Literature Book

Reading Poetry

Analyzing and interpreting poetic texts, similar to reading fiction.

Details of Action and Language

Observing specific elements in poetry that contribute to its meaning.

Connections and Inferences

Making links between ideas and drawing conclusions from the text.

Connotations of Words

Understanding the implied meanings and emotional associations of words in poetry.

Sound and Rhythm

Paying attention to the auditory qualities that enhance the poem's impact.

Structure and Punctuation

Noticing how the arrangement of lines and punctuation affects the reading experience.

Experience

The subjective responses and personal reactions we have while reading a poem.

Interpretation

The intellectual process of understanding the poem's meaning and suggestions.

Evaluation

Judging the quality and significance of a poem based on personal and cultural values.

Context

The background information surrounding a poem's creation, including the poet's life and audience.

Literary Tact

Informed and balanced judgment developed through experience and reflection.

Narrative Poetry

Poetry that tells a story and includes elements like characters and plot.

Epic Poetry

Long narrative poems that recount the adventures of a significant hero.

Lyric Poetry

Subjective poems expressing emotions and thoughts of a single speaker.

Villanelle

A poetic form with five tercets followed by a quatrain, known for its repetition.

Sestina

A structured poem with six stanzas of six lines each, ending with a three-line conclusion.

Sonnet

A 14-line poem expressing an emotion or idea, with variations like Italian and English forms.

Aubade

A love lyric lamenting the dawn that separates lovers.

Ode

A lengthy, stately poem with varied stanzas and forms.

Elegy

A poem expressing sorrow for the dead.

Epigram

A brief, witty poem often with a satirical edge.

Quatrains

Four-line sections in poetry.

Couplets

Pairs of rhymed lines in a poem.

Syntax

The arrangement of words in a sentence or phrase.

Diction

The selection of words used in poetry.

Imagery

Descriptive details appealing to the senses in a poem.

Figurative Language

Nonliteral expressions, such as metaphors and symbols.

Tone

The implied attitude of the poet towards the subject matter.

Dramatic Monologue

A poem where a speaker addresses a silent listener.

Elision

The omission of unstressed syllables to maintain meter.

Visual Imagery

Imagery that appeals to sight.

Aural Imagery

Imagery that appeals to sound.

Tactile Imagery

Imagery that appeals to touch.

Olfactory Imagery

Imagery that appeals to smell.

Gustatory Imagery

Imagery that appeals to taste.

Symbol

An object or action representing something beyond itself.

Allegory

A narrative with hidden or symbolic meanings.

End Rhyme

Rhyming that occurs at the end of lines.

Internal Rhyme

Rhyming that occurs within a line.

Alliteration

The repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words.

Assonance

The repetition of vowel sounds within words.

Caesuras

Pauses within lines of poetry.

Meter

The rhythmic structure of a poetic line.

Foot

A unit of measure in poetry, consisting of stressed and unstressed syllables.

Trochee

A metrical foot with a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed one.

Anapest

A metrical foot with two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed one.

Dactyl

A metrical foot with a stressed syllable followed by two unstressed ones.

Spondee

A metrical foot with two stressed syllables.

Metonymy

Substituting an attribute of a thing for the thing itself.

Synecdoche

A figure of speech where a part represents the whole or vice versa.

Pyrrhic

A metrical foot consisting of two unstressed syllables.

Enjambed

Lines that run on without a pause at the end.

Annotation

Informal notes made while reading poetry.

Freewriting

Unstructured writing to explore thoughts about a poem.

Analysis

A formal method of writing about poetry.

Parody

A humorous imitation of another work.

Silent Poetry

The concept of painting as a form of non-verbal expression, akin to poetry.