Poetry: Metre and Rhyme LO – To identify structural elements applied in poetry.

Refresher  Name the type of poem:  about travel  about the outdoors  the picturesque  Melodic  about love  astory

Syllables  How many syllables do the following words have? reactperpendiculartrod fishermangenerationsboughs daylightleisurebreak

Introducing Metre and Feet  Metre is from the Greek word for measuring; at its most basic, metre is a system of describing what we can measure about the audible features of a poem.  The basic unit of poetic metre is called a foot (plural = feet), which when repeated creates rhythm and can be defined as a group of syllables forming a metrical unit.

 Most poetic feet contain one stressed (heavy) syllable and one or two unstressed (light) syllables – The following terms describe each foot: ‘x’ = unstressed syllable; ‘/’ = stressed syllable

‘x’ = unstressed syllable; ‘/’ = stressed syllable  the spondee is the exception because it has two stressed syllables. Iamb Trochee Anapaest Dactyl Spondee Pyrrhic x / [iambic] / x [trochaic] x x / [anapestic] / x x [dactylic] / / [spondaic] x Feet with stress on the last syllable is considered a masculine ending; If unstressed on the last this is then considered a feminine ending.

Your turn…  And the sound of a voice that is still And the sound/ of a voice/ that is still anapestic

 That time of year thou mayst in me behold That time / of year / thou mayst / in me / behold iambic

 What is this life if, full of care What is / this life / if, full / of care iambic

METRICAL LINES There are also terms for the number of feet in a line:  Monometer [1 foot]  Dimeter [2 feet]  Trimeter [3 feet]  Tetrameter [4 feet]  Pentameter [5 feet]  Hexameter [6 feet]  Heptameter [7 feet]  Octameter [8 feet]

MONOMETER Thus I Pass by And die As one, Unknown, And gone: I’m made A shade And laid I’th grave There have My cave. Where tell I dwell, Farewell (“Upon His Departure Hence”, Robert Herrick)

Your turn…  And the sound of a voice that is still And the sound/ of a voice/ that is still Anapestic trimeter

 That time of year thou mayst in me behold That time / of year / thou mayst / in me / behold Iambic pentameter

 What is this life if, full of care What is / this life / if, full / of care Iambic tetrameter

 And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil; And all / is seared / with trade; / bleared, / smeared / with toil; Counterpoint hexameter Counterpoint  In music, the playing of two tunes at the same time, allowing them to interweave. In poetry, the use of two rhythms at the same time, for example, one being based on the metre, and one on the grammatical structure of the sentence.

Punctuation in Poetry  Caesura  Enjambement  Elision

What is this life if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare. No time to stand beneath the boughs And stare as long as sheep or cows. No time to see, when woods we pass, Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass. No time to see, in broad daylight, Streams full of stars, like skies at night. No time to turn at Beauty's glance, And watch her feet, how they can dance. No time to wait till her mouth can Enrich that smile her eyes began. A poor life this is if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare.

RHYMING SCHEMES  End Rhyme – last word on line rhymes with another  Internal Rhyme – rhyme occurring inside a line  Eye Rhyme – words spelt alike, eg. Love, prove  Imperfect Rhyme – (also known as partial or near rhyme) words that don’t quite rhyme, eg. Soul, wall  Half Rhyme – (consonance) repetition of same consonant sound before and after different vowels, eg. Blighted, bloated  Blank verse – verse that doesn’t rhyme (often iambic pentameter)

HUMPTY DUMPTY Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall Humpty Dumpty had a great fall All the king’s horses and all the king’s men Couldn’t put Humpty together again

Stanza  A group of metrical lines or verses, arranged in a certain pattern. A stanza is often called a “verse”.  2- couplet  3- tercet  4- quatrain  5- quintet  6- sestet  7- septet  8- octave