SC COACH - Poetry

Structure of Poetry

• Every poem has lines, which are rows of words. Unlike sentences, lines in a poem do not always follow rules of capitalization and punctuation.

• Lines in a poem are often broken up into stanzas, or groups of lines set apart by spaces. Stanzas are somewhat like paragraphs in prose. Each stanza fits into the overall structure of a poem. Poets may use more than one stanza to develop their ideas or theme. They may also break lines and stanzas in unusual places to get the reader's attention or to create a certain effect.

Sounds of Poetry

• Rhyme describes words with the same ending sound. Many poems have lines that end with words that rhyme. Usually a poem has a rhyme scheme. The ending of certain lines rhyme with each other. Rhyme schemes are shown by a sequence of letters, such a abab. An abab rhyme scheme stands for a four-line stanza in which lines 1 and 3 rhyme (a) and lines 2 and 4 rhyme (b).

• Rhythm creates the "beat" of the poem. It is the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry.

• Meter is a recurring pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables.

Sounds of Poetry

• Repetition is the repeating of words or lines in poetry. Repetition may help to unify a poem or to reinforce the meaning or theme.

• Alliteration is the repetition of an initial consonant sound.

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simile	​a comparison that uses like or as	​The lake was as smooth as glass.	​The lake is compared to glass.
metaphor	​a comparison that does not use like or as	​Mia remembers everything; her mind is a steel trap.	Mia's mind is compared to a steel trap.​
personification	the assigning of human qualities to a nonliving thing​	The sun smiled on our picnic.​	The sun was warm as if it were smiling.
symbolism	the use of an image or thing to stand for something else​	Lindsay wore black to the funeral.​	The color black often stands for death.​
allusion	a reference to another work such as the Bible or mythology​	It rained so much that I thought we'd have to build an ark.​	In the Bible, Noah builds an ark to save animals from a flood.​

Forms of Poetry

​Form	​Definition
​lyric poem	​a short poem that is like a song
ode​	a poem that has two or more stanzas with similar structures​
haiku​	a very short poem with seventeen syllables in three lines; usually about nature​
sonnet​	a poem that has fourteen lines with ten to twelve syllables per lines; first eight lines develops one idea, last six lines question that idea​
ballad​	a short poem with stanzas of two to four lines and a refrain that repeats; tells a story​
free verse​	a poem that does not follow any rules of rhythm or rhyme​