Our focus in poetry so far has been centered on themes, images, and figurative language. This week, we turn our attention to the "rhythm" of a poems - the rhyme, meter, and structure of formalist (closed-form) poetry.
Showing posts with label rhythm. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rhythm. Show all posts
Monday, April 25, 2011
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Writing Sonnets with Meter, Rhythm, and Proper Form
Sonnets, as short as they are, sometimes strike fear into the hearts of poets. For those unaccustomed to the challenges of writing in meter, they take a bit more work - you find yourself counting syllables and checking stress with nearly every word. Added to this is the requirement to fit the end rhyme into one of the standard sonnet forms. Yet because of these challenges, sonnets are also an incredibly useful teaching tool - they help develop an awareness of the interplay between meter and the perceived rhythm of your words. This exercise will help you develop confidence in building lines which use meter and rhyme together. (see also my post "Sonnets: Poems of Love and Ideas")
Sonnets: Poems of Love and Ideas
Sonnets are one of the most popular and yet most challenging of poetic forms. As a closed form, sonnets follow very stringent guidelines regarding meter, rhyme, and stanza structure. Yet the real strength of the sonnet forms lies in these guidelines - these short poems are packed with rhythm, and the author can use very slight changes in the form to indicate subtle shades of meaning. (see also some Exercises in Sonnet Writing).
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