Cenlit Elements of Poetry

Poetry defined based on its ETYMOLOGY

poetry means to create or make

Poetry defined based on its PURPOSE

the defining characteristic of poetry is its spirituality; it is "orphic" and transformational

Poetry defined based on its ELEMENTS

a poem conveys heightened forms of perception, experience, meaning or consciousness

DICTION

poet's choice of words

Denotation

dictionary meaning

Connotation

underlying meaning

Wordplay

playful use of words to achieve a comical or dramatic effect

SYNTAX

also known as sentence structure

CHARACTERIZATION, POV, PLOT & SETTING

poems do not display stories in a conventional manner, they are usually brief and apparently devoid of 'action'

IMAGERY

- imagery as descriptive passages
- imagery as figurative language

Simile

use like or as to show similarities

Metaphor

claims similarities among things that are essentially not alike

Personification

something inanimate is given a human trait

Extended Metaphor

when a poet develops just one analogy throughout the entire poem

SYMBOLISM

highly suggestive yet succinct

RHYTHM

creates a pattern of yearning and expectation

WORD SOUNDS

may be used to emphasize meaning, action and emotion

Onomatopeia

use of words that sound like what they mean

Alliteration

words that have the same consonant sounds at the start of every word

Assonance

repetition of vowel sounds within words that are close in proximity

Consonance

repetition of consonant sounds at the end or middle of words

Rhyme

repetition of similar sounds at the end of words

CAESURA

strong pause somewhere in the line (looks like this: || )

STRUCTURE

way a whole poem is organized and put together

LINES

poetry is organized in lines, prose in paragraphs

STANZA

poems with stanza = strophic
poems without = stiphic

Monostitch

1 line stanza

Couplet

2 line stanza

Tercet

3 line stanza

Quatrain

4 line stanza

Quintet

5 line stanza

Sestet

6 line stanza

Septet

7 line stanza

Octave

8 line stanza

RHYME SCHEMES

any pattern of end rhymes

FREE VERSE

poem obeys no set metrical patterns

ENJAMBMENT

continuance of a phrase in one line to the next

END-STOPPED LINE

has a definite pause at the end