1. Intro to poetry
English I
Unit 9.7

2. What is Poetry?
Poetry has been described as “the best words in their best order.”
~ Samuel Taylor Coleridge
“Poetry is like making a joke. If you get one word wrong at the end of a joke, you’ve lost the whole thing.”
~ W.S. Merwin
“Poetry is truth in its Sunday clothes.”
~ Joseph Roux
“Poetry is thoughts that breathe, and words that burn.”
~ Thomas Gray

3. How is Poetry Organized?
Poetry is as much about form as it is about language and sound.
Form – refers to a poem’s structure, or the way the words are arranged on the page.
Lines – all poems are made of a series of lines.
Stanzas – lines are grouped into stanzas, like sentences are in a paragraph.
Each stanza plays an important part in communicating the overall message of a poem.

4. How do Poems Rhyme? Rhyme – enhances the musical quality of poetry.
Like music, language has a rhythm. In poetry, the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in each line is what creates the rhythm.
Rhyme – enhances the musical quality of poetry.
End Rhyme – when the rhyme occurs at the ends of lines
Internal Rhyme – when the rhyme occurs within the same line

5. Examples of Internal Rhyme:
“The Witch” by Jack Prelutsky:
She comes by night, in fearsome flight,
In garments black as pitch,
The queen of doom upon her broom,
The wild and wicked witch,
“The Raven” by Edgar Allen Poe:
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
“The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew, The furrow followed free; We were the first that ever burst Into that silent sea.

6. Examples of End Rhyme: “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost:
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
“The Sower” by Victor Hugo:
Peaceful and cool, the twilight grey
Draws a dim curtain o’er the day,
While in my cottage-porch I lurk
And watch the last lone hour of work.

7. Does all poetry have to rhyme? -- NO.
Free Verse Poetry – does NOT follow the guidelines of regular pattern, rhythm, or rhyme.
“Luxury” by Nikki Giovanni:
i suppose living
in a materialistic society
luxury
to some would be having
more than what you need

8. Poetic Sound Devices: Sound Devices are used to:
“There are only three things that a poem must reach: the eye, the ear, and the heart or the mind. It is the most important of all to reach the heart of the reader. And the surest way to reach the heart is through the ear.” ~ Robert Frost
Sound Devices are used to:
communicate meaning
add emphasis
aid memory
create a musical quality and pattern
Sound Devices Include:
Repetition
Alliteration
Assonance
Consonance

9. Poetic Sound Devices: REPETITION
Repetition – repeating a sound, word, phrase, or line for emphasis or unity
“We Never Change” by Chris Martin:
I wanna live life, never be cruel, I wanna live life, be good to you. I wanna fly, never come down, And live my life, And have friends around.
“Everything is Everything” by Lauryn Hill:
Everything is everything What is meant to be, will be After winter, must come spring Change, it comes eventually

10. Poetic Sound Devices: ALLITERATION
Alliteration – is when several words very near each other begin with the same consonant sound
“Nothing Gold Can Stay” by Robert Frost:
Nature’s first green is gold, Her hardest hue to hold. Her early leaf’s a flower; But only so an hour.
Or you may remember:
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked. If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers How many pickled peppers did Peter Piper pick?

11. Poetic Sound Devices: Assonance & Consonance
Assonance – is the repetition of VOWEL sounds in words that don’t end with the same consonant.
“Annabel Lee” by Edgar Allen Poe:
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side Of my darling, my darling, my life and my bride.
“I made my way to the lake.”
Consonance – is the repetition of CONSONANT sounds in the middle or at the ends of words.
I don’t like English class,
I like the people in here though,
I go with the flow; so Ms. Finch
Won’t throw me out for being a grinch.

12. Why is Diction So Important?
Diction – means the choice of words a poet uses
Diction is especially important to poetry.
Poetry is known for its concise and exact use of language
“Oranges” by Gary Soto
The first time I walked With a girl, I was twelve, Cold, and weighted down With two oranges in my jacket. December. Frost cracking Beneath my steps, my breath Before me, then gone, As I walked toward Her house,

13. How Important is Imagery to a Poem?
Imagery is the MOST important element of any poem.
Imagery is the words and phrases that appeal to one or more of the five senses.
Her house, the one whose Porch light burned yellow Night and day, in any weather. A dog barked at me, until She came out pulling At her gloves, face bright With rouge. I smiled, Touched her shoulder, and led Her down the street,

14. Figurative Language Figurative language is
language that communicates meanings beyond the literal meanings of words
words are often used to:
symbolize or emphasize ideas
create effects
evoke emotions
Some common types of figurative language are:
Simile
Metaphor
Personification
Hyperbole
Onomatopoeia

15. Figurative Language: Simile
A simile compares two unlike things using the words “like” or “as.”
The witches eyes were as black as coal.
During the storm, the wind tore through branches like a power saw.
My life is like an open book.
Life is like a box of chocolates.
When I walked out of school on the last day, I felt free as a bird.

16. Figurative Language: Metaphor
A metaphor makes a comparison by saying that one thing IS another different thing.
A metaphor:
does not use “like” or “as”
allows us to use fewer words
forces the reader to find the similarity
The simplest form of a simile is:
“The [first thing] is a [second thing].”
Ex: “Her house is a prison.”

17. Metaphor Examples:
Her eyes were sparkly beacons of bright light, expressing her hope for their futures.
The tree trunks were matchsticks as they snapped in the hurricane-force winds.
Life is a journey.
The assignment was a breeze.

18. Figurative Language: Personification
Personification gives human qualities to an object, animal, or idea.
Personification makes an object or idea do something that usually is only done by people.
Examples: 
The flames of the fire danced in the wind.
The brown grass was begging for water.
Any trust I had for him walked right out the door.
The angry storm brought heavy rain and lightning.
The party died as soon as she left.

19. Who is the Speaker?
The speaker is the voice that describes the character and/or the action in the poem.
In a story we say “the narrator”; in poetry, we say “the speaker.”