Poetry What is it good for Metaphorically Speaking

Poetry What is it good for?

Metaphorically Speaking o Poetry is the rhythmical creation of beauty in words n Edgar Allan Poe o Poetry is an echo, asking a shadow to dance n Carl Sandburg o Poetry is thoughts that breathe and words that burn n Thomas Gray

Poetry Terms from Fiction o Personification – human qualities to inanimate objects n Death knocked on the door o Symbolism – object represents a concept or idea n Heart = Love; Air Jordans = Athleticism or Wealth o Imagery – an appeal to the 5 senses n Sunshine gleamed on the gently lapping waters of the lake o Simile – a comparison using like or as n The clouds are like cotton balls o Metaphor – a direct comparison where something is another thing with similar qualities n The clouds are cotton balls v Extended Metaphor – a metaphor lasting for several lines or even an entire work § A poem that claims a girl is a bird v New term

Poetry Terms from Fiction o Mood - emotional atmosphere/situation created by the imagery n The auditorium buzzed with student comments o Anticipation, excitement, nervous o Tone - emotion of voice of the narrator or a character n Hate, dislike, love, admiration, affection? o “I just love her. ” o Irony – a contradiction to what one expects n Verbal - sarcasm n Situational – hunter become hunted, murder being murdered n Dramatic – knowing a character will die before they do

More Terms from Fiction v Onomatopoeia – words used to represent sounds v Bang, meow, kapow, achoo, drip drop v Hyperbole – overstatement v My mom grounded me; I’m going to die! v Diction – the author’s specific choice of words The bag was stained red. -> The backpack was stained crimson. q Denotation – the dictionary definition of a word q House and Home Pet and Animal q Connotation – the emotional meaning suggested by a word q House vs. Home Pet vs. Animal v New term

More Terms from Fiction q Theme – a statement containing the underlying meaning of the work (A truth about the human experience, not a topic or lesson!) q Everyone suffers consequences from selfishness q Love is a balance of joy and sorrow v Paradox – a contradictory statement that is also a truth v Listen to the silence v It was the beginning of the end v I’m nobody v New term

Terms Specific to Poetry v Stanza – a group of lines v Speaker – the narrator of a poem (not always the same as the author!) v Repetition – intentionally repeating a word or phrase for effect v Rhyme Scheme – the ordered pattern of rhymes at the end of lines (AABB, ABAB CDCD, ABCC, etc. ) v New term – copy into notebook

Types of Rhyme v End rhyme – 2 or more lines end in words that sound the same Rose are red, violets are blue; Sugar is sweet and so are you. v Internal rhyme – 2 or more words that rhyme (must occur within a single line or two consecutive lines) Double was his trouble, as a bubble rose in the air. v New term – copy into notebook

Repetition of Vowel Sounds in Words Within a Phrase v Assonance – repetition of a vowel sound n Do you like blue? n His ribs groaned sickly n All the folks added books

Repetition of Consonant Sounds in Words Within a Phrase v Consonance – repetition of a consonant sound within words n Rap rejects my tape deck, ejects projectile v Alliteration – a form of consonance in which the initial consonant sound is repeated n Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers Note: Alliteration is the initial sound not just the first letter n Sally sells seashells by the sea shore

Words on a Page o To have great poems, there must be great audiences too n Walt Whitman

Your Key to Understanding Poetry Px 3 Read Every Poem 3 Times o P 1 – Identify items, people, emotions, connections to title, summarize each stanza o P 2 – Identify literary devices o P 3 – Discover the meaning of literary devices to uncover theme

Example “Forever” Forever we remain oblivious to the future, lost to the past and enduring our torture. Forever we take chances to settle our scores, losing some battles and winning some wars. o P 1? o P 2? o P 3?

Example Oblivious – having no knowledge of a situation or fact; unaware Forever we remain oblivious to the future, lost to the past and enduring our torture. Forever we take chances to settle our scores, losing some battles and winning some wars. o P 1 – we (all humans), future, past, torture, settling scores/getting even battle/war, title is repeated o P 2 – end rhyme, repetition metaphor life’s struggles are battles/wars tone = frustrated and pained (defeated? ) o P 3 – We struggle to see our futures because of past struggles; Life’s struggles are our personal wars