English Poetry

Introduction to English PoetryI. Introductory RemarksPoetry is a literary form with a long history. It began when language began; it developed as history developed. English poetry, like the poetry of other nations, came into being in the course of labor. Unlike fiction, prose, drama or other literary forms, poetry is characterized by its terseness and compactness. It has greater artistic appeal than other literary forms in expressing our emotions and lofty ideals, and in reflecting the reality. In addition, poetry is easily sung and remembered therefore it has always been popular among the people.II. Features of PoetryGenerally speaking, poetry is characterized by:A. Focus on the expression of emotionTo convey emotion is the basic feature of poetry. Poetic language has to be very brief and rhythmical, with harmonious rhyme scheme, rich emotional color, and musical beauty.B. Rich imageryImages are pictures in words. A good poem, even a good line, often embodies vivid images, which touch the heart string of the reader, enabling him to think of a close succession of other images.All the soliloquies in Hamlet are written in blank verse. The most important image involved is that Denmark is a prison.From the term “paper tiger”, we may get the image th at the imperialism looks fierce but actually very weak.C. Highly compact contentIn order to have a direct appeal to the reader, poetry needs make use of the fewest, the most accurate, and the most expressive words, to reflect society in the shortest poss ible length and convey the poet’s feeling in terms of brief and clear summary. It is said that brevity is the soul of poetry.D. Richness in the beauty of harmonyAt the beginning, poetry was inseparable from music. In fact, poetry and music were once united as a single art. The guiding principle of this early art was harmony. Rhythm is a very important factor for the beauty of harmony. It is the musical flow of language. Rhythm is the distinguishing feature of poetry.Without rhythm, there will be no poem. But without rhymes, we may still have poems, for example, blank verse.III. Kinds of PoetryAs far as the content is concerned, there are three main kinds of poetry:A. Lyric poetryLyrics are usually short poems which express the poet’s intense personal emotions. In ancient Greece, this kind of poetry was intended to be sung to the accompaniment of the lyre or other musical instruments. Now lyric poetry covers most forms of short poetry, whether it is intended to be sung or not---songs, odes and ballads. A song is usually very short, while an ode is usually longer and more dignified. What’s the difference between a song and a ballad? A ballad usually contains a story while a song does not.B. Epic poetry (Heroic poetry)An epic is usually a long narrative poem telling a story of great adventurous or heroic deeds. Epics are of folk origin as in Beowulf,in Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, in Dante’s Divine Comedy,and later epics became linked with literary legends and conventions, as in Milton’s Paradise Lost.C. Dramatic poetryDramatic poetry is made up of dialogues and is intended to be acted. Tragedy and comedy are the two chief forms. It is usually is blank verse.As far as the metre is concerned, English poetry can be divided into three kinds:A. Metrical poemsMetrical poems have regular rhythm and rhyme, and definite number of lines.B. Free verseFree verse has rhythm and rhyme, but it has no regular rhythm or rhyme. It is distinguished from blank verse.Blank verse belongs to metrical poems. It is unrhymed but it is usually with regular rhythm.C. Half-metrical poemsHalf-metrical poems refers to the poems between metrical poems and free verse. They sometimes have regular rhythm and rhyme, and sometimes have not.IV. SonnetSonnet is a very important form of English metrical poetry. It has 14 lines written to a regular rhyme scheme. Sonnet was invented by the Italian poet, Francesco Petrarch in the early 13th century. Dante was the first poet to use it. Sonnet makes it easier to express deep thought and emotion.In English poetry, there are three types of sonnet:the Italian, the Shakespearean and the Spenserian.These three types of sonnet all consist of 14 lines, but the thyme schemes are different.In the Italian sonnet, the first 8 lines form an octave, which rhymes abba, abba and the remaining 6 lines forms a sestet which rhymes cde,cde.The Shakespearean sonnet is made up of 3 quatrains followed by a couplet. This structure produce a sweeping movement and the concluding couplet often makes the thought of the poet an effective epigram and also makes the theme of the poem clearer. Its rhyme scheme is abab, cdcd, efef, gg.The Spenserian sonnet also consists of 3 quatrains and a couplet just like the Shakespearean but their rhyme scheme are different. It is abab, bcbc, cdcd, ee.V. RhythmIn English, words of two syllables usually contain one that is stressed and one that is unstressed; long words contain one stressed and two or more unstressed syllables. In a line of poem when the stressed and unstressed syllables of all the words are arranged in a definite order, in the order of one stressed syllable followed by an unstressed one, the line will rise and fall in a musical way, as inTwinkle, twinkle, little starHow I wonder what you areThis musical flow of language is called rhythm.VI. FootFoot is the unit of rhythm in English poetry. A foot has two or three syllables, one of which is stressed. A line of poem consists of two to several feet. There are four types of foot which are often used in English poetry.A.Iambus or Iambic FootAn iambus consists of two syllables. The first syllable is unaccented and the second is accented. e.g.The sun is not abed when IAt night upon my pillow lieB.Anapaest or Anapaestic FootAn anapaest consists of three syllables. The first two syllables are unaccented and the third is accented.e.g.The stream will not flow, and the hill will not rise,And the colors have all passed away from her eyes!In the iambic and anapaestic feet, unstressed syllables come first and stressed syllables come second.This structure of rhythm is called rising rhythm. In a poem, the two types may be used alternately. e.g.Great is the sun, and wide he goesThrough empty heaven without reposeThe basic rhythm of the verse is iambic while the second foot of the first line is an anapaest.Notice: The first foot of the first line is a monosyllabic foot. A foot that has a stressed syllable without any unstressed syllables is called a monosyllabic foot.C.Trochee or Trochaic FootA trochee consists of two syllables. The first syllable is accented while the second is unaccented. e.g.Shake your chains to earth like dewWhich in sleep had fallen on you---You are many---they are few.D.Dactyl or Dactylic FootA dactyl consists of three syllables. The first syllable is accented and the second two are unaccented. e.g.Take her up tenderlyLift her with careThis is a galloping measure,a hop and a trot and a gallop.In the trochaic and dactylic feet, a stressed syllable comes first and unstressed syllables come second.This structure of rhythm is called falling rhythm. In a poem, the two types of feet may be used alternately. e.g.Up in the air and over the wall,Till I can see so wideBesides the above-mentioned feet, we can find in English poetry other types of feet, which I will not mention here.VII. MetreThe meter of a line of poetry is determined by the kind of foot used and by the number of feet in the line. The number varies from one to eight. There are single meter (monometer), double meter (bimeter), trimeter, tetrameter, pentameter, hexameter, heptameter, octameter.The universal appeal of music suggests that human ears delight in sounds that are arranged in patterns and in the repetition of these patterns. Just as music is a patterned arrangement of sounds, so is poetry a patterned arrangement of words.In the English language, there are six sound patterns:CVC CVC alliteration take timeCVC CVC assonance take lateCVC CVC consonance take likeCVC CVC para-rhyme take tookCVC CVC reverse-rhyme take taleCVC CVC full rhyme take lakeIn English poetry, there are usually three sound patterns employed. They are alliteration, assonance and full rhyme.Alliteration is the repetition of identical or similar consonantal sounds, usually, but not always, at the beginning of words. e.g. pretty pink pills for pale peopleAssonance is the repetition of identical or similar vowel. e.g. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done.Rhyme is the repetition of both vowels and consonantal sounds at the end of words. e.g. home---foam;chair---there.Rhyme is the most commonly known of all the devices a poem may employ. It usually appears at the end of lines. e.g.If all be true that I do thinkThere are five reasons we should drink.Rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhyme within a piece of verse marked by letters, as shown in the following: Behold: we know not anything; aI can but trust that good shall fall bAt last---for off---at last, to all bAnd every winter change to spring aIn English poetry, there are three commonest rhyme schemes:1) a a b bWork while you work, and play while play, aFor that is the way to be happy and gay. aAll that you do, do with your might, bThings done by halves are never done right. b2) a b a bHow do you like to go up in a swing aUp in the air so blue? bOh, I do think it the pleasantest thing aEver a child can do! b3) a b b aI hold it true, whate’er befall; aI feel it when I sorrow most; b‘Tis better to have loved and lost bThan never to have loved at all. ABesides the above-mentioned three, there are also abcb, aaaa and other rhyme schemes.abcb Spring is green, aSummer is bright, bAutumn is gold, cWinter is white. bVIII. StanzaA stanza is a group of lines (any number, most frequently four) bound together by an end rhyme.Notice: An article is composed of lines of words. But the lines in poetry differ from those in articles. In an article, the first letter of each sentence should be capitalized. In poetry, not only the first letter of each sentence but also the letter of each line should be capitalized. e.g.What is pink? A rose is pinkBy the fountain’s brink。