The Rhythm of

Poetry:

Syllable - Poetic feet - Meter

 Syllables
• English words have clear syllables.
• We can usually divide words into
syllables easily.
• We can also determine which syllables to
emphasize, or “stress” in each word.
 For example:
• Angel = AN-gel  (not an-GEL)
• Complete = com-PLETE  (not COM-plete)
 More Syllables
• poem = PO-em…….(1 stressed + 1 unstressed)

• poetry = PO-e-try…….(1 stressed + 2 unstressed)

• relief = re-LIEF……. (1 unstressed + 1 stressed)

• recommend = re-com-MEND……. (2 unstressed + 1 stressed)

• discomfort = dis-COM-fort… (1 unstressed + 1 stressed + 1 unstressed)

• entertainment = en-ter-TAIN-ment (2 unstressed + 1 stressed + 1 unstressed)

 Scansion
• (1) the act of scanning, or analyzing poetry
in terms of its rhythmic components
• (2) the graphic representation,
indicated by marked accents, feet, etc.,
of the rhythm of a line or lines of verse
– You may have seen scansion marks like the
following:
The curved lines are
“unstressed” syllables while the
straight slashes are “stressed”
 Poetic Meter
• Meters are the rhythms within poems.
• Meters are the arrangement of
stressed/unstressed syllables to
occur at apparently equal intervals.
• Metered verse has prescribed rules as
to the number and placement of
syllables used per line.
 Poetic Foot
• A poetic foot is a repeated sequence
of rhythm comprised of two or more
stressed and/or unstressed syllables.
• Poetic meter is comprised of poetic feet
Five main patterns to poetic feet:

1. Iambic
2. Trochaic
3. Anapestic
4. Dactylic
5. Spondaic
 Iambic pattern
• 1 unstressed syllable followed by 1
stressed syllable
• EXAMPLES:
– repose (re-POSE)
– belief (be-LIEF)
– complete (com-PLETE)
 Trochaic Pattern
• 1 stressed syllable followed by 1
unstressed syllable
• EXAMPLES:
– garland (GAR-land)
– speaking (SPEAK-ing)
– value (VAL-ue)
 Anapestic pattern
• 2 unstressed syllables followed by 1
stressed syllable
• EXAMPLES:
– on the road
– interrupt (in-ter-RUPT)
– unabridged, contradict, engineer,
masquerade, Galilee
 Dactylic pattern
• 1 stressed syllable followed by 2
unstressed syllables
• EXAMPLE:
– happiness (HAP-pi-ness)
– galloping (GAL-lop-ing)
– fortunate, Saturday, daffodil, murmuring,
rhapsody
 Spondaic Pattern
• All syllables have equal stress
• EXAMPLE:
– Heartbreak
– “Out, out…”
– "pen-knife," "ad hoc," "heartburn"
 The Iambic foot
• The iamb = (1 unstressed syllable + 1 stressed syllable) is the
most common poetic foot in English verse.
• iambic foot examples:
– behold
– destroy
– the sun (articles such as “the” would be considered unstressed syllables)
– and watch (conjunctions such as and would be considered unstressed
syllables)
 Lines containing iambic feet
• Behold / and watch / the sun / destroy / and grow (5 iambs)
• When I / do COUNT / the CLOCK / that TELLS / the
TIME [Shakespeare’s Sonnet 12] (5 iambs)

• Shall I / compare /thee to / a sum / mer's day?

[Shakespeare’s Sonnet 12] (5 iambs)

• Come live/ with me/ and be/ my love (4 iambs)

(poem by Christopher Marlowe)
 Trochaic poem: a stressed syllable
followed by an unstressed one
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's “The Song of Hiawatha”
By the / shores of / Gitche / Gumee,
By the / shining / Big-Sea /-Water,
Stood the / wigwam / of No / komis,
Daughter / of the / Moon, No / komis.
Dark behind it rose the forest,
Rose the black and gloomy pine-trees,
Rose the firs with cones upon them;
Bright before' it beat the water,
Beat the clear and sunny water,
Beat the shining Big-Sea-Water.
Anapestic poetry: 2 unstressed syllables + 1 stressed one
Limericks contain anapestic meter (in blue)

A Limerick by Edward Lear:

There was / an Old Man / with a beard,
Who said, "It is just / as I feared!
Two Owls / and a Hen,
Four Larks / and a Wren,
Have all / built their nests / in my beard!"
Dactylic poem: 1 stressed + 2 unstressed

Charge of the Light Brigade by Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Half a league, / half a league,
Half a league / onward,
All in the / valley of / Death
Rode the / six hundred.
"Forward, the / Light Brigade!
Charge for the / guns!" he said:
Into the / valley of / Death
Rode the / six hundred.
 Spondaic Poem: 2 equal syllables
• Because of this nature of the spondee,
a serious poem cannot be solely
spondaic.
• It would be almost impossible to construct a
poem entirely of stressed syllables.
• Therefore, the spondee usually
occurs within a poem having another
dominant rhythm scheme.
 Combinations of Poetic Feet
• One foot per line: monometer
• Two feet per line : dimeter
• Three feet per line : trimeter
• Four feet per line : tetrameter
• Five feet per line : pentameter
• Six feet per line : hexameter
 Type + Number = Meter
Types of Poetic Feet Number of feet per line
• Iambic (1 unstressed + 1 stressed) • Monometer
• Trochaic (1 stressed + 1 unstressed) • Dimeter
• Anapestic (2 unstressed + 1 stressed) • Trimeter
• Dactylic (1 stressed + 2 unstressed) • Tetrameter
• Spondaic (all syllables equal) • Pentameter
• Hexameter
 Meters & Feet
•Q: If a poem had 1 foot per line, and
the foot was iambic (1 unstressed + 1 stressed),
what type of poem would it be?

•A: Iambic monometer

 Meters & Feet
•Q: If a poem had 2 feet per line, and
the foot was iambic (1 unstressed + 1 stressed),
what type of poem would it be?

•A: Iambic dimeter

 Meters & Feet
•Q: If a poem had 3 feet per line, and
the foot was iambic (1 unstressed + 1 stressed),
what type of poem would it be?

•A: Iambic trimeter

 Meters & Feet
•Q: If a poem had 4 feet per line, and
the foot was iambic (1 unstressed + 1 stressed),
what type of poem would it be?

•A: Iambic tetrameter

 Meters & Feet
•Q: If a poem had 5 feet per line, and
the foot was iambic (1 unstressed + 1 stressed),
what type of poem would it be?

•A: Iambic pentameter

 Meters & Feet
•Q: If a poem had 3 feet per line, and
the foot was trochaic (1 stressed +1 unstressed),
what type of poem would it be?

•A: Trochaic tetrameter

 Go ahead…
experiment with
different metric styles
in your own poetry!
End of presentation.