HEXAMETER
Vowel Length
Long
1. long vowel puellā, futūrus, audīmus, urbēs.
2. diphthong: ae, au, ei, eu, oe, ui.
3. short vowel followed by two consonants (long by position) dens— puer—bonus
BUT if one word ends in a short vowel and the next word begins with two consonants, the short
vowel normally remains short: puella stat—the terminal a remains
Short vowel, not closed by two consonants
Elision Loss of a syllable by loss of a final vowel before another vowel.
Terminal Syllable Initial Syllable
Vowel or diphtong Vowel or diphtong Femina it = femin-it
Vowel H or vowel omnia haec — omni-ec
Vowel + m Vowel maximum et — maxim-et
Exception: Prodelision When the second word is “est” or “es,” bonum est—bonu-st.
instead of deleting the first vowel,
remove the e
Metrical Patterns
the dactyl (from the Greek “finger”): − ∪ ∪ the spondee: − −
caesura occurs any time the ending of a word does not coincide with the beginning or the end of a
metrical foot;
strong caesura, if it occurs between the two syllable of a spondee, thus: -||- or after the long syllable
of a dactyl, thus: -||uu.
Weak caesura if it appears after the first short syllable of a dactyl, thus: -u||u.
diaeresis is where a word end matches the end of a foot.
bridge is a place where a diaeresis or caesura is not allowed
Enjambment: The continuation of a syntactic unit from one line to the next without a major juncture
or pause.
Dactylic Hexameter
Hexameters resist being broken in half or thirds:
−vv –vv –vv / –vv −vv –vv −vv –vv / −vv –vv / −vv –vv
The elegiac couplet
a hexameter verse followed by a pentameter verse.
– uu | – uu | – uu | – uu | – uu | – x
– uu | – uu | – || – uu | – uu | –
Aeolic Verse, Hendecasyllables
L L / L vv L / v L v L L
choriamb
—˘˘—
Asclepiadean
— — | [three choriambs] | ˘ —
Sapphic stanza
— ˘ — — | [choriamb] | ˘ — —
— ˘ — — | [choriamb] | ˘ — —
— ˘ — — | [choriamb] | ˘ — —
—˘˘——
Alcaic stanza
— — ˘ — — | choriamb | ˘ —
— — ˘ — — | choriamb | ˘ —
——˘————˘—
—˘˘—˘˘—˘——
Elegiac Couplet
– u u| – –| – u u|– – | – u u| – x
Od'et a|mo. Qua|r'id faci|am, for|tasse re|quiris?
– uu | – uu| – || – u u | – u u|–
Nescio, | sed fie|ri || senti'et | excruci|or.
- - | - - | - ||- | - u u | - u u| - -
Mŭltās pĕr gĕn-tēs ĕt mŭltă pĕr aequŏră vĕctŭs
- u u | - u u |- || - u u |- u u|-
ădvĕnĭ(o) hās mĭsĕr-ās, frātĕr, ăd īnfĕrĭ-ās
- -| - -| -||- |- - | - u u| - -
ŭt tē pŏstrē-mō dōn-ārĕm mūnĕrĕ mŏrtĭs
- -| - -| - || - u u| - u u| -
ĕt mū-tăm nē-quīqu-(am) adlŏquĕ-rĕr cĭnĕ-rĕm,
Hexameter Vergil (beginning Aeneid)
- u u| - u u| -|| -| - -| - u u |- -
Ărmă vĭ-rŭmquĕ că-nō, Trō-iae quī prīmŭs ăb ōrīs
- u u|- -| - || u u| - -| - u u| - -
Ītălĭ-ǎm fā-tō prŏfŭ-gŭs Lā-vīniăquĕ vēnĭt
- u u | - - | - - | - || - | - u u |- -
lītŏră, mŭlt(um) ĭl-l(e) ĕt tĕr-rīs iăc-tātŭs ĕt ăltō
- u u| - || - | - u u| - -| - u u |- -
vī sŭpĕ-rŭm, sae-vae mĕmŏ-rĕm Iū-nōnĭs ŏb īrăm;
