Poetry Terms Flashcards
Verse
Term used to describe poetic lines composed in a measured rhythmical pattern that are often; but not necessarily, rhymed
Prose
The way we usually write and speak, no rhyme or economy of words
Stanza
Section of poem/ like a paragraph in prose
Couplet
2 lines
Repetition
Repeating words, lines, or ideas to make a point
Refrain
A line or group of lines repeated regularly or irregularly
Blank verse
Unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter (10 syllables, every other syllable is stressed; the way Shakespeare writes his plays)
Rhyme
Repetition of identical or similar concluding syllables in different words, most often at the ends of lines
Meter
When a rhythmic pattern of stresses recurs in a poem, it is called meter.
Rhythm
Term used to refer to the recurrence of stressed and unstressed sounds in poetry
Metaphor
Comparing two thing NOT using like or as
Simile
Comparing two things USING like or as
Personification
Giving non human things human characteristics
Hyperbole
And enormous exaggeration
Symbol
Something small representing something larger
Alliteration
Repetition of the same consonant sounds in a sequence of words, usually at the beginning of a word or stressed syllable (descending dew drops)
Consonance
Common type of near rhyme that consists of identical consonant sounds preceded by different vowel sounds: home, same (worth, breath)
Assonance
Repetition of internal vowel sounds in nearby words that do not end the same (asleep under a tree)
Imagery
Word used that paints pictures in readers’ minds
Mood
The way the setting affects the readers and characters
Tone
How the AUTHOR feels about his characters and subject
Onomatopoeia
A word or combination of words that resemble specific sounds (buzz, rattle, bang)
Archetype
Term used to describe universal symbols that evoke deep and sometimes unconscious responses in a reader. Common literary archetypes include stories of quests, initiations, descents to the underworld, and ascents to heaven
Speaker
The voice used by an author to tell a story or speak a poem. The speaker is often a created identity and should not automatically be equated with the author’s self
Allusion
Reference to another literary work, person, place, or time
Quatrain
4 lines
Extended metaphor
An entire poem or page of text making one comparison
