poetry terms
Terms
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- theme
- what the author is trying to teach or tell the reader.
- metaphor
- a comparison between two seemingly unlike things (without using the words like, as, than, or resembles).
- cacophany
- when poetry is literally displeasing to the ear and purposefully has a harsh sound.
- consonance
- the repetition of final consonant sounds ("black flak," jarrel)
- lyric poetry
- songlike poetry that expresses private, personal thoughts and emotions. this form is so common modern readers often associate with the term poetry itself.
- style
- the distinctive, often creative way a writer writes.
- criticism
- this is devoted to the comparison, analysis, evaluation, and interpretation of works of literature. it is subjective and debatable. it can be positive or negative.
- rhythm
- the regular alternation of stressed and unstressed syllables. (virtually synonymous with the more specific and technical term, meter). all spoken and written language has this.
- form
- the type of poem. (such as a shakespearean sonnet)
- diction
- a writer's or speaker's choice of words. often an important element of a writer's style. ("big rooms" vs. "commodious chambers")
- speaker
- the voice that addresses the audience in a poem.
- anastrophe
- the inversion of "normal" word in order to achieve a "poetic" or distinctive affect. ("and a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made," yeats)
- poetry
- creative writing that uses compression, figure of speech, imagery, and other techniques to express strong thoughts and feelings.
- unity
- when a work has various components that work together.
- tone
- general attitude of the poem/poet.
- figurative language
- using words with known meanings to mean other things. different types include metaphors, similes, personification, and hyperboles.
- assonance
- the repetition of similar vowel sounds in a poem; often adds softness and gentle music to a poem ("who knows if the moon's a balloon," cummings)
- allusion
- a reference, in a given poem, to a character, place, event, or other thing that is well known from another work of literature, or history, religion, myth, or some other field of knowledge. (ginsberg alludes to walt whitman in "a supermarket in california")
- hyperbole
- exaggeration for effect (strong).
- personification
- when a nonhuman thing is given human characteristics.
- meter
- the repeated rhythmic pattern found in a given poem. there are many types- iamb (disgrace), trochee (borrow), anapest (contradict), dactyl (accurate), and spondee (seaweed).
- epic
- a long narrative poem that tells of a great hero who embodies the values of a culture.
- dissonance
- the use of harsh sounds or rhythms in order to achieve an effect. (i'd awake and hear the cold splintering, breaking," hayden)
- oxymoron
- the combination of seemingly contradictory or opposing ideas or images.
- euphony
- when poetry is literally pleasing to the ear. musical.
- symbol
- a person, place, or thing that stands for itself and something else. (in comparison to a metaphor, which has an easily seen comparison, this takes more time to notice).
- alliteration
- the repetition of consonant sounds. most examples of this occur at the beginnings of words. example- "sessions of sweet, silent, thought"
- apostrophe
- when a speaker in a poem directly addresses an absent or dead person, god/goddess, an abstract quality, or some nonhuman thing as if it were present and capable of responding. (ginsberg addresses whitman in "a supermarket in california" as "ah, dear father graybeard")
- onomatopoeia
- a word whose sound mimics or suggests its meaning. ("listen! you hear the granting roar/of pebbles which the waves draw back, and fling," arnold)
- rhyme
- the repetition of sounds in a poem- often at the end of lines and in specific schemes/patterns. pleases the ear, aids in memory, and often organizes poetry into specific forms.
- imagery
- when the words on the page appeal to our senses.
- free verse
- poetry relatively formless that doesn't follow the rules.
- paradox
- (similar to oxymoron) an apparent contradiction that, upon further thought, is actually true. (one "kills someone with kindness")
- simile
- a comparison between two seemingly unlike things by using connective words (usually like or as).
- iambic pentameter
- common meter of poetry in english.