Poetry Notes and Terms

Stanza

• the pattern of rhyming words at the end of a line of poetry
• a reference to a well-known character or event from literature, history, etc.
• an arrangement of two or more lines of poetry forming the division of a poem.
• the person/character who is telling the story.

Rhyme

• where an author has chosen to end one line in a poem and begin another.
• the imitation of sounds.
• the emotional and cultural feelings that are associated with a word
• the repetition of the same or similar sounds occurs in two or more words, usually at the end of lines in poems or songs.

Rhyme Scheme

• a speech that one character delivers aloud to express his or her inner thoughts. Most commonly used in drama, but can be seen in poetry as well.
• the pattern of rhyming words at the end of a line of poetry
• a reference to a well-known character or event from literature, history, etc.
• the imitation of sounds.

Line Break

• the emotional feeling or atmosphere that a work of literature produces in a reader.
• the dictionary definition of a word. This is the word's literal meaning.
• an arrangement of two or more lines of poetry forming the division of a poem.
• where an author has chosen to end one line in a poem and begin another.

Rhythm

• an arrangement of two or more lines of poetry forming the division of a poem.
• the person/character who is telling the story.
• the beat and pace of a poem.
• the choice of words that an author makes and uses in a work of literature.

Meter

• the central message or lesson to be learned.
• the repetition of the same or similar sounds occurs in two or more words, usually at the end of lines in poems or songs.
• the imitation of sounds.
• the rhythm of syllables in a line of verse or in a stanza of a poem.

Alliteration

• the repetition of beginning sounds of words.
• vivid descriptions that use the five senses
• the pattern of rhyming words at the end of a line of poetry
• Extreme exaggeration for effect.

Consonance

• • a type of figurative language where the author uses descriptions that appeal to the five senses.

• • the repetition of consonant sounds in the middle and ends of words, as with the t sound in “little bats in the attic.”

• • the repetition of initial (beginning) consonant sounds, as with the s sound in “Cindy sweeps the sand”

• • the imitation of  sounds, such as hiss, pop, screech, boom, etc.

Assonance

• • a speech that one character delivers aloud to express his or her inner thoughts. Most commonly used in drama, but can be seen in poetry as well.

• the repetition of initial (beginning) consonant sounds, as with the s sound in “Cindy sweeps the sand”

• • giving human-like traits or characteristics to nonhuman things, such as “daisies danced in the wind”

• the repetition of vowel sounds in words, as with the long e sound in “dreams of bees and sheep”

Imagery

• vivid descriptions that use the five senses
• the imitation of sounds.
• the pattern of rhyming words at the end of a line of poetry
• the perspective from which a story is narrated.