Poetic Techniques Flashcards
Revision
Alliteration
The repetition of the same sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words. E.g: “Billy the bumble bee”.
Sibilance
A specific type of alliteration that uses the repetition of soft consonant sounds in words, such as ‘s’, ‘sh’ or ‘z’, to create a wooshing, hushing or hissing sound in the writing. E.g: “The silken sad uncertain rustling…”.
Assonance
Repetition of vowel sounds within nearby words. E.g: “sonnet” and “porridge” (‘oh’ sound repeated) or “He’s a bruising loser” (‘oo’ sound repeated).
Consonance
The repetition of similar-sounding consonants in close proximity (recurrent sounds can be located within or at the end of the word). E.g: “Cool soul” (l) or “Clickety clack” (k sound).
Euphony
A harmonious succession of words having a pleasing sound. E.g: “Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness” (Keats’ Autumn - also an example of sibilance).
Cacophony
A harsh discordant mixture of sounds. E.g: “Rucked too thick for these men’s extrication” (this is also consonance on ‘ck/k’).
Onomatopoeia
A word which mimics the sound it describes. E.g: Crack, gurgle, pop, bang, splash, roar, screech, splatter or splash.
Plosive
A consonant sound that is produced by stopping the airflow using the lips, teeth, or palate, followed by a sudden release of air. are t, k, and p (voiceless) and d, g, and b (voiced).
Sibilant
A letter which creates a hissing effect, for example s, sh and z.
Aspirate
‘H’ sounds, through which we must breathe to create. Also, consonant sounds such as the p, t, and k at the beginning of words like “pat,” “top,” “keel” involve breath.
Fricative
Denoting a type of consonant made by the friction of breath in a narrow opening, producing a turbulent air flow. For example, ‘‘f” and “th” sounds.
Closed Form
Poetic form subject to a fixed structure and pattern.
Open Form
Poetic form free from regularity and consistency in elements such as rhyme, line length and metrical form. (In contrast to CLOSED form).
Free Verse
Lines with no prescribed pattern or structure.
Heroic couplet
A rhyming pair of lines in iambic pentameter.
Couplet
2 line stanza or section of a poem.
Tercet
3 line stanza or section of a poem.
Quatrain
4 line stanza or section of a poem.
Quintet
5 line stanza or section of a poem.
Sestet
6 line stanza or section of a poem.
Septet
7 line stanza or section of a poem.
Octave
8 line stanza or a section of a poem.
Blank Verse
Unrhymed imabic pentameter. Frequently used by Shakespeare in the speeches of his noble characters, those with a higher social status.
Sonnet
A 14-line poem with a variable rhyme scheme originating in Italy and brought to England by Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard, in the 16th century. Literally a “little song,” this poem traditionally reflects upon a single sentiment, with a clarification or “turn” of thought in its concluding lines. There are many different types.
Shakespearean sonnet
A sonnet with the rhyme scheme ABAB, CDCD, EFEF, GG (alternating rhyme, followed by an heroic couplet). They are written in iambic pentameter.
Italian or Petrarchan sonnet
A sonnet with the rhyme scheme ABBA, ABBA, CDE, CDE (or ending CDCDCD).
Spenserian sonnet
A sonnet in which the quatrains are linked with a chain or interlocked rhyme scheme: ABAB, BCBC, CDCD, EE.
Spenserian stanza
A stanza of the type used in Spenser’s poem The Faerie Queene, consisting of eight iambic pentameters and an alexandrine (a line of 12 syllables with major stresses on the 6th syllable and on the last syllable, and one secondary accent in each half line) with the rhyming scheme ababbcbcc.
Villanelle
A nineteen-line poem with five tercets followed by a quatrain. There are two refrains and two repeating rhymes, with the first and third line of the first tercet repeated alternately until the last stanza, which includes both repeated lines.
Refrain
A repeated line or number of lines in a poem or song, typically at the end of each verse.
Lyric Poetry
Poetry that is, or supposedly is, susceptible of being sung to the accompaniment of a musical instrument (in ancient times, usually a lyre), expressing intense personal emotion in a manner suggestive of a song (less like to tell a story, like narrative poetry does).
Ballad
A narrative poem in rhythmic verse suitable for singing.
Apostrophe
A term used when a speaker directly addresses someone or something that isn’t present in the poem. The speaker could be addressing an abstract concept like love, a person (dead or alive), a place, or even a thing, like the sun or the sea.
Ode
A lyric poem usually marked by exaltation of feeling and style, varying length of line, and complexity of stanza forms. These usually include apostrophe (addressing an absent person, object or idea).
