Poetic Meter
Think of poems as having an overall metrical pattern, but watch for where the pattern alters, where the poet introduces a “substitution” or “variation,” and ask your self why the change? Does it make a difference? How does the alteration affect the sound and the sound affect the meaning? Although we usually talk about meter in the context of poetry, remember that prose has meter and rhythm too.
| Foot | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Two Syllables | ||
| Iambic (iamb) | light heavy (like des troy) |
When I do count the clock that tells the time or Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? |
| Trochaic (trochee) | heavy light (like top sy) |
Once upon a midnight weary or Something there is that does not love a wall |
| Spondaic (spondee) | heavy heavy (like SPON DEE or humdrum or heartbreak or nightmare; no discernible inflection) |
(usually as “substitutes” at the end of a line) Vaster than empires and more slow; or Thou foster child of silence and slow time, |
| Pyrrhic | light light like uhh-uhh |
|
| Three Syllables | ||
| Anapestic (anapest) | light light strong (like in ter vene) |
For the moon never beams Without bringing me dreams Of the beautiful Annabel Lee |
| Dactylic (dactyl) | strong light light (hap pi ness or mer ri ly) |
|
One Comment
Pingback: