CHÁPTĚR THREE

Denotation
and connotation

the
primary, disdnction benveen
A
use is that in literature, espe-
practical use of language arrd the }iterary
of i"diuid"ul wc,rds, To understand
:rfi ň;, ^řaU7 ",""i*",l"
the composition of a rvord,
-""Tlr; rr""d'to exanrine three c9yr_391en! p,_qr§:"_ soqnd, dgnotation,
,hrr,'**
arcerage word has .

oí,ó"*, and t-roises, uttered

,}ffiirugrui*t'Uagň;"ó; which tlre. written word is a nota-
by the lips, tongue, and throat, for
;á;;;T anJ., i.o* a musical tone or a noise inis its DENoTArIoN
that
.*]^§_l"i_:_a: ::
meaning or
of this
*i "*.r,ua
to"i1 The basic part
or meanings of .the rvord,
denotations: that is, tne diitionary 1neaning
seyonditsdenotation,,nl;arrrul;i;;í;;;ffi;;tations'ThccÓxŇď
its overtones Óf
Ťr',ŤíoNsare what i|;ygg9,5.F"y9|i. 1yl1?1i:.*"_"p".:9:*':
histor1, and associa
rnalnina. i; acquires ,}ř" .:ol,nn,"tions by its pasi
it has been used, The
;;;6 ,t" *uy und th",i"u'l5tan,es in which
word home, for instance, by denotation mearx onlv a place "|"j, ::"
securitv, lrlve, comfort, ancl family,
i''*l,gg""
iíves, but by connotatio"
mean "characteri_,tic of a child"'
The words childtike uná chilň|,hboth
innocence, arld lvide-eved lvonder,
but childlike suggests meekness,
anci terrrper tantrums, If
.xbíIe childish §uggests |""i""", willfulnes,
,,ne name over a series of coí.rs, ntickel, yest1,Iira,
shilling' sen' doubloon'

the word áoubloon, to four

out of five readcrs, rlil] inrmcdiateiv suggest
one will frnd nothing abtlut piratcs in looking up its
|'.ur"., though
,*."'"g in t]he dictionaTy, Pirates aře,Part of it: ccnuotcliLln,
vpyli,importsnLlo, the pl,ct, li,rr it is one of the"me,an9,
Conno_latiqn !_s
fl
fl
o

to atl Lj_lri
by which he can concentrate t,r enriclr his meaninfr-'ay_19lť in íer",: 3. Is tlris accounr approplaT al 1"-,
\inds} That is, was the pí}€t thinking
wortls, ConsiJer, for instanci,, thc following slrort p,trm: ;;;;.";"* Est" (page ii8) cr *f,yxmt. iike C;,*
b*^"**
8.1"; ar,l Walter de la Mare's
"T!re l-i!l,-ť::

THERE IS NO FRIGATE LIKE A BOOK * a veriety cl c,;rl :_

,{#
Just as a word has
There is no ťrigate like a book ffi *rore than one dcnotstion, ll we hx,;k i:i :,
To take us Iands away, tit;nary, fr:r irrstance, wc wi}l §rrd
rlrrl :: - :
Nor any coursers líke a page tlrirw distinguishable meanings: It rn,,,,,
::o,_

Of prancing poetry: lz) a seasorr of the vear, (3) a rrat,,:r;, -,-

This traverse nray the poore§t take
clastic rn,ire, etc. ftrís variety.9l..i:":.'',' '
Wichout oppress of toll;
tcltes of connolgffi,"frffi! li,,.guagc
ť :::,:
}{ow frugal is the clrariot tl, &i,
That bears the lruman souli
,,,*i*i,-ilins iun,ds *,st be carcful
rn"..,ing, that h" wishes, Butt rlre diffc:,,,,
F,wily Dickinson ( 183o-1886 ,lnj :}
in.,g.r"f" m comnrunicate informatb:r
}

,. ri,'", i
iU always -aríemp!,"$1 cu*nfr 1e _
i- i -_

r i,,,.; tl,. p.,ct Hj.llgil9l

t3.\"*1ť.',n*§á1 i
ln this pocm Enrily Dickirrson is corrsidcrinq the poller of a book r_,r
*,,r" th,ii one mcaning h; usi118 i' ]."
n"Tj]]

tiínc. Thus ,i l,,en Éáitl, Sitlltll irl

ofpoetrytocaryusa\\'a):,toletusescapefronlourimnlecliatesttrround- ,,;:*
-.l1I)e
ings into a rr,orld of the imagination. To dtl this she has c,_rmpared iitera_ ii iň" irne of the ,,vild spring and th* rt*t
tule to variorts means of transportation: a boat, a tcJm of horses. a ,,.,,ord sllrilzg to denote borh a seas*n *Í rhe ,

u,heeled land vehicle. But she has been carefrr] to chnose kinds tlf trans, ,ll" ,,r., tilers rather tltan larnbs ar ?'§r&s
?

portation and trames for thern that hale romatlric co]lní)tations. Fri1ate nl frerceness and wildness that the other
irt-,

sugg..rs exploration and aclr,enture; col|rsers, beautv. spirit, and speedl

,|Jriur, speed and the abilitl,ttl go through the ilir lrs i,e]l as un ]and.
(Compare "Srving Lorr, Sn,eet Chariot'' and the nllth of Phaethc,n, W}mN tvíY LOVE §WEABS ŤIlÁT
§H
who tried to drive the chariot o[ Apollo. and the famclus pair-rting of
When my love swears that sh*
Áurora vvith her horses, once hung in almost er.,ery schooJ.) Hor\' much
I do believe her, thoug}r 1 ka,,,"
of the meaning of the poem comes from this selecrion of vehicles and ,]
That she might tbink me soIne
rvords is apparent if we tr1, to sub§titute for them, say, stealn.shi?,hofses,
unlearněd in the world's false s
and streetcar. ri.r. u"i.rty thinking th,iish, :,
Although she knows my dars ,:l
Sirnply I credit her falx-qoeahx
QUEsTroNs orr Loth sides thus is simple m;
r. What is ]ost if miles is substituted íor lanás (z) or clteap tor {rugal
But rvherefore says she not si,:*,

b)? And wherefole say not 1 that í ,

z, How is prancing (4) peculiarly appropriate tc, poetry as rvel] as to

Oh, ]ove's best habit is in seenq
coursers) Could the poet have without loss compared a book to corrrsers and
And age in love }oves not to kx
Poetry to a frigate?

586 DÉNo,],ATIoN ÁND CoNNoTATIoN

ffi W
 tťrm§, n,i
1,'g.rse and pletry arc not §ynonyr}ro§s
! lpoet. -
Ew 'I'he sturlv of meter is a fascinatilrg hu: : _

CHAPTER,l-wELvL Wl
is bv no ,r,"nn, un absoltrte prercquiste
t ,,
ffi poetry, But a knuu,lerigc
ci ::,
,;1.i;""r, of :"
L,eginnint
ffi, ."rr"in values. It can make the
,ffi
rhvthmical eíTects of poe$y and
of horv ;,:',
Rhythm thu more advanced reader to an],i-,:
"ábt" to sce how r}rl,thrn is adapted !, ::, :,
W,
l.i*""r,
and Meter I|j:|íiW
;.;r;" poem (in this respect) betrer
,*A"r-,, o.,jh' have at least an
i|,r-
elemeni;:" i
'o as its terrninology ,-!
w is not roiiffi.u}t
"'j;;*r,
lt ry* ,
word of nrore ďran one, st]l;:bii,
prominence p:''
ýresseá, that is, given mrrte ],n
Our love of rhythm and meter is ffi
w: drz;ll, i:-,_,
We sa1, Lada7, tolnotíow, 7esterday,
looted even deeper in us than our love
for rnusical repetition, It is re, a sentence, 1!l :,
cne _.vllable are arranged into
iated to the beat of our lrearts, the pulse
of orrr biood, the intake and
bles, nore promir.ence in pronuncia|1 tl1:
that we do natura]lv and " ack is drillin g his,xl
outflow of air from our lungs, Eve,r"thi"g .;;;;,,",},,...lo"," ot !
"
There is lhl,thm in t}re u,ay we walk, the ut,,u, this; it is norma} průce§s cf laxg
i"'"r"rrY we clo rhythmicallyi golf club
o,_,, the
iry rv" swim, the way we ,id, u ho"", the r,vav we swingit,a u4ren we
;;;r*" prose and verse is that in
prose thera
us that we read has arrangtá
or a baseball bat, So native is rhythm to haphazardlr; in verse the poet
can, into the mechanical world Áu"d us, Our clocks go tick tick-tick"
inten,ais.
in an endless trochaic, Thc
ti.k, brrt we hear thenr go tick-tock, ticktock The rvorci 1}le'eí come§ from a
word nre*g:í;
beneath us patterns itsclf into a tune
in our a unit of mea§uťe!&
ilick of the rai]way *he"l, somcthing \\,e nrust have
heads. There is a strong appeal for us
in language that is rhythmical, foot, and the vará; f*r r
T,vavelikc lecllTrence of motion or
*" ur" t1,"" in,h, the
The term RHvŤHN,L"i"" 'o any hour, For mĚ*,§r:,
second, the ninute, and the
and fall of langrragc, A1l langu_ag1
sound. In spcech it is the natural rise the line, and (sometimes)
the §tanza,
;;-; *r".'d"gr"* rhythmical,ťor all language involves some kind of The basic metrica} unit, the
FooŤ, cons;i:
syllables, Langrrage varies syllabl,=
alternatiorr betwcen accented and unaccentecl sv}lable pltrs one oŤ tr,vo unaccented
considerably, however, in the degree to
which it exhibits rhvthnr, In an,l"ver! t":
Áur. h. ncr utrr,tt,nted syllables,
crr so unpatterncd
*r*" fo..rr. of speech the rbyth,," is so unobtrusive diagranrn,ing ",crse, varit;us systen)s
ol vtsu_i] :
it. In rlther forms of spcech the cur,ed li:,,
that we u." *u.i.ly, if at all, arvare i" ?ir', bru}''"" shall use a short
t_rf

that ive rnay be tempted to tap our loot to

it,
rhythm is so pronounced accent and siíps§ a,e gÉx
tap our fcot ttl, In language " J'hou8h the words
Msr:Én is the kind of rhythm we can hcre, , dis:unction is sumetimes
made O:::li"
a§ to occuř at apparetltl\r
that is metrical the accents are so arrangcd Áccelll. the rclative pr"minence
glven _a_ 5y!ldul(
we mark off lvith the tap m'le of four carr*
equal intervals of time, and it is this inten,al ,i""'.;rj ," ,es*]t [,im one or

vtnsr, Nonmctrical ianelrage is uJrrestl dtlraríotl; f ích; and .i"'!'"i'

l.
oť our foot. l\{ctricaj lanplrrage is called ";;".,; §l'e5§, rn r,ngli
f,n-", 5u.te"ive \tlunds, Of rhese,
pxoss. Not al} poetry is nretrical, nor is all n-retrical language poetíy,

732
 necessaúly
aná poetŤy arc not §ynonymous telms, rror is "-ersifer
a
Yerse
a poet.
It
The study of metel is a fasr:irating but highlv complex subject,
is by no **urr. ,., absolute prerequisíte to an _enioyment, even a_rich
.,,iov*"nt,oípoetry'Butaknowledgeofitsftrndamer-rtalsdoeshave
...rrir. value§. It can make the beginrring reader more alr,are of
the
of how poetrv s}roukl be reacl, It can
rhvthmícal effects of poetry and
th. more advanced reader to analyze how certain eÍfects aí€
"rrubl. and to exp_lain what
*chieved, to see how rhythm is adapted to thotrght,
another, The beginning
makes one poenr (in this respect) better than
student ough' have at l""st elementary knowlerlge of the srrbiect,
'o ",
It is not so difficrrlt as its terminology mig}rt §uggest,
is accenteá ot
In everv wortl of more than one syllable, crne syllable
than the rest,*
stressed., that is, given more prominence in pronunciation
We say todoy, tonrorruw, y",t",day, dally, interuerre, If rvords of even
or
ur,. ,yílubl" .re aru.,g"d into a sentence, wc give celtain rvords,
sylla_

bles, more prominence in pronunciation than the rest, We

say: "IIe
is nothing mysteri-
ve7?t to the-síc.,re,'' ot "IacÍ<is drillinghis car." There
ous about this; it is the norrnal process of language, The only difference
betweenproseandverseisthatinprosetheseaccentsoccurmore-or.less
in verse the poet has arranged them t(} occur at regular
haphazarály;
intervals.
The word 1neter corfi.;§from a word meaning "n-reasute," To
measure
of For measuring length
something we must have a unit mea§ulement,
time we use the
lve u§e tře irrch, the foot, ancl the yard; for measuring
veíse we use the foot,
§econd, the ninute, and the hour. For measuring
the iine, and (sometimes) the stanza,
The basic metrical unit, the roor, consists normally of one accenter
1

there
s1,l1able plus one or two tlnaccentcd sv]labies, though crccasiorra]]v
urraccerrt"ci syllables, and very rare]r, there rnaY be
three. Fctr
áuy b. io
have been invcnted,
tliagramming u"rr", uu.iáus s),stems of visual svn.bols
l., řhi, booř*," sha}i use a short curved line to indicate an
unaccented

.Thoughthewordsaccentanásřessalegenerallyusedinterchangeably,as
here, a diáncfion is sometimes made betweá tlrem in technical
<]iscussions.

Á,""ánr, rh" relative prominence givcn a syllable in relation to its neighbors, is

of
cren said to result fri* on" o..'ár" of foirr causes, stfess, or {orce utterance,

r:roducing loudness; dwratiotl; pitch; lnd iunctlrfe,

the mannet of transition be,
i-""o *o'...rriue sounds. Of these, siress, il Englisb verse, is most impoItant,

/73
 syllable, a short horizontal line to indicate nrr...".rr",t s,,,l]abie.;nd a The frrst step in scannitlg a poem_is
m_rtz
vertical bar to indicate the division betll,een feet. The basic linds ci
where the ,"."no fall, and perhaps
keŤinf
feet are thus as follows: run in16 r*C
"To Lucasta" we immediately
us uncertaio r
highly irregular and may leave
Examplc Name of foot |'Jame of nteter+
i.ii. Í..' u"1 pro over it, then, and 'Tk'T
..*"a ,rnrr^, \^,,e di§cover, is rnore regular_tb
Yy{3 Iamb Iarrrbic
*"r' regular cť the three, So let us beg
l
lDup]e meters i,
darly Trochee T'rochaic | ' 'rr" .*g"trr"ly, and we mark them as folh
,"go
in-tetyene
*V\Ý/
Anapest Anaocstic )
meters
vit tr,,.lř;"Lá*ylř ř
7es-tetday Dactyl Dr.tyli. Ir'iPt' As you too shall a{orc;
a"y-aáU I ]oo.1thř", '-
(Spondaic)
, |., -|..
l)t J
Spondee
"Ňaiř, *;.-
clny Monosyllabic foot rř.a T'rr*ut },onloJ
Lille rc miglrt also be marked regr,rlarlr" il
The secondary unit of measurement, the r,lwÉ, is measured
l
i' b1. nam- stror]geť §tťťs
sha1l proballly dctect a slightly
i.
ing the nunber of fcet in it. The follon,ing namcs are used: than on eitirer ol t!,t
l: u,irr..rr".] position,
",-,
mark it thus:
pentametel
':a

Monometer
.:;

one foot frve feet I_*.-

ňŇ 'too
|]
}
í
ia
Dímeter two feet H€xameter six fcet sba]} a,

,] Trinreter t}rree feet Heptameter seven feet

Tetrametel Octameter \\]e ntlrl sce that tlris stanza is rvritten
|| :
lbur fcet eight fcct
tl:
tctlametel and iambic trimeter, Knolr,ing
second stanzas, expecting them"
since tht,"
The third unit, thc sTÁNzÁ, consists of a group of lines vr,,hose metri-
ca} pattern is repeated througlrout dre poenr. Sirrce not a}l versc is r,r,rilten sinrilar pattern,
B art
in §tanzas, we shall save ouI discussion of t}r,is unit till a later chapter. In the second stanza, ]ine§ 7 antl
and 6 o§tl
thcnr confiderltll,, but lines 5
,
T'he process oť measuring verse is referrecl to as scAFisIoN. To scan
anl.specimelr r,lf verse, we c]cl three things: (r) rve identify the prevail- r,vc hear;

ing foot, (z) we name the rlumber of feet irr a line-if this length fol-
lor,vs arr1. regrrlar patteln, arrd (3) r,ve describe t}re statlza p3tteín-if
T;,,; ",* *i*třu ň
there is one. Suppose we tr}, or.rt ciur ski]] on tl-re poem "l1-o Lucasta, Tí" fi"t f* í ,i,
Going to the Wars" (pagc ó5o). n,ía *ltt,l ř í,1,
",o"j-"-,
^í ,*o,d, ř ho,o,
* In
!
t}re spondee the accent is thought of as beinq rli.tributed equailv or al
mcrst equallv over the nvo syl}ables and is sometirnes referred to ai a hulertrrg
atrd ó t,; r,r
accenť, No rvhrlle p<;enls arc rvritten in spt,lr,lces l;r nlilnrlsvl]abi. l'ccl: herrcc there Since rve are expectiIlg lines 5
teln, lve sha]l assune t}rat tlrcy
are only four basíc metersi iambič, troclraic, an.l;:t,siic, anJ dactvlic. Ianlbic and are_íťiii}*É
rrochaic ale DUpLĚ x{EŤlns hccrusc they emplr,t t\r,ls\,l1Jl)lc fect; anapestic and shall rnark tlrc dirisirl;
nreter line, ancl rr-e
dactylic ate ŤRlpLE }rETl],Rs lrecarrse drey trrlpJ,,_t, tlrree srl]ab]e icet.
yield the nr,lrintum nutnbt,r *Í
i,
\.\,a), as to

7\4 RrrrríFl]\{ ÁND METER

c,
 to rcad. it rrorn-rally, listening to
The frrst step ir. scanning a poem is
l,eeping tirne r,r,ith yc,ur hand, In
where the accents full, "-,d'p",ilaps litre is
intr-, i]iffr,_tllty, for the first
"'I-o l-ucasta" we inrinecli""iu ",n
L!5 uncertain as to just u,hcre
the accent§
Ú;b, ;;;ilar and -oy l,ou" n",l ltnk for casier lincs, Thorrgh thc
fai]. Let u§ pass ou", ,i, th"", third stanza
more regrrlar_ thatr the first, ttrrc
scconcl stanza, ,ue ,]i,ct,v",, is
Sn l"Lu begin with it, Lines 9,
rr, and
is the most regular uf th" th,"",
follows:
," go ,"gr'rloJy, and rve nrark thetn as
yžt Ň, ň-,*i,řn-,ylř
",;t,' ,o
As you too shall
|a-",_ i ., l
Í.Ňalř, ,o;"|*ió,, oá"'ř *",h,
r"í,a T'ň, ňo|ř *o,",'
marke<l regularly, but if rve iistcn carefully rve
Line lo nright aiso be it cutnt,s jrr
strongťr sírťsst)n too, t'lrorlglr
shall probablr,<letec,t a slightly
position,;i:" ; the rd]r,cnt sv]labics, So ri,c'l
uf
,;'.iffi; lnurlstressed "itl,J,r
mark it thus:
l-
- - --
A-, yo" 'too shali adore,
i

'We now s€e that this stanza is r,vritten in lines of alterl-rating iambic
and
tetrameter and iambic t,imet,r,
Knowing tlris, ,"l,e Ictuln to the first
to confortn to a
since the1, look sinri}ar,
second stanzas, expecting them,
similar pattem.
are perfectlv rcgular, so lvc mark
In the secorrd stanza, lines 7 ani] B
6 offer some variatiorr, Ilere is wlrat
thcm con§elerrtty, t",t ll""s; 5 "n,1

;;:",
'rl; lve hear:
f,á

x
5

"",,l"';:,,:t
.)

-.'ý4.

,?e,
* ],l

t|.W
|ru
ffiu| ;':;.:,T,;;]T-šJ*
Vw iiffi anr] ó to confornr to tlrc cstab]is}red pat-
§ince rle are cxpecting lirres 5 and a tri-
tcl11, we sliall assunlc tlrat
thc1, are respectiv,clv ,i lctTa]Ieter
W ."/& n]eteí and u"e ,inii *"r",r'e diviJions
b't*"n thc lcet ín such a
as follows:
nunrbcr of iambs, The resr,rlt is
§'ay as'ine,
to yicld the
,ffi 'ln*",",l
7)5
 inslance, lrar. been scanned above a, p,::,,
a 'new mis-tress now
True, -l__l-_|- l -l
chase, , reader might read line I I thus:
v-|--1-1
'l'he first foe in the 6eld. l- _ l
I - _}.
could not love theť ,

We are now ready for the difŤlcult íjrst stanza, Folltrwing the same
or ljne rz thus:
pťoce§s of firstmarking the accents where rve hear them aud then divid-
Loved -l l-
'not hon-or
-lu nc
ing the feet so as to yield tetrametcr and trimeter lines rvith the rnaximunr
-fhe
possible number of iambic feet, we get something ]ike the following: divisirlrrs betweerr ťeet, noreover, are i,:1,

rar ř" l;, ,;,,'i .; |ř uň]

meaning except to heip us name the rnr:|:
spond to no real divísions irr thc rearlinq ,,:
:

Třt f,on,',ř ;"|řr' ttev do, irr thc nriddle r_,f a word, Thei, are p,_l,

-ll---l**l only {or the purpose of yielding tbe rnost pcs,i:

Of thy chaste breast and qui-et mind
ř *"r'řa .r*.'Ť
'r.'
'We
now ready to nrake a ferv generalizations about scansirln.
are
r. A good reader w.il] not ordirralily stt}p ttl s.itn a poem he is read-
ing, and he certainly will not read a poem ,"vith the exaggerated empha-
sis on accented syllables that we sometimes give thcn' irr order to make
the scansiorr more apparent. }Iorl,ever, occasitlnal scarrsiorr of a poern does
have value. We hope to rlrakc tlris more apparcr]t in thc ncxt chapter.
z. Scansion is at best a gřoss \\iav of describing the rirytlrrrrical quality
oť a poem. It depcnds on ciassifying all syllables into either accented or
unaccented categories and on ignorirrg the selntetinres considerable differ-
ence betlveen degrees of accenr. Actually "accerrted" and "unaccented"
are relative terms. and seldom wjl1 two syllables have cxactly the same
degree of accent. Whether rve call a syllable accented cr unaccerrted cle-
pends, morerrver, on its clegrec trf accent rclative to thc syllables on either
si<le of it, I* line 7 oť "'7'o Luca§ta," for irrstarrcc, the acccnt on uith is
not nearly §o gleat as the iiccent on stra g, and in ]ille z tlre accent on
the final 7 in nannery is ltghter than that on the ?.íflaccented thee in line
r r. Scansion thr:refore is incapable oť dealirrg u,itlr t}re subt}cst rhvthrnical
eílects irr poetry, It is trevertlreless a useful device, encl probably anv
device mcrre sensirive w.rruld bc so corrrplicated as to llc no longer uscful.
]
3. Scansion is not an altogether exact science. Within certain limits
we may say that a ccrtain scansion is right trl wíong, brrt beyond these
t\ccor<lingly, ]ine ó has been nrarkec],
l-
- fot -irt t}lc !-
The first i.
though it night rrrore plausíbly havc been mar
ň" §*t'*'ř Ř *
4. Finallr,-ancl tlris is the nrost imlxrrti,i
perfect rcgularity oť mcter is no criterion *ť
so*"ti*cs get the notion that it is, If the me l
regular, thel feel that the p<ret has handlc,j
deservcs all credit for it, Actuallv therc is ;-,
rnoc]eratelv talentecl versifier to make langu,,g,
But there arť tW() Ťeasons \^,hy this is not grn,
tha[, as r|e ]tave slri.l. all ltrt consists t,sscnt,,
tion, If a m€ter alterrrates tcro rcgularl,- bet"
thc resuit is tcl banish variation; the meter }:o
anv sensitivc readcr, monotonous, The secaxd
has been established, any deviations ťrom it
and arc tlte means by which the poct can ut
ing, If a nlctcí is too perfectly regular, the 7
initcacl rlf adaptirrg rhythm to meaning, lrar
inttl a metrical straitjacket.
Actualiv u,hat gives the skillful use oi nr,
is tlrat it consists, not of one rhr"thm, bur ,

limits there is legitiniate rr_xlrrr for personai interpretation and disagrce, expecteil rhythm. The other is the llenra' ri,,
ment bet\.\/een qualified readers. Lines ir and rz of "To L,ucasta," for

736 nrI?TI{M álcD ]wEŤER

instance, havc been scanned above as perfectly regular. Blrt a different
reader miglrt reád lille r t thus:
v l- l l-
I - thee,
could not love - Dear,
- so much,
l

or line rz tlrus:
_l_
-1-1 more.
Loved l 'not hon-or
The divisions between feet, moreover, are highly arbitíafy and have little
meaning except to help us name the meter of the poem. They corre-
spond to no real divisions irr the reading of the line, corning often, as
they do, in the nridd}e of a wold, "l hcy are placcd wlrere they are usually
c,n.ly for the purpose oí yielding the rnclst prrssible of a singJe kincl of foot.
Accordingly, line ó has been marked,
v _ |- _l
The tirst foc -l-
irr tlre field,

though it might rrrore plausibly have been nrark"-d,

v l-|- - field.
- foe in the -
l
The frrst
4. Finally-and tlris is the tnost importallt generalization of all--
perfect regulariry clť meter is no criteriorl rlf Incrit. Beginrring stude.nts
§ometim€s get the notiorr that it is. If thc rneter is smcloth and perfectly
íegu]ar, they fecl rhat the poet has hand]ccl his mt:tel successfully and
deserves all credit for it, Actually there is nothing easier tlrai-r for any
moderately talentcd versifieí to make language gts ta,dun ta,dum ta,d,um,
But there aíe two reasons why this is rrot generally desirable, The first is
fbat, as we have said, all arf consists essentia]ly of repetition antl varía-
tion. If a íncteř altcťnatcs too regr_riarlv lxtrveen líght and heavy bea*,
the resu]t is to banish variation; the meter becornes mechanical anrl, for
any §ensitive reaclel, monotollous. The second is that, clnce a basic meter
i:as been estab]ished, any del,iatiorls fronr it becrlme highly significant
and are the nreans by r,r,hich the poet can u5ť n}eter to reirrforce mean,
ing. If a meler is too perfectly rcgular, the proba}lilitv ís that thc pcrt,
instead of adapting rhvthm to meaning, has sinrplv forced his meaníng
inťo a metrical straitjacket.
Actually what gives rhe skillful use of meter its greatest effecriveness
is that it consi§t§, not of one rhvthm, but of rwo. One of these is the
wpected rhythm. The otlrer is the hearď rhythm, Once we have deter

737
}"-."
M

ffi,
w
w

&.
::.

W:
w
Th. th,r,t}rm and meteř
*-:*ť. T
mine<l the basic meter of a poem, say, iambic rr-e hat,e an acce nt ,-,:,
'.i.r-"r"., musical repetitionsof
&
expectatirrn that this rhythm wi]] contirrrre. Thus ,i",-r. ,,i ,,];::,;j, tlte ('
a si]ent drumbcat is
: ir!,lititln, rhytlrm wurks as Jn
w

., ,. .,l
,

§et up in our mincls, and this drunrbeat constitutes thc expecteci

rhvthrn.
- ()[lr J:Ir-:
t,l hcighten
;:;l,,..",,, ",cd ,killfully,
#

But the acrual rhythrn of the r.v.,rds-the hearc] rhvthrlr-rti]] sc,metinr",

&

bY his,lr" '
,
9
r
coníinn this expectcd rhythm ancl sonretirues rror, Thus t}rc tu,o rh,thms rvhar i, * :- ,,, i,,,
, pucm, Finally,
metrica1 l;--
lariation ruithin the
3 ,', arc counterpointed against each otlter, ancl thc apl.cll ,,f the vrlrsc is skillful l,.,;-: "l and :]---
verse to its content
magniÍied just as l,i,hen two melodies .our,,,"rpnintcc1 against each adapt tlr*.,;;r]t.rd u[ his
"." \vc s]lolld j_\,.,
_

other in music or as when r,ve sec] twt-r i:i';;;,; ,_-,":; ol rneaning,

1

it slval}ows {iying trlether arrtl

ct,rresporrdťllce Dc,l"t
i

ar<runrl each otlrer,fbllowing the same gencral ctlurse but wlth individual ,irrr- rlr-,a il ;lny rrrl,stical
aIe no "haPP-r"' .nlel-,'
variations and maliing a muclr rnore eye-catching pattern than one swa], a..ral"""*,,lri.,n,, T'h"" l",
tlf nreter is probabll
-

low flying a]one, lť the lreard rhythm conforms tc-ro closely ttl the expected oncs. Thc pr:ct's choice
so:,:lr ,

lras chosen i1, !{611,gy6r,

/L

rhythnr, the rneter becomes dull and uninterestirrg. lf it rJeparts too fa,
1l)

i""*", *lu" h"

from the expecterJ rhythm, tlrere ceases to l;e an expected riivthm. If the ?l
',
others,.<':rltcllo,'ver;5omearemore1i1tingthll.
that is aPP:r.
il,'il;;,.t can cho.se a metel
7"i

irrcgularity is too great, meter di§?ppcars, and tlre resrr]t is prose rhytlrnr
or frce verse. ;;;;.,;;;-,:,"
,_,r :::§::il],1ii,,i
],: tllaPPI('|',.1:,:;; i:T,::
Tlrere are scvcral u,ays by r,hich ,ariation can bc introduced into appropri,rrctlcss
subtect,,tbe nreter
;r".
lr i], .
wtt,
tbe poet's use cf nreter, 'Ihc lrrost obvicrus rvay is bv the substitution clf ii,, . *"r'"u, "t"] grure emoti. n B
different lrinds ot feet for rcgular fcc,t. Irr ()ur 5cansíon crf ''To Lucasta,'' reacler frorrr feeling ",-,u "o}lo_d'ep ll
for instance, we noted one spclndaic and tr,o trochaic substitutions in the ;';;;; ;",",, i,-*ill'i,,""nuit,v th" emotion,
oť th
,ery first line. A jess ob,ious but cquall1,inlllrtrtatrf nreans oť variarion is ;ffi;;;;,tcly r,ith the oth", clements
through simple phrasing and ,ariatiorr of degrecs rlf accenť. Lincs z, apprt;priate t"tal eficct,
B,
4, -' ' ( oursť, thlt Poctrť
ltt
and rz of ""fo Lucasra" have a]l been marked as regular, but actually \\'a nlu\t ],]oí, [orgt,t, o[ anii i
rime, }ike metaphor
tlrere is considerablc diíTerence betr.veen them. Lirre is quite ,"g,rlu., I-il*'^iri,"l,,iu", unJ
4 the poet may ttr
for the phrasing corresponds ,r,,itlr the metrícal pattern, and the ]ine can i"t*, i, simplv one re§oulce bcst advlntagc TF
his rcsources ttr t'lre
be read ta,dum a,rlumta-dum. Line 8 iseten more rcgular, íbr the etnpluv t,
un- rlishes e,
accentcd syllallles are all uery light, the accel}ted sv]iables arc all -r,la-rt " Lind ot expericncc he
"lery him,
strong, ancl tlre divisions betu,een thc fcet are marked c,ff bv granrnatical basis can we 1udge
pauses indicatcrl in the pr'tnctuation, This linc g,:es ta-rlrrrnn! ta-dllttttll]
EXERCISES
ta,clu*mt! Line rz, on the other lrancl, is less rcgular, bccause the
word
that even, stu<lerr" 'i
honcst cuts across the divjsiun hetweerr two Feet. \4"e slrcrrld rt:.diLta-clum r. Tlvo adclitional terms b""",'.l.,"'
ta-dwnpty dum. And jine z is even ]ess regular becausc not onl},
docs i""ra l" ,areítrl to Jiserinrinate
is a \cŤv speciíic mctcr:
1,1,1l:, _

Bt.,raoo,,,n"
nl|nncry cut acrL]ss the t]ivision betlr,ecn trvo feet, but its final svllaLrle is
bccause it is the princtpl, :-t
so lightly stresseld as hardly to bc accenťcd ar all. \{./c should reacl i.,,".i.,r n"","
line somethingIi\ie ta,llxlnx ta,clwuptuee. Finallv, r,ariatir-rn can be inrro
this ,n];;;. t,"., ",a lor a largc ,:-
,pmpor:i,r:t_ ,:

;:ir;;;- the tragedies of Sh,rkespcare

1Jlr\ :u ",
duced by gramnratical arld rheltorical pauses, Line r r oť "To Luca§ta,'' e§p(,(
'",'""- in Eng}ish
seem§
uentameier
though scattnerl as regular, actually irrtroduces variatiorr bccause of li The natural mr,r,ctn,ni
tlrcmcs,
the
pause indicated by the commas aroutld Dear. ,. i"',",*", Lines shorter than pentarr,ciet '_

73B nHyTHNt ÁND N{EIER

 The uscs oí rhr:thnr ancl ncter are several. Likc the nusical rcPeti_
ťor their
tions of souncl, the musical repetitiorrs of accent can be plcasing
own sake. In additit,rr, rhythm lvorks as an elnotional stirlrulus ancl

seíl,es, lr,hen usecl ski]lfullv, to heighten ouL attentiotl allri

awarerress tt'l
by his of nretcr, alrcl lly his
what is going orr in a poem, Finall1" choice
skillful use of variation rvithin the metrical franreu,or]<, the poet can
adapt the sorrnd of his verse to its col]tent ancl tlrrrs ma]ie meter poweí_
a

ful leinťorcernent of meaning. We should avoicl, hotvever, the rrotion

that tlrere is any mystical correspondence between certain nleteí§ and

certairr emotíons. Tlrcre are no "happy" nleters and no
"mt,lancholy"
tlratr how lrc
0ne§. T,he poet,s choice oť meter ís probabl1, less important
mcters are srťif ter than
hancl]es it after he has clrosen ít, í lrlu,er.,er, solne
rrrr_,rc diqni,
others, some slower; S()me are more lilting than others, sonlt,
rlne that is in-
fied. 'Ihe poet can choose a meter that is appropriate or
npprnprirte to his content, and bv his hanrlling o[ it can increasc
thc
or irlappropriateness, If he clrooses e srlift, }i}ting neter
"pp.opri^t*.,"ss
fo, u ,".iou. and grave subject, thc mctcr r,vill probablv act to keep
the

rea<ler liom feeling an;r y"o11, deep emotion, But if he choc,ses i] more

dignified met€r, it rviJl intensify the emotion, Irl all great pcctrv,
metcí
ouJ.k, i.,ti*otely u.,ith the other e]enents ol the poem to produce the

appropriate total effect.

"
W" ]nur, not forget, of cotrrsc, that poetrv nccd not be metrical at all,
Like alliteration and rime, like metaPh()r and ironv, like even inragcry,
m€ter is sinrply orre Ťesource the poet may or may not use, Ilis
job is to
employ his resources to the best aclvantage for thc objcct he has in
nri,,.1_th" lcind of experience he wishes tQ cxpre§s, And on no other
basis can we judge him,

ÉXERCI§Es
r. Two additional teTms that every student should bc familiar with and
should be careful to discriminatc between arc blaak uer.se and free te.tsc.
,wtrimed. ít|tas
Br.aNx vBnsr is a very specific metet: iambic ?entuŤteteí,
a special nam" bccauie ii is the principal English nreter, thlt is, the meter
that has been used f<_,r a large proportion of thc greatest English poetrv,
including the tragedies of shakeqpeare and the epics of \,1ílton. Ianrbie llll
pentameLr in English seenrs cspecially suitabJe for tlre serjous třeatmťnt
if s..io,.,. tlrernes. The natural nrovement of the English }anguage tends |.l|

to be iambic. Lines s]rorter than pentametcr tend to be song}ike, not sr,rited

3l

739 |1|

1|

,,.