POETRY

 A patterned form of verbal or written expression of

ideas in concentrated, imaginative, and rhythmical
terms that often contain the elements of sense, sound
and structure.
 It is considered as the oldest literary form.
 It has implied meanings which is/are in the carefully
selected words.
 Considered as the most difficult and most
sophisticated of all literary genres.
 It can be briefly written but it suggests many
connotations . As compared to other literary forms, it
is more musical.
Elements of poetry

A. SENSE
 DENOTATION VS CONNOTATION
 DENOTATION is the dictionary meaning while
CONNOTATION is suggested or implied meanings
beyond its dictionary definition.
 IMAGERY – is the use of sensory details or
descriptions that appeal to one or more of the five
otherwise known as the “senses of the mind”
 FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE- used for descriptive effect
in order to convey ideas or emotions which are not
literally true.
 TYPES OF FIGURES OF SPEECH(FIGURATIVE
LANGUAGE)

 a. Allusion- reference in a work of literature to

a character ,a place, or a situation from history,
literature, the bible, mythology, scientific
event, character, or place.
 “I do not approve of this quixotic idea,” Quixotic
means stupid and impractical derived from
Cervantes’s “Don Quixote”, a story of a foolish
knight and his misadventures.
 ANTITHESIS- is the disparity of words or ideas. literal meaning is
“opposite", is a rhetorical device in which two opposite ideas are
put together in a sentence to achieve a contrasting effect.
 Antithesis emphasizes the idea of contrast by parallel structures
of the contrasted phrases or clauses, i.e. the structures of
phrases and clauses are similar in order to draw the attention of
the listeners or readers. For example:
 “Setting foot on the moon may be a small step for a man but a
giant step for mankind.”
 “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the
age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch
of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of
Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it
was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had
nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were
all going direct the other way.” A TALE OF TWO
CITIES,CHARLES DICKENS
 APOSTROPHE- is an address to an inanimate object,an
idea,or a person who is absent /long dead.Sometimes
represented by exclamation “O”. A writer or a speaker, using
an apostrophe, detaches himself from the reality and
addresses an imaginary character in his speech.
 It is important not to confuse the apostrophe which is a
figure of speech and the apostrophe which is a punctuation
mark (‘). It shows possession or a mark to indicate omission
of one or more letters (contractions) while apostrophe used
in literature is an arrangement of words addressing a non-
existent person or an abstract idea in such a way as if it
were present and capable of understanding feelings.
 “Oh! Stars and clouds and winds, ye are all about to mock
me; if ye really pity me, crush sensation and memory; let
me become as nought; but if not, depart, depart, and leave
me in darkness.”- MARY SHELLY,FRANKENSTEIN
 .
 HYPERBOLE- is an exaggeration used to express
strong emotion ,to make a point of to evoke
humor.It is derived from a Greek word meaning
“over-casting” is a figure of speech, which INVOLVES
AN EXAGERRATION of ideas for the sake of
emphasis. It is a device that we employ in our day-
to-day speech. For instance, when you meet a friend
after a long time, you say,
 “Ages have passed since I last saw you”. You may
not have met him for three or four hours or a day,
but the use of the word “ages” exaggerates this
statement to add emphasis to your wait.
Therefore, a hyperbole is an unreal exaggeration to
emphasize the real situation
When we exaggerate, we often use the pattern ‘so . . . that . . .’
You try making some exaggerations below.
The first two have been done for you.
hungry
dark
thirsty
tired
bored
excited
happy
cold
hot
scared
rich
poor
small
big
angry
 IRONY- is a contrast or discrepancy
between appearance and reality. Words
are used in such a way that their
intended meaning is different from the
actual meaning of the words. It may also
be a situation that may end up in quite a
different way than what is generally
anticipated. In simple words, it is a
difference between the appearance and
the reality.
TYPES
 we distinguish two basic kinds of irony
 i.e. verbal irony and situational irony.
 A verbal irony involves what one does not mean. When in response to a foolish
idea, we say, “what a great idea!” it is a verbal irony.
 A situational irony occurs when, for instance, a man is chuckling at the
misfortune of the other even when the same misfortune, in complete
unawareness, is befalling him.
 Difference between Dramatic Irony and Situational Irony
 DRAMATIC IRONY is a kind of irony in a situation, which the writers
frequently employ in their works.
 SITUATIONAL IRONY, both the characters and the audience are fully
unaware of the implications of the real situation. In dramatic irony, the
characters are oblivious of the situation but the audience is not. For
example, in ROMEO AND JULIET we know much before the characters
that they are going to die.
LITOTES
 derived from a Greek word meaning “simple”, is a figure of speech
which employs an understatement by using double negatives or,
in other words, positive statement is expressed by negating its
opposite expressions.
 For example, using the expression “not too bad” for “very good” is
an understatement as well as a double negative statement that
confirms a positive idea by negating the opposite. Similarly, saying
“She is not a beauty queen,” means “She is ugly” or saying “I am
not as young as I used to be” in order to avoid saying “I am old”.
Litotes, therefore, is an intentional use of understatement that
renders an ironical effect.
 This is the best that has ever been said about litotes – that to
ignore an object and still talk about it in a negative way is the best
way to make it appear important and prominent.
 Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if I had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.”
 Now read this short piece “Fire and Ice” by Robert Frost very
carefully. Calling the destruction caused by the “ice” as
“great” is balanced by an opposing statement “would
suffice” that is an understatement.
 METAPHOR
 is a figure of speech which makes an implicit, implied or hidden
comparison between two things or objects that are poles apart from each
other but have some characteristics common between them. In other
words, a resemblance of two contradictory or different objects is made
based on a single or some common characteristics.
 In simple English, when you portray a person, place, thing, or an action
as being something else, even though it is not actually that “something
else,” you are speaking metaphorically. “He is the black sheep of the
family” is a metaphor because he is not a sheep and is not even black.
However, we can use this comparison to describe an association of a black
sheep with that person. A black sheep is an unusual animal and typically
stays away from the herd, and the person you are describing shares
similar characteristics.
 Furthermore, a metaphor develops a comparison which is different from a
simile i.e. we do not use “like” or “as” to develop a comparison in a
metaphor. It actually makes an implicit or hidden comparison and not an
explicit one.
 Shall I Compare Thee to a summer’s Day”,
William Shakespeare was the best exponent of
the use of metaphors. His poetical works and
dramas all make wide-ranging use of metaphors.
 “Sonnet 18,”also known as “Shall I Compare
Thee to a Summer’s Day,” is an extended
metaphor between the love of the speaker and
the fairness of the summer season. He writes
that “thy eternal summer,” here taken to mean
the love of the subject, “shall not fade.”
 We can easily infer the function of metaphors;
both in our daily lives and in a piece of literature.
Using appropriate metaphors appeals directly to
the senses of listeners or readers, sharpening their
imaginations to comprehend what is being
communicated to them. Moreover, it gives a life-
like quality to our conversations and to the
characters of the fiction or poetry. Metaphors are
also ways of thinking, offering the listeners and
the readers fresh ways of examining ideas and
viewing the world.
METONYMY
 It is a figure of speech that replaces the name of a thing
with the name of something else with which it is closely
associated. We can come across examples of metonymy
both from literature and in everyday life.
 Metonymy is often confused with another figure of
speech called synecdoche. They resemble each other but
are not the same. Synecdoche refers to a thing by the
name of one of its parts. For example, calling a car “a
wheel” is a synecdoche. A part of a car i.e. “a wheel”
stands for the whole car. In a metonymy, on the other
hand, the word we use to describe another thing is
closely linked to that particular thing, but is not a part of
it. For example, “Crown” which means power or
authority is a metonymy.
 The given lines are from Shakespeare’s“Julies Caesar”
Act I.“Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your
ears.”Mark Anthony uses “ears” to say that he wants
the people present there to listen to him attentively.
It is a metonymy because the word “ears” replaces
the concept of attention.
 Generally, metonymy is used in developing literary
symbolism i.e. it gives more profound meanings to
otherwise common ideas and objects. By using
metonymy, texts exhibit deeper or hidden meanings
and thus drawing readers’ attention. In addition, the
use of metonymy helps achieve conciseness. For
instance, “Rifles were guarding the gate” is more
concise than “The guards with rifles in their hands
were guarding the gate.”
ONOMATOPOEIA

 is defined as a word, which imitates the natural sounds of a

thing. It creates a sound effect that mimics the thing
described, making the description more expressive and
interesting. For instance, saying, “The gushing stream
flows in the forest” is a more meaningful description than
just saying, “The stream flows in the forest.” The reader is
drawn to hear the sound of a “gushing stream” which
makes the expression more effective.
 In addition to the sound they represent, many
onomatopoeic words have developed meanings of their
own. For example, “whisper” not only represents the sound
of people talking quietly, but also describes the action of
people talking quietly.
 Generally, words are used to tell what is
happening. Onomatopoeia, on the other hand,
helps the readers to hear the sounds the words
they reflect. Hence, the reader cannot help but
enter the world created by the poet with the
aid of these words. The beauty of
onomatopoeic words lies in the fact that they
are bound to have an effect on the readers’
senses whether they are understood or not.
Moreover, a simple plain expression does not
have the same emphatic effect that conveys an
idea powerfully to the readers. The use of
onomatopoeic words helps create emphasis.
 “It went zip when it moved and bop when it
stopped,
And whirr when it stood still.
I never knew just what it was and I guess I
never will.”(“The Marvelous Toy” by Tom
Paxton)
PARADOX

 from the Greek word “paradoxon” that means

contrary to expectations, existing belief or
perceived opinion. It is a statement that
appears to be self-contradictory or silly but
may include a latent truth. It is also used to
illustrate an opinion or statement contrary to
accepted traditional ideas. A paradox is often
used to make a reader think over an idea in
innovative way.
 paradox is not just a clever or comical statement or use
of words. Paradox has serious implication because it
makes statements that often summarize the major
themes of the work they are used in. Let us analyze some
paradox examples from some famous literary works:
 Example #1 In George Orwell’s Animal Farm, one part of
the cardinal rule is the statement,
 “All animals are equal, but some are more equal than
others”. This statement seems to not make any sense.
However, on closer examination, it gets clear that Orwell
points out a political truth. The government in the novel
claims that everyone is equal but it has never treated
everyone equally. It is the concept of equality stated in
this paradox that is opposite to the common belief of
equality.
 Why is paradox used when a message can be conveyed in a
straightforward and simple manner?” The answer lies in the
nature and purpose of literature. One function of literature is to
make the readers enjoy reading. Readers enjoy more when they
extract the hidden meanings out of the writing rather than
something presented to them in an uncomplicated manner.
Thus, the chief purpose of a paradox is to give pleasure.
 In poetry, the use of paradox is not confined to mere wit and
pleasure; rather, it becomes an integral part of poetic diction.
Poets usually make use of a paradox to create a remarkable
thought or image out of words.
 Some types of paradox in poetry are meant to communicate a
tone of irony to its readers as well as lead their thoughts to the
immediate subject. Paradox in most poems normally strives to
create feelings of intrigue and interest in readers’ minds to make
them think deeper and harder to enjoy the real message of the
poem.
 PERSONIFICATION
 is a figure of speech in which a thing, an idea or an animal is given
human attributes. The non-human objects are portrayed in such
a way that we feel they have the ability to act like human beings.
For example, when we say, “The sky weeps” we are giving the
sky the ability to cry, which is a human quality. Thus, we can say
that the sky has been personified in the given sentence.
 Personification is not merely a decorative device but it serves the
purpose of giving deeper meanings to literary texts. It adds
vividness to expressions as we always look at the world from a
human perspective. Writers and poets rely on personification to
bring inanimate things to life, so that their nature and actions are
understood in a better way. Because it is easier for us to relate to
something that is human or that possesses human traits. Its use
encourages us to develop a perspective that is new as well as
creative
 Emily Elizabeth Dickinson employs
personification in her poem “Have You Got A
Brook In Your Little Heart”.
 “Have you got a brook in your little heart,
Where bashful flowers blow,
And blushing birds go down to drink,
And shadows tremble so?”
SIMILE
 is a figure of speech that makes a comparison,
showing similarities between two different
things. Unlike a metaphor, a simile draws
resemblance with the help of the words “like”
or “as”. Therefore, it is a direct comparison.
 We can find simile examples in our daily
speech. We often hear comments like “John is
as slow as a snail.” Snails are notorious for their
slow pace and here the slowness of John is
compared to that of a snail. The use of “as” in
the example helps to draw the resemblance.
 “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? / Thou art more
lovely and more temperate”(William Shakespeare, Sonnet 18)
 In the above example, we see a comparison being drawn
between the poet’s darling and “a summer’s day” not using
“as” or “like”. However, it is not a metaphor. The use of the
word “compare” makes the comparison a simile.
 Robert Burns uses a simile to describe the beauty of his
beloved
 .“O my Luve’s like a red, red rose
That’s newly sprung in June;
O my Luve’s like the melodie
That’s sweetly played in tune.”
SYNECDOCHE

 is a literary device in which a part of

something represents the whole or it may use
a whole to represent a part.
 Synecdoche may also use larger groups to
refer to smaller groups or vice versa. It may
also call a thing by the name of the material it
is made of or it may refer to a thing in a
container or packing by the name of that
container or packing.
 It is very common to refer to a thing by the name of its
parts. Let us look at some of the examples of synecdoche
that we can hear from casual conversations:
 The word “bread” refers to food or money as in “Writing
is my bread and butter” or “sole breadwinner”.
 The phrase “gray beard” refers to an old man.
 The word “sails” refers to a whole ship.
 The word “suits” refers to businessmen.
 The word “boots” usually refers to soldiers.
 The term “coke” is a common synecdoche for all
carbonated drinks.
 “Pentagon” is a synecdoche when it refers to a few
decision makers.
 The word “glasses” refers to spectacles.
 “Coppers” often refers to coins.
 The Lady or the Tiger? by Frank R. Stockton:
 “His eye met hers as she sat there paler and
whiter than anyone in the vast ocean of
anxious faces about her.”
 “Faces” refers to people (not just their faces).
PUN
 A pun is a play on words in which a humorous effect
is produced by using a word that suggests two or
more meanings or by exploiting similar sounding
words having different meanings.
 Humorous effects created by puns depend upon
the ambiguities words entail. The ambiguities arise
mostly in homophones and homonyms. For
instance, in a sentence “A happy life depends on a
liver”, liver can refer to the organ liver or simply the
person who lives. Similarly, in a famous saying
“Atheism is a non-prophet institution” the word
“prophet” is used instead of “profit” to produce a
humorous effect.
 It's OK to watch an elephant bathe as they
usually have their trunks on.
 Have you ever heard of an honest cheetah?
B. SOUND OF POEM

 TONE COLOR- is achieved through repetition.

 A. Repetition of single sounds
 Alliteration- is the repetition of similar and accented
sounds at the beginning of words.
 Assonance-is the repetition of similar accented vowel
sounds.
 Consonance- is the repetition of similar consonants
sound typically within or at the end of words.
 Rhyme- is the repetition of the same stressed vowel
sounds and any succeeding sounds in two or more
words.
REPETITION
TYPES OF RHYME
 INTERNAL RHYME- rhyme within the line.
 TERMINAL RHYME- rhyme found at the end
of the line.
 RHYME SCHEME- is the pattern of rhyme
form that ends a stanza or a poem . The
rhyme scheme is designated by the
assignment of a different letter of the
alphabet to each new rhyme.
REPETITION OF SENTENCES OR PHRASES

 I dream that one day our voices will be heard.

 I dream that one day our hope becomes
worth.
Repetition of Words

 My dreams are dreams of thee,fair maid

Example of Polyptoton (a
type of repetition -
Repetition of words of the
same root with different
endings.)
 There is no end of it, the voiceless wailing,
No end to the withering of withered flowers,
To the movement of pain that is painless and motionless,
To the drift of the sea and the drifting wreckage,
The bone’s prayer to Death its God. Only the hardly, barely
prayable
Prayer of the one Annunciation…..
RHYTHM

 Is the pattern of beats created by the

arrangement of stressed and unstressed
syllables,which gives musical quality and adds
emphasis to certain words and thus helps
convey the meaning of the poem. The efect is
derived from the sounds employed,the
varying pitches, stresses, volumes,and
durations.
 Rhythm in Poetry
 We will take a look at two poems, and analyze them for meter in
order to discover their rhythm. The first poem is by Emily Dickinson,
entitled
'Will There Really Be a Morning?'
 'Will there really be a morning?
Is there such a thing as day?
Could I see it from the mountains
If I were as tall as they?
Has it feet like water-lilies?
Has it feathers like a bird?
Is it brought from famous countries
Of which I have never heard?
Oh, some scholar! Oh, some sailor!
Oh, some wise man from the skies!
Please to tell a little pilgrim
Where the place called morning lies!'
METER

 a regular recurrance of stressed and unstressed syllables

that give a line of poetry a more less predictable rhythm.Its
unit of measure is termed as “foot” which usually contains
an accented syllable and one or two unaccented syllables.
 FOOT- is the basic unit of meter consisting of a group of
two or three syllables.
 SCANSION- the process of determining the prevailing foot
in a line of poetry,identifying the types and sequence of
different feet. It is also the process of measuring verse;that
is,marking accented and unaccented syllables,dividing the
lines into feet, identifying the metrical pattern and noting
significant variation from the pattern.
 Types of rhythm
 English poetry makes use of five important
rhythms. These rhythms are of different
patterns of stressed (/) and unstressed (x)
syllables. Each unit of these types is called
foot. Here are the five types of rhythm:
 1. Iamb (x /)
 This is the most commonly used. It consists of
two syllables. The first syllable is not stressed
while the second syllable is stressed. Such as
“compare” in
 “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”
 2. Trochee (/ x)
 A trochee is type of poetic foot which is
usually used in English poetry. It has two
syllables. The first syllable is strongly stressed
while the second syllable is unstressed, as
given below.
 “Tell me not, in mournful numbers”
(Psalm of Life by Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow)
 4. Dactyl(/ x x)
 Dactyl is made up of three syllables. The first
syllable is stressed and the remaining two
syllables are not stressed such as the word
“marvelous”. For example:
 “This is the forest primeval. The murmuring
pines and the hemlocks,”
(Evangeline by Longfellow)
 The words “primeval” and “murmuring” show
dactyls in this line.
Table of line lengths
C.STRUCTURE OF A POEM

 The manner in which words are arranged and parts are

organized to form a whole poem.
 1. WORD and its ORDER – is the grouping and choosing of
words in verses where more often,poets arrange them in the
unnatural order to achieve an effect.
 SYNTAX- is and effect achieved where words are fractured to
have a desired effects.
 ELLIPSIS- the omission of words or several words that clearly
identify the udnerstanding of an expression.
 PUNCTUATION- the use of meaningful symbol/s that help/s
provide meaning class.
 Structure also refers to the way the poem is organized.This corr
esponds to the different types
.
 Agreement: She is a person. versus She am a
person.
 Case: He took me to the restaurant. versus He
took I to the restaurant.
 Reflexive pronouns: I bought myself a new
shirt. versus I bought my a new shirt.
 Word order: We ate fish for dinner. versus For
dinner ate we fish.
  ARIEL: Full fathom five thy father lies.
Of his bones are coral made.
Those are pearls that were his eyes.
Nothing of him that doth fade,
But doth suffer a sea-change
Into something rich and strange.
Sea-nymphs hourly ring his knell
 (The Tempest by William Shakespeare)
 This example of syntax comes from Ariel’s song in Shakespeare’s
The Tempest. The first line “full fathom five thy father lies” is a
unique inverse of what a person might say in normal speech
—“Your father is buried at sea five fathoms down.” The way the
Shakespeare wrote it, however, creates both alliteration of the “f”
sound as well as assonance between “five” and “lies.” This
arrangement also puts the stress on almost every syllable, making
it sound very rhythmic and strong. The rest of the excerpt contains
interesting syntactical choices, such as the inverse arrangement in
“Of his bones are coral made.” Shakespeare’s syntax is a key part of
what makes his works so poetic and so memorable.
 “His brow was furrowed, his mouth peevish.”(P.G.
Wodehouse, Leave It to Psmith, 1923)
 This sentence is highly terse, as it does not use
conjunctions like “and,” “or,” or ‘because.” However, it
still retains the clarity of its meaning. The reader must
connect the two phrases, but ellipsis allows this to be
done easily.
 Wise men talk because they have something to
say; fools, because they have to say something.
(Plato)
 This is a famous saying by Plato. He uses punctuation
marks instead of using markers and transition words to
make his point clear. The meaning of his sentence
remains clear regardless and it provides readers with a
better example of terse and pithy writing.
TYPES OF POETRY

 A. Narrative poem- a poem that tells a story.

 B. Lyric poem- is descriptive or expository in
nature where the poet is concerned maily
w/presenting a scene in words,conveying
sensory richness of his subject ,or the
revelation of ideas or emotions.
 C. Dramatic Poem- is a poem where a story is
told through the verse dialogue of the
characters and a narrator..
Structure also talks
about...
 POEM APPRECIATION- is achieved not only when one has
comprehend the plain sense or information communicated
by the poem;it is also achieved if t he attitude and feeling
conveyed are captured,together with the larger meaning of
the work, which is only possible when the tone and symbolic
meanings are discered.
 a. Tone- the writer’s attitude toward his subject,mood and
moral view. It is the feeling that the poem has created in the
reader.
 b. Symbol- an image that becomes so suggestive that it
takes on much more meaning than it’s descriptive value.It
urges the reader to look beyond literal significance of the
poem’s statement of action.
 Ode: It is usually a lyric poem of moderate length, with a
serious subject, an elevated style, and an elaborate stanza
pattern.
 Elegy: It is a lyric poem that mourns the dead. [It's not to be
confused with a eulogy.]It has no set metric or stanzaic
pattern, but it usually begins by reminiscing about the dead
person, then laments the reason for the death, and then
resolves the grief by concluding that death leads to
immortality. It often uses "apostrophe" (calling out to the
dead person) as a literary technique. It can have a fairly
formal style, and sound similar to an ode.
 Sonnet: It is a lyric poem consisting of 14 lines and, in the
English version, is usually written in iambic pentameter.
There are two basic kinds of sonnets: the Italian (or
Petrarchan) sonnet and the Shakespearean (or
Elizabethan/English) sonnet.
WHEN IN DISGRACE
By: WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes
I all alone beweep my outcast state,
And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,
And look upon myself, and curse my fate,
Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
Featured like him, like him with friends possessed,
Desiring this man's art, and that man's scope,
With what I most enjoy contented least;
Yet in these thoughts my self almost despising,
Haply I think on thee, and then my state,
Like to the lark at break of day arising
From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven's gate;
For thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings
That then I scorn to change my state with kings.
 Ballad: It is a narrative poem that has a musical rhythm
and can be sung. A ballad is usually organized into
quatrains or cinquains, has a simple rhythm structure,
and tells the tales of ordinary people.

 Epic: It is a long narrative poem in elevated style

recounting the deeds of a legendary or historical hero.
Qualities of an Epic Poem:
• narrative poem of great scope; dealing with the
founding of a nation or some other heroic theme requires
a dignified theme requires an organic unity requires
orderly progress of the action always has a heroic figure or
figures involves supernatural forces
• written in deliberately ceremonial style
 Haiku: It has an unrhymed verse form having
three lines (a tercet) and usually 5,7,5 syllables,
respectively. It's usually considered a lyric poem.

 Limerick: It has a very structured poem, usually

humorous & composed of five lines (a cinquains),
in an aabba rhyming pattern; beat must be
anapestic (weak, weak, strong) with 3 feet in
lines 1, 2, & 5 and 2 feet in lines 3 & 4. It's usually
a narrative poem based upon a short and often
ribald anecdote.
 Examples of Limericks
 Of course, Edward Lear was not the
only writer of limericks. This one was
written by Anita V:

“An infatuated man from Dover,

was left by his imaginary lover.
He pulled his hair,
in sheer despair,
forgetting a wig was his cover”
 Another example was written about
a Ballerina by Selina Wallis,

“There once was a girl Selina,

who wanted to be a ballerina.
She went on her toes,
and broke her nose.
Then she became cleaner.”