University:
Alcorn State University
Course:
EN 213 | Studies in Literature
Academic year:

2019
Views:

495

Pages:

15
Author:

larbiwxcvbn

INTRODUCTION TO POETRY DEFINITION: • Literary work in which special intensity is given to the expression of feelings and ideas by the use of distinctive style and rhythm; poems collectively or as a genre of literature. • A quality of beauty and intensity of emotion regarded as characteristic of poems. POETIC DEVICES: • A lot of poetry devices are also found in literature, but they are more noticeable in poetry due to its style. • Poetry is much more focused on sound and emotion. • Poetry appeals to two parts of the brain: the amygdala (emotions) and the Wernicke’s area (patterns & words). RHYME: The matching of ending sounds in words: both vowel and consonant Example: hat, cat, brat, fat, mat, sat My Beard by Shel Silverstein My beard grows to my toes, I never wears no clothes, I wraps my hair Around my bare, And down the road I goes. ALLITERATION: The repetition of the initial consonant letter or sound in two or more words (consecutively) in a line. To the lay-person, these are called “tongue-twisters”. Example: How much dew would a dewdrop drop if a dewdrop did drop dew? Alliteration Example: She Walks in Beauty I. She walks in beauty, like the night Of cloudless climes and starry skies; And all that’s best of dark and bright Meet in her aspect and her eyes: Thus mellowed to that tender light Which Heaven to gaudy day denies. These examples use the beginning sounds of words only twice in a line, but by definition, that’s all you need. ONOMATOPOEIA: Words that spell out sounds; words that sound like what they mean. Examples: growl, hiss, pop, boom, crack, ptthhhbbb. Onomatopoeia Example: Noise Day by Shel Silverstein Let’s have one day for girls and boyses When you can make the grandest noises. Screech, scream, holler, and yell – Buzz a buzzer, clang a bell, Sneeze – hiccup – whistle – shout, Onomatopoeia Laugh until your lungs wear out, Toot a whistle, kick a can, Bang a spoon against a pan, Sing, yodel, bellow, hum, Blow a horn, beat a drum, Rattle a window, slam a door, Scrape a rake across the floor . . .. SIMILE: A comparison between two usually unrelated things using the word “like” or “as”. Examples: Joe is as hungry as a bear. In the morning, Rae is like an angry lion. Ars Poetica By Archibald MacLeish A poem should be palpable and mute as a globed fruit, Silent as the sleeve-worn stone Of casement ledges where the moss has grown— A poem should be wordless As the flight of birds. METAPHOR: An implied comparison between two usually unrelated things. Examples: Lenny is a snake. Ginny is a mouse when it comes to standing up for herself. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN METAPHOR AND SIMILE: •The difference between a simile and a metaphor is that a simile requires either “like” or “as” to be included in the comparison, and a metaphor requires that neither be used. •When it comes to using metaphors in poetry, a poet can either put in individual metaphors, or they may make the entire poem a metaphor for a deeper, more significant concept. HYPERBOLE: An exaggeration for the sake of emphasis. Examples: I may die of boredom. This cat weighs like three tons. I haven’t seen you in a million years! PERSONIFICATION: Briefly giving human characteristics to inanimate objects, ideas, or animals. Example: The sun stretched its lazy fingers over the valley. SYMBOL: An object, color, or word that is meant to represent a much deeper and more significant concept. Examples: Dark images in poems are often used to symbolize death. Light images are often used to symbolize life.