lines (5-7-5)
Example:
From time to time
The clouds give rest
To the moon-beholders.
( Matsuo Basho)
b. Tanaga- it is a Tagalog Poem with 4 lines. Each line has 7 syllables.
Examples:
SIPAG
Magsikhay ng mabuti
Sa araw man o gabi
Hindi mamumulubi
Magbubuhay na hari

SLOW
Hindi ko rin malaman
Hindi maunawaan
Mapurol kong isipan
Isalang sa hasaan.

TUNAY NA YAMAN
Ako ay Filipino
Kulay tanso ng mundo
Ngunit tunay kong ginto
Nasaaking sentido

c. Diona – a Tagalog poem consisting of 3 rhymed lines. Each line has 7 syllables.
Example:
Ang payong ko’y si inay
Kapote ko si Itay
Sa maulan kong buhay
 d. Limerick - it is a popular children’s verse mostly comical. It is composed of 5 lines
with strict rhyme scheme.
Example:
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.
e. Free Verse- it is a poem with no restrictions in meter, rhyme and other elements.

WRITTEN WORK FOR THURSDAY AND FRIDAY

A. Thursday ( July 25, 2019)
Write an English poem with 2 lines , 6 stanzas and use letters to identify the rhyme scheme.
Write your final output in your Orange notebook.
B. Friday ( July 26, 2019)
Make an example of the following:
Write your final output in your Orange notebook to be collected by Ms. Sarong right after our
class. Failure to submit on Friday means O for the performance tasks.

Haiku Tanaga Diona