Poetry uses certain qualities of language, such as rhythm and rhyme, to create beautiful works which awake emotion in their readers. It has its origins in ancient epic verses, such as Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, which were memorised by storytellers who recounted them to an audience. The repetitive, rhyming tales in verse form were easily remembered and passed down through generations before finally being written down. Poetry expresses a whole variety of moods, from the serious reflection of an elegy to the joy (or heartbreak!) of a love sonnet. But there is one particular style always... Show more Poetry uses certain qualities of language, such as rhythm and rhyme, to create beautiful works which awake emotion in their readers. It has its origins in ancient epic verses, such as Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, which were memorised by storytellers who recounted them to an audience. The repetitive, rhyming tales in verse form were easily remembered and passed down through generations before finally being written down. Poetry expresses a whole variety of moods, from the serious reflection of an elegy to the joy (or heartbreak!) of a love sonnet. But there is one particular style always guaranteed to raise a smile – comic verse. The best known form of comic verse is of course the limerick. Poetry comes in many forms – the ode, the villanelle or the haiku for example – but perhaps the type most famous is the sonnet. This form was a favourite of the Bard of Avon himself, William Shakespeare, who wrote more than 150 of them. Sonnets lend themselves beautifully to love poetry and have given us such enchanting lines as: “Those lips that Love's own hand did make” or 'Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate.' There is so much more to poetry than rhyme. There is a great deal of prose poetry out there! Rhythm is one important aspect – it makes a poem almost musical. Two more oft used conventions are assonance (the repetition of vowel sounds) and alliteration (the repetition of the first consonant in a series of words). Here’s an example of each: ”The early bird catches the worm.” 'Face the fire at freedom's front.' Show less
Poetry uses certain qualities of language, such as rhythm and rhyme, to create beautiful works which awake emotion in their readers. It has its origins in ancient epic verses, such as Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, which were memorised by storytellers who recounted them to an audience. The repetitive, rhyming tales in verse form were easily remembered and passed down through generations before finally being written down.
Poetry expresses a whole variety of moods, from the serious reflection of an elegy to the joy (or heartbreak!) of a love sonnet. But there is one particular style always guaranteed to raise a smile – comic verse. The best known form of comic verse is of course the limerick.
Poetry comes in many forms – the ode, the villanelle or the haiku for example – but perhaps the type most famous is the sonnet. This form was a favourite of the Bard of Avon himself, William Shakespeare, who wrote more than 150 of them. Sonnets lend themselves beautifully to love poetry and have given us such enchanting lines as:
“Those lips that Love's own hand did make” or
'Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate.'
There is so much more to poetry than rhyme. There is a great deal of prose poetry out there!
Rhythm is one important aspect – it makes a poem almost musical. Two more oft used conventions are assonance (the repetition of vowel sounds) and alliteration (the repetition of the first consonant in a series of words). Here’s an example of each:
”The early bird catches the worm.” 'Face the fire at freedom's front.'
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