1. EDU21ACL - Australian Children’s Literature Alternative Formats Lecture Two Poetry - Verse Novels © La Trobe University, David Beagley 2006

2. Lukens, R. (2002) From Rhyme to Poetry. in A Critical Handbook of Children’s Literature. 7 th edition. Boston: Allyn and Bacon. 231-259 (on E-reserve for EDU11GCL) Campbell, P. (2004) Vetting the verse novel. The Horn Book Magazine. 80(5). September/October. 611-616 (hpr 028.52 HORN or Proquest or Expanded Academic) Recommended Reading

3. Form and structure  Physical arrangement of the words: Sound: rhyme, alliteration, assonance, contrast, onomatopoeia (& free/blank verse - their absence) Rhythm: beat, metre Number: haiku, cinquain, sonnet, limerick Visual: acrostic, shape Placement: positioning of words, juxtaposition Definition – what is poetry?

4. Literary devices  Metaphor - using prior knowledge of one thing or idea to describe another:  Metaphor - it is …  Simile - it is like … (similar)  Allusion - it is related/connected/suggests …  Symbol/Allegory – it represents something greater … Definition – what is poetry?

5. A deliberate and controlled construction, aiming to utilise these techniques to enhance and intensify the standard use of words to communicate ideas, emotions, experiences and observations Trying to say as much as possible in the least possible words Definition – what is poetry?

6. Is there a contradiction?  Saying as much as possible with the least possible  Telling a longer story  Narrative flow and development Or  Episodic sequence Narrative

7. Traditional narrative poetry  Bush ballads - Man from Snowy River, A Bush Christening, How McDougall topped the Score  Epics - Iliad, Odyssey, Idylls of the King, Beowulf, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner  3rd person descriptive  Oral tradition - emphasis on form, c.f. song and mnemonic features Narrative Poetry

8. Changes for the modern verse novel  1st person perspective; thus:  Strong emphasis on impressionistic forms  Reflective tone  Blank/free verse  Focus on personal situation, rather than action and the epic world Verse Novels

9. What can the Verse Novel do well?  Poetic devices that convey:  Succinct and immediate images  The power of metaphor and suggestion  A gradual building of tension or impression  Internalised characterization  The reader must work Verse Novels - Plus

10. What might it struggle to achieve?  Detailed …  Description - scene, action, character etc.  Conversations  Narrator’s perspective - bias of 1st person  Smooth sequence and continuity Verse Novels - minus

11. Choices a critical reader must make:  Interpretation of theme  Appropriateness of Style / Structure / Narrative form  Accessibility of characters  How successful were the writer’s choices in achieving an effective creation?  How successful is the poetry? i.e. does it work as poetry in its own right, or is it just a prose novel broken up into lines? Critical judgements