Types Of Poetry

Lyric Poetry

This concerns the emotional life of the poet. It's written in their voice and expresses strong thoughts and
emotions

Narrative Poetry

As its name implies, narrative poetry is concerned with storytelling. A narrative poem will most likely
follow the conventions of the plot including elements such as conflict, rising action, climax, resolution etc.

Descriptive Poetry

Descriptive poetry usually employs lots of rich imagery to describe the world around the poet.

SUBTYPES OF POETRY

1. Sonnets are predominantly concerned with matters of the heart.

2. Haiku is concerned with nature and natural phenomena such as the seasons, weather
etc
3. Elegies are poems of reflection on death, or on someone who has died. Elegeia (Greek
word) means to ‘lament’.
4. Ballads are a type of narrative poetry that has close ties to musical forms.
5. Ode refers to a type of lyrical poem that addresses and often praises a certain person,
thing, or event.
6. Epics are long narrative poems that recount heroic tales, usually focused on a
legendary or mythical figure.

Sound Devices

Alliteration - repetition of the initial consonant sound of a series of words.

Example: Betty Botter bought a bit of butter

But, the bit of butter Betty Botter bought was bitter

So Betty Botter bought a better bit of butter

Assonance-similarly to alliteration, assonance involves the repetition of sounds in a series of words, often
consecutive words. However, rather than repeating the initial sounds, assonance focuses on the internal
vowel sounds that are repeated.

Here is an example from the poetry of Edgar Allen Poe: Hear the mellow wedding bells
Consonance- consonance is the consonant-focused counterpart to assonance. It involves the repetition of
consonant sounds in the middle or at the end of words, as distinguished from alliteration where the initial
sound is repeated.

Example: The crow struck through the thick cloud like a rocket

Onomatopoeia - refers to the process of creating words that sound like the very thing they refer to.

Example: Aside from animal noises, the names of sounds themselves are often onomatopoeic, for example:

Bang!

Thud!

Crash!

Rhyme - refers to the repetition of sounds in a poem.

For example, in the following example the rhyme scheme is described as ABAB.

Example:

The people along the sand

All turn and look one way.

They turn their back on the land.

They look at the sea all day.

[From Neither Out Far Nor In Deep by Robert Frost]

Rhythm- Rhythm in poetry involves sound patterning. A lot of classical poetry conforms to a systematic
regularity of rhythm which is referred to as the poem’s meter. This involves the combining of stressed and
unstressed syllables to create a constant beat pattern that runs throughout the poem. Each pattern of beats
is called a foot.

Robert Frost
American poet

● Robert Lee Frost was an American poet. His work was initially published in England before it was
published in the United States.

● Born: March 26, 1874, San Francisco, California, United States

 ● Died: January 29, 1963, Boston, Massachusetts, United States

● Another famous American poet is Robert Frost who started writing poetry when he was 15 and
continued until he died at the age of 88. He enjoyed worldplay and challenges in creating a
complex idea in the form of a poem through the crafty use of language.

● A poetry lover and great talker and conversationalist, Frost regarded poems as the highest art of
language because of its compression or compactness of structure, which gives poetry an advantage
over other literary forms.

● A recent poll, which was taken by America’s Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky, states that “The Road
Not Taken” bu Frost was voted America’s favorite poem.

Interaction, the value of friendship, and life are the major themes of the poem. On a surface level, this
poem is a simple description of a candid relation, while on a deeper level, it reflects that sometimes the
business of life does not allow us to meet our friends and loved ones. But when the same friends call us, we
readily give up all the engagements and spend time with them. Although the speaker is shown busy with
his work, as soon as he sees his friend, he forgets all the work and joins him cheerfully.

Free Verse:

Free verse is a type of poetry that does not contain patterns of rhyme or meter. This is a free-verse poem
with no strict rhyme or meter

Stanza:

A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are two stanzas in this poem, each comprising a different
number of verses

End Rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. Although it’s a free verse poem, yet Robert Frost has
used end rhyme in this poem such as; “tall/wall”, “road/hoed” and “walk/talk.”

A Rainy Day: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

• Dreary (adj.) : dismal or gloomy

• Weary (adj.) : tired

• Moldering (v.) : crumbling

• Gust (noun) : a brief, strong rush of wind.

• Blast (noun) : a strong gust of wind or air.

 • Repine (v.) : to feel sad or complain about something, especially a bad situation:

Literary Devices

• One of the eighteenth century American poets whose works are widely read in the world is
Longfellow. He became so popular because people loved the musical quality of his poem.

• He was a national literary figure and a world famous personality at the time of his death in
1882.

• Assonance: repetition of vowel sounds in the same line. For example, the sound of /aa/ in “And
the days are dark and dreary.”

• Alliteration: it is the use of successive consonant sounds in the initials of the successive words. For
example, /s/ in “Be still, sad heart.”

• Apostrophe: The poem shows the use of apostrophe where the poet calls his heart, saying, “Be
still, sad heart!.” It is also the use of an exclamation.

• Consonance: is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line. For example, the sound of /r/
in “The day is cold, and dark, and dreary”.

• Imagery: is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. For example, “It rains,
and the wind is never weary”, “My thoughts still cling to the moldering Past” and “Behind the
clouds is the sun still shining.”

• Metaphor: The poem uses the metaphors of the day as if it is a man and heart as if it is his friend.

• Personification: The poet has personified the day, the heart, wind, and thoughts as if they have life
and emotions of their own.

• Here is the analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.

• Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows AABBA in each of its stanzas that last until the end.

• Stanza: There are three stanzas in this poem, with each comprising five lines/verses.

• Repetition: The poem shows the use of repetition, “dark and dreary.” It stresses upon it to make
this thematic point prominent.

From Kuya’s Flashcard

I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud is also called?

The Daffodils.

When was William Wordsworth born?

He was born on April 7 1770 at Cookermouth, Cumberland, England.

When did William Wordsworth Die?

He died on April 23 1850 at Rydal Mount, Westmorland, England.

Words to remember (The Daffodils)

1. Fluttering - Waving 2. Jocund - Merry 3. Gazed - Looked

Extra info about William Wordsworth.

1. The Universities of Durham and Oxford conferred academic honors upon him. 2. In 1843, He was made
Poet Laureate of England. 3. His daughter Dora, Died then Mrs. Quillinan, brought sadness in his
household in 1850. 4. He lived in the Lake Ullswater in Grasmere. 5. He wrote the poem, "I wandered
lonely as a cloud" / "The Daffodils" In 1804. It was then revised in 1815. 6. He has a sister named Dorothy.

What is the poem "I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud"?

- It is a Literary piece of nature description written by William Wordsworth. - It was first published in
1807. - It is a Lyric Poem to capture the bewitching beauty of the wildflowers. - Its poetic devices are: The
4 Stanzas, The Rhyme Scheme: ABA BCC, Iambic tetrameter (Stressed Syllable followed by an unstressed
syllable). - The Major Theme of the poem is: The impact of nature to humans.

What are the Literary Devices used in "The Daffodils"?

1. Simile - Comparing 2 unlike things using LIKE or AS. 2. Metaphor - Comparing 2 unlike things
WITHOUT LIKE or AS. 3. Personification - Giving human characteristics to objects. 4. Alliteration - The
repetition of initial consonant sounds. 5. Consonance - The repetition of consonant sounds in the middle
or end of a word. 6. Assonance - The repetition of vowel sounds in the middle of a word. 7. Imagery -
Creating visual images using our senses.

Who is Henry Wadsworth Longfellow?

- He is the Author of the poem "The Rainy Day" - He was born on February 27 1807 at Portland,
Massachusetts (Now Maine, U.S.) - He died on March 24 1882 at Cambridge, Massachusetts. - He was
awarded Hall of Fame in 1900. - He became popular because people loved the musical quality of his
poems. - He was a national literary figure and a world famous personality at the time of his death in 1882.

Words to remember in "The Rainy Day".

1. Dreary (adj.) - Dismal/Gloomy. 2. Weary (adj.) - Tired. 3. Moldering (v.) - Crumbling. 4. Gust (noun)
- A Brief, strong rush of wind. 5. Blast (noun) - Strong gust of wind or air. 6. Repine (v.) - To feel sad or
discontent.

What are the Literary Devices used in "The Rainy Day"?

1. Assonance - For example, the repetition of the sound /aa/ in " And the Days are Dark and Dreary". 2.
Alliteration - For example, /s/ in "Be still, sad heart" 3. Apostrophe - The poem shows the use of
apostrophe where the poet calls his heart, saying "Be still, sad heart!" It is also the use of an exclamation. 4.
Consonance - For example, The sound /r/ in "The day is cold, and dark, and dreary". 5. Imagery - For
example, "It rains and the wind is never weary." "My thoughts still cling to the moldering past" and
"Behind the clouds is the sun still shining". 6. Metaphor - Uses metaphors of the day as if it is a man and
heart as if it is his friend. 7. Personification - The poet has personified the day, the heart, the wind, and
thoughts as if they had life and emotions of their own.

What are the Poetic Devices use in "The Rainy Day"?

1. Rhyme Scheme - The poem follows AABBA in each of its stanzas that last until the end. 2. Stanza -
There are three stanzas in this poem, with each comprising of five lines/verses. 3. Repetition - The poem
shows the use of repetition, "Dark and Dreary". It stresses upon it to make this thematic point prominent.

Who is Robert Frost?

- He is an American poet. - Born on March 26 1874 in San Francisco, California, United States. - Died on
January 29 1963 in Boston, Massachusetts, United States (88 yrs.old) - He started writing poetry at 15
years old. - His works were 1st published in England before the United States. - He regarded poems as the
highest are of language because of its compression or compactness of structure. - He's a conversationalist.
- A recent poll, which was taken by America's Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky, states that "The Road Not
Taken" bu frost was voted America's Favorite Poem.

Words to remember (A time to talk)

1. Meaning (adj.) - Expressive or Intentional. 2. Thrust (v.) - To Push. 3. Plod (v.) - To Walk Slowly.

What is the poem "A time to talk"?

- Its Major theme is: Interaction, and the value of friendship. Life are the Major themes of this poem.

What are the Literary devices used in "A time to talk"?

1. Alliteration - for example, Sound of /h/ in "And slows his horse to a meaning walk". 2. Symbolism -
"The stone wall" symbolizes the bridge that sets us apart from our friends. The expression " A Time To
Talk" symbolizes the beauty of friendship. 3. Imagery - For example, "When a friend calls to me from the
road" and "I thrust my hoe in the mellow ground." 4. Metaphor - "Stone wall" is a metaphor for a barrier.

What are the Poetic Devices used in "A Time to talk"?

1. Free Verse: Is a type of poetry that does not contain patterns of rhyme or meter. 2. Stanza: A stanza is a
poetic form of some lines, there are 2 stanzas in this poem, each comprising of different number of verses.
3. End Rhyme: used to make the stanza melodious. Although it's a free verse poem, yet Robert Frost has
used end rhymes such as "tall/wall" "road/hoed" and "walk/talk".

What is a Jazz chant?

- A jazz chant is a poem that uses jazz rhythms to illustrate the natural stress intonation patterns of
conversational American English. - They are similar to songs or poems that are read or sung. - Jazz chants
are snappy, upbeat chants, and poems that use jazz rhythms. -Carolyn Graham composed jazz chants. -
American Jazz Rhythms ( Has 4 beats)

What is rap?

- The term "Rap" is related to hip-hop music which is sometimes a synonymous term. - Hip-hop is also
spelled Hip hop or hiphop. - Hiphop is a rhythm focused popular music style, which had its origins in New
York in the 70's - Rap was used to describe talking on records as early as 1971, can be traced back to its
African roots.

What are the Types of poetry?

1. Lyric Poetry - It concerns the emotional life of the poet. It's written in their voice and expresses strong
thoughts and emotions.

2. Narrative Poetry - It is concerned with story telling. (Example: epics)

3. Descriptive Poetry - Usually employs lots of rich imagery to describe the world around the poet.

What are the subtypes of poetry?

1. Sonnets - Concerned with matter of the heart, These are love poems containing 14 lines.

2. Haiku/Tanka: - Haiku - Is about nature, it has 3 lines, and 17 syllables (5,7,5). - Tanka - Is about nature
and love, it has 5 lines, and 31 syllables (5,7,5,7,7)

3. Elegies - Are poems of reflection on our death or on someone who has died. It comes from the Greek
word ELEGEIA meaning LAMENT.(Ex. Annabel Lee by Edgar Allan Poe)

4. Ballads - Are a type of Narrative poetry that has close ties to musical forms. It is intended to be sung.

5. Ode - refers to a type of lyrical poem that addresses and often praises a certain person, thing, or event.

6. Epics - Long narrative poems that recount heroic tales, usually focused on a legendary or mythical
figure. (ex. Biag Ni Lam-ang) (Iliad & Odyssey by Homer).

What Are the sound devices?

1. Alliteration - Repetition of initial consonant sounds.

2. Assonance - Repetition of vowel sounds in the middle of the word.

3. Consonance - Repetition of consonant sounds in the middle or end of the word.

4. Onomatopoeia - Refers to the process of creating words that sound like the very thing they refer to. (Ex.
Comic Books)

5. Rhyme - Refers to the repetition of sounds in a poem.

6. Rhythm - in poetry involves sound patterning. This involves combining stressed and unstressed
syllables to create a constant beat pattern that runs throughout the poem.