Poetry
Overview
Poetry is concentrated thought
which focuses our attention
simultaneously on the
combination of rhythm and
image to express its meaning
Where Were You Yesterday?
Prose
Yesterday it rained, and I stood out in it
hoping by chance that you’d just happen
to come outside. But I knew that if you did
come out, we’d never be like we were
before. Maybe it’s a good thing you didn’t
come out. Besides who comes out in the
rain anymore just to talk?
Where Were You Yesterday?
Poetry
Yesterday it rained
and I stood out in it
hoping
by chance
that you’d just happen to come outside.
But I knew that if you did come out,
we’d never be like we were before.
Maybe it’s a good thing
you didn’t come out.
Besides
who comes out in the rain
anymore
just to talk?
Prose
Vs.
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No rhyme
No pattern/rhythm
No line division
Can use images
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Can target emotions
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Divisions are
paragraphs
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Poetry
Rhymed/Unrhymed
Follows a beat/has rhythm
Line division
Uses images to focus on a
particular idea
Targets emotions through
use of images
Divisions are stanzas
Poetry Vocabulary
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Prose-Opposite of poetry, paragraph form
Formula poetry -Poems that must follow certain
guidelines (and, most of the time, a certain rhyme
scheme) to be classified as a particular kind of poem
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Cinquain-Five line poem in which each line
requires a certain number of syllables (1st line-2,
2nd line-4, 3rd line-6, 4th line-8, 5th line-2)
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Limerick-Funny poem with rhyme scheme of aabba
Haiku-Japanese nature poem of three unrhymed
lines (syllables in line 1-5, line 2-7, line 3-5)
Poetry Vocabulary
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Rhyme Scheme-Pattern made by how poem rhymes at
the end of a line-letters assigned to lines according to
end rhyme
Alliteration-Repetition of the same sounds at the
beginning of words in a poem (ex. My mom made my
Monday more magnificent.)
Onomatopoeia-Words that imitate sounds (ex. pow,
bang, pop)
Enjambment-Continuation of a complete thought / idea
from one line to the next
Couplet-Pair of lines that are the same length and
usually rhyme
Quatrain-Stanza / poem of four lines
Poetry Vocabulary
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Consonance-Repetition of consonants in a line-not
at the beginning (ex. Sue was passing Art class.)
Assonance-Repetition of the same sounds in a line
(ex. Saul was filled with awe over Mardi Gras.)
End Rhyme-How poem rhymes at the ends of lines
Stanza-Lines of poetry that form a division in the
poem
Stress-Syllables stand out because they have a
different pitch or are stronger than other syllables
Accent-Emphasis given to a syllable or word shown
by a small mark above stressed syllable
Poetry Vocabulary
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Meter-Arrangement of a line of poetry by the
rhythm of stressed and unstressed syllables
Idiom-Words are not meant to be taken word
for word (ex. You are pulling my leg.)
Literal -Words are meant to be taken word for
word
Tone-Emotion or feelings author felt or wants
audience to feel while reading poem (aka
mood)
Figurative Language -Expressions used to
create memorable poems (ex. idioms,
alliteration, onomatopoeia)
“I Can’t Write a Poem” poem
Forget it.
You must be kidding.
I’m still half asleep.
My eyes keep closing.
My brain isn’t working.
I don’t have a pencil.
I don’t have any paper.
My desk is wobbly.
I don’t know what to write about.
And besides, I don’t even know how to write a poem.
I’ve got a headache. I need to see the nurse.
Time’s up? Uh oh!
All I have is this dumb list of excuses.
You like it? Really? No kidding.
Thanks a lot.
Would you like to see another one.
-Bruce Lansky
Kidnapped
This morning I got kidnapped
By three masked men.
They stopped me on the sidewalk,
And offered me some candy,
And when I wouldn’t take it
They grabbed me by the collar,
And pinned my arms behind me,
And shoved me in the backseat
Of this big black limousine and
Tied my hands behind my back
With sharp and rusty wire.
Then they put a blindfold on my
So I couldn’t see where they took me,
And plugged up my ears with cotton
So I couldn’t hear their voices.
And drove for 20 miles or
At least for 20 minutes, and then
Dragged me from the car down to
Some cold and moldy basement,
Where they stuck me in a corner
And went off to get the ransom
Leaving one of them to guard me
With a shotgun pointed at me,
Tied up sitting on a stool…
That’s why I’m late for school!
-Shel Silverstein
Irritating Sayings
Isn’t it about time you thought about bed?
It must be somewhere
You speak to him Harold, he won’t listen to me.
Who do you think I am?
You’d better ask your father
It’s late enough as it is
Don’t eat with your mouth open.
In this day and age
Did anybody ask your opinion
I remember when I was a boy
And after all we do for you
You’re not talking to your school friends now,
you know
Why don’t you do it the proper way
I’m only trying to tell you
What did I just say?
Now, wrap up warm
B-E-D spells bed
Sit up straight and don’t gobble your food
For the five hundredth time
Don’t let me ever see you do that again
Have you made your bed?
Can’t you look further than your nose?
No more lip
Have you done your homework?
Because I say so
Don’t come with those fancy ways here
Any more and you’ll be in bed
My, haven’t you grown
Some day I won’t be here, then you’ll see
A chair’s for sitting on
You shouldn’t need telling at your age
Want, want, want, that’s all you ever say
Rhyme Scheme
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Pattern of rhyme in a stanza or poem. You
can identify the rhyme scheme in stanzas by
looking at the last word in the line and
assigning letters to the rhyming words
Example:
Like the sun behind the clouds
Like the darkness of the night
Like the grass beneath the trees
You stepped into the light…
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A
B
C
B
Rhyme Scheme Practice
1.
I knew I’d have to grow up sometime,
That my childhood memories would end,
But a spark within me died,
When I lost my imaginary friend.
______
______
______
______
2.
As the sun set and the moon came,
I looked out the window in dread and shame.
The sound of birds rose from the sky,
I waved my hand and bid goodbye.
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______
______
______
Rhyme Scheme Practice
3.
When I look into his eyes,
I see the deep blue sea.
I hope my love never dies,
That he’ll always be there for me.
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______
______
______
4.
And here ends the saga
Of writers who have grown.
We’re successful authors,
Now we will be unknown.
______
______
______
______
Write Small / Focused
Big/unfocused image
 Birthday parties are
fun.
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School dances are
strange.
The holocaust was
inhuman.
Small/focused image
 Licking the pink frosting
off the ends of the
candles
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Strobe lights flickering
over laughing faces as
the beat pounds on
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A mountain of children’s
shoes
Now, you turn these big images
into small images.
 His
car was a mess.
 The food did not look good.
 The dog was mean.
 Her shoes did not fit.
Image Practice
Directions: Read each sentence. Write your
response for each question by giving as many
descriptions as possible.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
How would you describe how you
feel when you are angry?
Describe how you feel after winning
a game.
Describe the odor of rotting garbage.
Describe the scent left after a rainfall.
Describe the feeling of walking on
hot sand on the beach.
Mood/Voice
Request to a Minstrel
Sing unto me a song of seasons
Of death, rebirth, and happiness.
Sing unto me a song of reasons
Staid thoughts and deepest
contemplations.
Sing unto me a song of sorrows
Quiet longing and dark despair.
Then, sing unto me a song of tomorrows
Of joy and laughter
Tarry longest there.
-Andrea Cox
Mood/Voice
Like, Am I Noticed
I kind of got my hands on
One of those slick
Leather jackets
And a mean sort of
Cool brown hat
I was just
Kind of
Walking down the street
Sort of
Minding my business
I felt like
You know, this…
Urge to be noticed,
Kind of
I sort of casually walked
Down the street
You know
To the corner
This group of
Like
Kind of like cool kids were
Sort of there
I like slipped by in
Kind of like a
Cool manner
I sort of wondered
Like
If they noticed me
I kind of turned around
Only to find them like
Laughing at me
I was
Sort of like
Really embarrassed
kind of
I kind of, like
You know
Went home
Mike Gelanger
Cinquain Poem
A five-line poem with a set number of
syllables for each line. Each line adds an
additional image to the subject of the
poem
 Formula poem
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Cinquain Formula
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Line 1
Line 2
Line 3
Line 4
Line 5
2 syllables
Subject
4 syllables
Description of subject
6 syllables
Describes an action
8 syllables
Expresses a feeling
2 syllables
Another word for subject
Example
Summer
Fruits, ice cream, fun
Swimming, playing, laughing
No homework, only sun, I smile
Three months
Simile Poem
Prejudice
Prejudice is like the feeling you get
When you’re left out of a game
It is like the music of
A seashell: hollow and distant
It’s when you never reach the front door;
Always being turned away at the first step.
Kimberly Harmon
Metaphor Line-by-Line Poem
The Highwayman
The wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees,
The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas,
The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor,
And the highwayman came riding-riding-ridingThe highwayman came riding, up to the old inn door.
Alfred Noyes (excerpt)
Simile Line-by-Line Example
Dream Deferred
What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a soreAnd then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar overLike a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
Langston Hughes
Metaphor Poems
Line-by-Line Metaphor
Hate is a sore, festering and bubbling on the heart
Hate is a single-leafed tree, its owner weak and alone
Hate is a wilted rose, time has worn it from beauty to wretchedness
Hate is a zit, ready to burst
Hate is the Hulk, small when calm, huge and fierce when agitated
Hate is a snake, it swallows its enemies whole
Hate is a birthday party, it can take you by surprise
Hate is a tree, it stands the test of time
Hate is a rubber band, it will snap when pulled too hard
Hate is a deadly disease, something you don’t want to catch
Metaphor Poems
Extended Metaphor
Hate is a zit
Earned by debris, dirt, oil, grime
Kicked into a face
By a filthy world
It begins beneath the surface
Then pokes out its disgusting head
Makes the face turn red
And grows and grows
Until finally
It explodes
Alliteration
Cafeteria Chaos
The line lingers,
My stomach growls.
Tina topples her tray,
And the whole place howls!
Spinach spills!
Pass the paper towels!
Someone pings a pea,
And the fifth grade teacher frowns!
What’s likely at lunch?
Everyone chomps and chows down!
Limerick
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Formula Poem
Humorous and often bawdy (inappropriate )
5 lines total
Rhyme Scheme AABBA
Beats-Lines 1, 2, 5 have 3 beats
Lines 3-4 have 2 beats
First line usually has the name of a place (often a
fictional name made up to rhyme with the rest of
the poem)
Limerick
Examples:
There was an Old Person whose habits,
Induced him to feed upon rabbits;
When he'd eaten eighteen,
He turned perfectly green,
Upon which he relinquished those habits.
There was an Old Man with a beard,
Who said, 'It is just as I feared!
Two Owls and a Hen,
Four Larks and a Wren,
Have all built their nests in my beard!'
Onomatopoeia Poem
What Some People Do
Jibber, jabber, gabble, babble
Cackle, clack, and prate,
Twiddle, twaddle, mutter, stutter
Utter, splutter, blate…
Chatter, patter, tattle, prattle,
Chew the rag and crack,
Spiel and spout and spit it out,
Tell the world and quack…
Sniffle, snuffle, drawl and bawl,
Snicker, snort, and snap,
Bark and buzz and yap and yelp,
Chin and chip and chat…
Shout and shoot and gargle, gasp,
Gab and gag and groan,
Hem and haw and work the jaw,
Grumble, mumble, moan…
Beef and bellyache and bat,
Say a mouthful, squawk,
That is what some people do
When they merely talk.