Poetic Techniques/Devices and Forms
Clerihew.
A clerihew is a four line comic verse with two rhyming pairs of lines with the rhyme sceme AABB. This forced rhyme scheme often leads to forced or slightly nonsensical rhymes. The first line of the poem is the name of the person about whom the rhyme verse is written.
Limerick.
A five-line comic verse following the syllable pattern 8, 8, 6, 6, 8 with the rhyme scheme AABBA - where the 1st, 2nd and 5th lines rhyme with each other, and the 3rd and 4th lines rhyme with each other also.
Cinquains
A form of syllabic poetry characterised by a distinctive 5 line structure: 1st line: 2 syllables. 2nd line: 4 syllables. 3rd line: 6 syllables. 4th line: 8 syllables. 5th line: 2 syllables. They can be written as a riddle. Alternatively, the first line can be the subject of the poem, the following lines adding description, movement through the use of adverbs, a phrase describing the scene and a re-stating of the subject, perhaps in a more elaborate form.
Sonnet.
A formal poem with a fixed structure. It is 14 lines long and each line contains 10 syllables. Sonnet lines are in iambic pentameter which means the line has 10 syllables in 5 pairs. In each of these pairs the emphasis is on the second syllable like a heartbeat. The rhyme scheme in an English sonnet is ABAB, CDCD, EFEF, GG. Sonnets often pose a question which is answered in the final couplet.
List poem.
A list poem does exactly as described and collects content in a list form. It can be purely a list without transitional phrases. List poems don't have any fixed rhyme or rhythmic pattern and the order of the list can either serve to provide additional detail or to show the author's state of mind.
Verse novel.
A narrative poem, or poems which are the length of a novel.
Couplets
A pair of lines in a poem which have both the same rhythm (meter) and that rhyme. The lines can be independent sentences (closed form) or can run on from each other (open form).
Calligram
A poem in which the calligraphy represents an aspect of the poem's subject
Ballad.
A poem which tells a story. It is the poetic form that most commonly uses dialect or vernacular as it was intended to be for the people. Usually, it is a rhyming poem written in 4 line stanzas with a clear and repeating rhythm which drives the reader on and enable ballads to be set easily to music. There is not a fixed rhythm (or meter), as in a sonnet but there are some common patterns. Ballads are great for reading aloud because their rhythm and rhyme is very pleasing to the ear and supports memorisation.
Personification.
A poetic device where animals, plants or even inanimate objects, are given human qualities
Blank Verse.
A poetic form which doesn't rhyme but instead, a rhythmic pattern marks it out. Blank Verse is written in Iambic Pentameter meaning that each line has 10 syllables with a stress on syllables 2,4,6,8 and 10. It has also been said that it is most like the way we speak with the iambic often also compared to a heartbeat. There are many everyday phrases that fit into this pattern.
Alliteration.
A series of words, occurring close together in the phrases or lines of poetry, that have the same first consonant sound.
Riddle.
A type of word puzzle where ambiguous clues to an object or person's identity are offered requiring the reader to puzzle over what the subject is and thereby find the answer. They can be presented as a verse (usually rhyming). A Kenning is another type of poem that behaves like a riddle.
Refrain.
A word, line or phrase that is repeated within the lines or stanzas of the poem itself.
What is this an example of? 'Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.'
Alliteration.
Epitaph.
An epitaph is a short poem remembering the life of someone who has died. Like elegies they are commemorative. Epitaphs are shorter than eleigies and are used on gravestones.
Give an example of a calligram.
Ancient (looking crumbling and old). Growth (with each letter written in a progressively larger font size). A poem about fear might be written in shaky letters to represent trembling.
What are these examples of? 'Crying time', 'hop-scotch' or 'great flakes.'
Assonance.
What are these both examples of? 'A fire. An inferno. A blazing, gazing eye. And one golden, open oven... The sun.' 'Snowflake Frozen liquid Falling, drifting, dancing Covering everything in white Blizzard'
Cinquains.
What type of poem is this? 'Zoe Zoe You had to goe I felt so sad, I wrote this poe.'
Clerihew.
Repetition.
Either a word or a phrase used in poetry for emphasis. Some poetic forms such as Villanelles rely on repetition to create their structure.
What is this an example of? 'John Donne (1572-1631) Reader, I am to let thee know, Donne's body only lies below; For could the grave his soul comprise, Earth would be richer than the skies.'
Epitaph.
Comic verse.
Focuses on the way words sound. It is often used to play with language and involves a lot of word play. It also presents fantastical situations for the amusement of the reader. There are no fixed rules for rhyme or rhythm but the primary purpose of this type of verse is to sound good read aloud and to amuse your reader.
Freeverse.
Free Verse poems have no rhyming structure and often don't have a particular rhythm or syllable patterns. Free verse is by far the most common form that contemporary poetry is written in.
What are the three types of rhyme?
Full rhyme. Half/para rhyme. Internal rhyme.
Stanzas.
Groups of lines, sometimes referred to (less precisely) as verses. Poems can be broken up into stanzas which usually share common features such as length, rhyme or rhythm. They can also be irregular, and have no regular rhyming patterns.
Haiku.
Haikus are seventeen syllable poems with the following structure: Line 1: 5 syllables. Line 2: 7 syllables. Line 3: 5 syllables. The lines are separate, each contains a new thought - a haiku describes one moment of time and its natural subject matter is the natural world. Haikus are generally visual, and leave the reader with a picture.
Strict verse.
Have stanzas of equal length and a repeating rhyme pattern.
I am poems.
I am poems use the repeated line starter 'I am' to build up a picture of the person/animal that the poem is describing. They often focus on a feature at a time. 'I am' poems are a type of List Poem.
Which rhyme pattern do sonnets have?
Iambic pentameter.
Word play.
In which the words used in the poem are specifically for the main subject of the poem itself, primarily for amusement or the intended effect of the words themselves.
What is this an example of? My Dog. Ankle biter. Bone cruncher. Night howler. Rabbit catcher. Love giver.
Kenning.
What is this an example of? The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas'.
Metaphor.
Kenning
Names something by describing its qualities in a two word compound expression.
Narrative poem.
Narrative poems tell a story, usually about a very specific moment in time. They can be written in rhyme and with strict rhythmic pattern but are most often in free verse.
Ode.
Odes are formal poems written in honour of a person, thing or place They tend to be formal in tone and are addressed to the subject they are written about.
Playground rhyme.
Often accompany a skipping or clapping game and are therefore rhythmic in nature. They often incorporate counting.
What are these examples of? 'Sizzle', 'clap', 'moo' and 'roar'.
Onomatopoeia.
Rap.
Originates from American street culture and which unlike a song which is set to music is spoken over a musical backing or beat. Rap has a syncopated rhythm meaning that the beats that are emphasised are not the ones you would usually expect. This type of poetry is designed for performance and to be read aloud.
What is this an example of? 'I spied a small lonely boy. I was his beautiful red balloon, from morning through to noon,' (Here, the poet is the red balloon).
Personification.
Give three examples of word play.
Puns. Double entendre. Rhetorical questions. Obscure words. Unusual meanings.
What type of poetry has a syncopated rhythm with the emphasis often falling on an unexpected beat?
Rap poetry.
What is this an example of? 'The house of straw let in the breeze, One pig was allergic, and started to wheeze. 'I cant live here', with asthma so bad'' My huffin'and puffin'is driving me mad!' (huffin' and a puffin', huffin' and a puffin')'
Rap.
What is this an example of? 'A lazy rhyme is a poetry crime!'
Rhyme.
Rhythm
Rhythmic pattern in poetry is used to make it easier on the ear. Different types of poetry have different rhythms and free verse poetry despite not following a particular pattern still uses rhythm in each line to drive the poem forwards.
What is this an example of? 'What has a face and two hands but no arms or legs?' 'A clock!'
Riddle.
What is this an example of? 'Creeping as quietly as a mouse'.
Similie.
Song.
Simply words that are intended to be set to music. Music and poetry have always gone together.
What is this an example of? Row, Row, Row Your Boat Row, row, row your boat, Gently down the stream, Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, Life is but a dream. Row, row, row your boat, Gently down the stream, If you see a crocodile, Don‛t forget to scream - Aghh!'
Song.
Give the precise names of theses stanzas: Three lines long - Four lines long - Five lines long - Six lines long - Seven lines long - Eight lines long -
Tercet. Quatrain. Quintrain. Sestet. Septet. Octave or Octet.
Imagery.
The author's use of description and vivid language, deepening the reader's understanding of the work, by appealing to the senses.
Onomatopoeia
The formation of a word which describes its sound.
Describe what iambic pentameter is.
The line has 10 syllables in 5 pairs. In each of these pairs the emphasis is on the second syllable like a heartbeat.
Question and Answer.
The poem is structured as a dialogue between two people.
Rhyme.
The repetition of syllables, typically at the end of a verse line. Rhymed words conventionally share all sounds following the word's last stressed syllable.
Assonance.
The repetition of the vowel sound across words within the lines of the poem creating internal rhymes.
Similie.
The subject of the poem is described by comparing it to another object or subject, using 'as' or 'like'.
Tongue-twister.
Tongue Twisters are short poems, sometimes even single sentences which are hard to say because they contain the similar consonantal initial sounds. They are made more complicated still further consonant similarities are contained in the middle of the words.
What is this an example of? 'Slick slimey snakes slowly sliding southward.'
Tongue-twister.
Metaphor.
Where an object in, or the subject of, a poem is described as being the same as another otherwise unrelated object.
Concrete poem.
Written in the shape of its subject. As form is the highest consideration here sometimes the poems consist of single words describing their subject rather than complete lines. Concrete poems shouldn't be confused with calligrams where individual words take on a shape that reveals their meaning.
