DIVISIONS OF LITERATURE OBJECTIVES: Be able to define what poetry is. Be able to define what prose is.

Be able to differentiate prose and poetry.

1. POETRY Poetry (from the Greek "", poiesis, a "making") is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning. Poetry may be written independently, as discrete poems, or may occur in conjunction with other arts, as in poetic drama, hymns or lyrics. A poem is a composition written in verse (although verse has been equally used for epic and dramatic fiction). Poems rely heavily on imagery, precise word choice, and metaphor; they may take the form of measures consisting of patterns of stresses (metric feet) or of patterns of different-length syllables (as in classical prosody); and they may or may not utilize rhyme. One cannot readily characterize poetry precisely. Typically though, poetry as a form of literature makes some significant use of the formal properties of the words it uses the properties of the written or spoken form of the words, independent of their meaning. Meter depends on syllables and on rhythms of speech; rhyme and alliteration depend on the sounds of words. Poetry is literature in a metrical form. However, free-verse became the popular style towards the modern and post modern age. Like fiction, it may not have plots, setting, etc, yet it has a structured method of writing. CHARACTERISTICS OF POETRY Critics, writers, teachers and poets themselves have tried often and long to define poetry and distinguish it from prose. Perhaps the best way to differentiate these two major literary types is to speak of the unique features of poetry which set it apart from prose: rhythm, imagery and sense or meaning. Rhythm Rhythm is the regular recurrence of stressed and unstressed, long and short, or high-pitched and low-pitched syllables creating a pattern in the lines of a poem. This gives the poem its melodious quality and makes it grand, solemn and majestic; sonorous and full; slow and mournful; rapid and light; airy and whimsical; or crystalline. Imagery Imagery refers to expressions evocative of objects of sensous appeal. They are products of the writers creative imagination and result in making an impression or experience more precise and vivid. Imagery may be in the form of direct description or may be figurative, which latter involves the use of figures of speech and symbols.

1.

Figures of Speech

Some of the most important types are: a. Simile an expressed comparison between two things belonging to different classes, with the use of conjunctions as and like. The winged seeds, where they lie cold and low, Each like a corpse within its grave, Shelley, Ode to the West Wind As I read it in the white, morning light, The letters squirmed like snakes. Lowell, Patterns b. Metaphors an implied and not an expressed comparison. It identifies one object with another, giving to one the qualities of the other. The moon has a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas, The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor, Noyes, The Highwayman c. Personification the giving of human attributes and functions to inanimate objects, animals and even ideas. A tree whose hungry mouth is prest Against the earths sweet flowing breast Kilmer, Trees d. Apostrophe - a direct address to a person or thing. Helen, thy beauty is to me Like those Nicean barks of yore, Poe, To Helen 2. Symbols These are images or concrete references that stand for something else in reality and suggest another level of meaning. For example, the flag used as a symbol for the country; the rose, for beauty; the serpent, for evil. (These are popular but overused symbols). O wind, If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?

Shelley, Ode to the West Wind

Sense or Meaning A poem must say something. It must enlighten, reveal a truth, open new vistas, give new perceptions, enable us to understand the world around us more deeply, and see things beyond our physical senses.

TRYING TO UNDERSTAND A POEM It goes without saying that poetry is not always easy to understand. Yet we would be the poorer if we allowed the world of verse to be closed to us. When reading a poem, it would help much to look up the meaning of unfamiliar words; to keep in mind that a poem is never purely literal; and to remember that the poet means and feels more than what he actually says. Imagine yourself in the situation of the poet and try to see and feel as he does, give free rein to your imagination and feelings, and use all your life experience to enlighten you so that the poem can acquire meaning for you. 2. PROSE Prose is writing that resembles everyday speech. The word "prose" is derived from the Latin prosa, which literally translates to "straightforward". Prose is adopted for the discussion of facts and topical reading. Prose is often articulated in free form writing style. Thus, it may be used for books, newspapers, magazines, encyclopedias, broadcast media, films, letters, history, philosophy, biography, and many other forms of communication. Prose consists of writing that does not adhere to any particular formal structures (other than simple grammar); "non-poetic" writing, perhaps. The term sometimes appears pejoratively, but prosaic writing simply says something without necessarily trying to say it in a beautiful way, or using beautiful words. Prose writing can of course take beautiful form; but less by virtue of the formal features of words (rhymes, alliteration, metre) but rather by style, placement, or inclusion of graphics. But one need not mark the distinction precisely, and perhaps cannot do so. One area of overlap is "prose poetry", which attempts to convey using only prose, the aesthetic richness typical of poetry. Prose is discourse which uses sentences usually forming paragraphs to express ideas, feelings and actions. In subject matter, prose generally concentrates on the familiar and the ordinary. A rigid diving line in the contents of poetry and prose no longer exists. Prose is mainly concerned with the ordinary, but it may deal with subjects such as heroism, beauty, love and the nobility of spirit which usually find the most eloquent expression in poetry. On the other hand, poetry may be inspired by the commonplace

and ordinary as in many poems by Wordsworth, Robert Burns, John G. Whittler, Carl Sandburg and countless other poets who have sought and discovered beauty and meaning in simple, everyday existence.

DIVISIONS OF PROSE Prose is usually divided into fiction and non-fiction. Fiction has been defined as as series of imagined facts which illustrates truths about human life. It is misleading to oppose fiction to truth and to call it false or untrue. Rather, fiction is opposed to the actual and to the historically true. It is not contrary to truth at all. Incidents that have not happened in real life, characters that may not actually have existed, could be created by fiction to illustrate what may and can happen, as long as the laws of possibility and necessity are not violated. Fiction does not deal with what had happened, but with what could happen within the scope of the possible and the probable. In this way, fiction extends to our views and awareness of the different phases of life, of the various types and manifestations of human character and personality, of the complex motives and impulses behind human behavior. Short Story Novel Non-Fiction Essay Oration Biography Autobiography, Memoirs, Letters and Epistles, Diaries and Journals

DISTINCTION BETWEEN PROSE AND POETRY Prose generally lacks the formal structure of meter or rhyme which is typical of poetry; instead it is composed of full sentences, usually divided into paragraphs, and then smaller segments known as meta-paragraphs. Although some works of prose may happen to contain traces of metrical structure or versification, a conscious blend of the two forms of literature is known as a prose poem. Similarly, the poetry with less of the common rules and limitations of verse is known as free verse. Poetry is considered to be artificially developed ("The best words in the best order"), whereas prose is thought to be less constructed and more reflective of ordinary speech.

Poetry expresses a strong emotion or a lofty thought in a compressed and intense utterance. Prose is generally concerned with the presentation of an idea, concept or point of view in a more ordinary and leisurely manner. The main purpose of poetry is to provide pleasure and delight; that of prose, to furnish information, instruction and enlightenment. The two objectives of instruction and pleasure would be found in a single work; but in general, the appeal of prose is primarily to the intellect; that of poetry, to the emotion and the imagination. Poetry may or may not use rhyme, as ordinarily it does not in blank and free verse. Prose does not make us of rhyme at all. Prose possesses rhythm, but it is not as marked and regular as in poetry. Both prose and poetry may stir the emotion as well as the intellect. Both can convey information as well as pleasure. CONCLUSION Poetry is literature in a metrical form. However, free-verse became the popular style towards the modern and post modern age. Like fiction, it may not have plots, setting, etc, yet it has a structured method of writing. Prose writing can of course take beautiful form; but less by virtue of the formal features of words (rhymes, alliteration, metre) but rather by style, placement, or inclusion of graphics. Poetry expresses a strong emotion or a lofty thought in a compressed and intense utterance. Prose is generally concerned with the presentation of an idea, concept or point of view in a more ordinary and leisurely manner. The two objectives of instruction and pleasure would be found in a single work; but in general, the appeal of prose is primarily to the intellect; that of poetry, to the emotion and the imagination. Both prose and poetry may stir the emotion as well as the intellect. Both can convey information as well as pleasure.

REFERENCES Rosales, Piedad, Garcia, Carolina and Barranco, Corinta. A Study of Literary Types and Forms, UST Printing Office, Manila, 1995 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poetry http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prose