Poetry Notes Continued: June 14
B: Types of Poems:
1. Acrostic
2. Ballad (Ballad of Sam McGhee)
3. Blank Verse: No rhyme but has a definite rhythm, beat, and style
4. Clerihew: line free verse poem about an individual and the first word is the name of the individual.
5. Concrete/Shape: Concrete: the words outline the shape: Shape: Words make the shape.
6. Epigram: an interesting or memorable poem.
7. Epitaph: and inscription on a tombstone.
8: Free Verse: No rhyme, rhythm, or beat.
9. Haiku: three lines totaling seventeen syllables (5,7,5)
Tanka: Japanese 5 line poem 1,3 have five syllables and 2,4,5 have seven syllables.(5,7,5,7,7)
10. Limerick: Rhyme at the end of the line (A,A,B,B,A): 1,2,5 rhyme and 3,4 rhyme.
11. Sonnet: 14 lines: an octet followed by a sextet
Italian/Petrarchan
Shakespearean
Poem study: “The Bear Hug” by Michael Ondaatje
Look at the literal translation (what the poem actually says) and then the metaphorical translation (the
underlying meaning of the poem).
Bearhug
Griffin calls to come and kiss him goodnight
I yell ok. Finish something I'm doing,
then something else, walk slowly round
the corner to my son's room.
He is standing arms outstretched
waiting for a bearhug. Grinning.
Why do I give my emotion an animal's name,
give it that dark squeeze of death?
This is the hug which collects
all his small bones and his warm neck against me.
The thin tough body under the pyjamas
locks to me like a magnet of blood.
How long was he standing there
like that, before I came?
Michael Ondaatje
Literal Translation:
Little kid wants a bearhug from his dad.
I yell okay and finish a few things
I go into his room where he waits with arms outstretched
He gives the man a tight hug
He wonders how long his son was waiting for his hug.
Metaphorical Translation:
The young child waits on his bed for a bearhug but his father finishes doing a few things before
going to his child’s room.
Young children and their parents still have a close relationship with each other. Hugs are
eagerly awaited by the children. That contact is important for children.
The question of whether the things the father did were more important than going into his
child’s room to give him a hug. When the father reflects how long his child was waiting for him,
he is questioning his priorities in life (other things versus his child).