Poetry and Prose

masculine rhyme

last stressed syllable of the rhyming words match exactly

ex: the play’s the **thing**/ wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the **king**.

internal rhyme

occur within the line and add to the music of the poem

ex: once upon a **dreary**, while I pondered, weak and **weary**.

feminine rhyme

involves two consecutive syllables of the rhyming words, with the first syllable stressed.

ex: the horses were __***pra***__**ncing**/ as the clowns were __***dan***__**cing**.

ballad

employs dialogue, repetition, minor characterization.

written in quatrains (4 verses)

basic rhyme scheme of *a b c b*

forced rhyme

depends on pronunciation

ex: falling (soft g) and Allan.

lyric

highly personal and emotional, often in reflective tone. can be an ode or elegy.

ode

formal lyric poem that addresses subject of elevated stature, praising something like nature or wind.

elegy

formal lyric poem in honor of one who has died, it describes lament and serious loss

dramatic monologue

relates an episode in a speaker’s life through a conversational format that reveals the character of the speaker.

ex: hamlet

sonnet

has 14 lines and is divided into Italian/Petrarchan and English/Shakespearean

Italian sonnet

divided into octave and sestet, rhyme scheme:

*a b b a a b b a/ c d e c d e*

Shakespearean sonnet

3 quatrains and 1 couplet, rhyme scheme:

*a b a b/ c d c d/ e f e f/ g g*

villanelle

has six stanzas: five tercets, and one quatrain (a total of 19 lines)