Elements of Poetry

Author, Atmosphere.
POETRY- has an overall central theme or idea within each poem
Images - the mental pictures the poet creates through language
Diction - the selection of specific words
Form - the arrangement of words, lines, verses, rhymes, and other
features.
Cadence - A rhythmic change in the inflection of sounds from
words being spoken. Sometimes referred to the flow of words.
Couplet - two lines of verse that rhyme at the end and are thought
as one unit
Meter - A rhythm that continuously repeats a single basic pattern.
Rhyme - Words that end with similar sounds. Usually at the end of
a line of the poem.
Rhyming - Two lines of a poem together with the same rhythm
Rhythm - A pattern created with sounds: hard - soft, long - short,
bouncy, quiet - loud, weak - strong .
Stanza - A part of a poem with similar rhythm and rhyme that will
usually repeat later in the poem.
Verse - A line of a poem, or a group of lines within a long poem.
Critical Appreciation.
Elements of a poem:

Stanzas:
Stanzas are a series of lines grouped together and separated by an
empty line from other stanzas. They are the equivalent of a
paragraph in an essay. One way to identify a stanza is to count the
number of lines. Thus:
 couplet (2 lines)
 tercet (3 lines)
 quatrain (4 lines)
 cinquain (5 lines)
 sestet (6 lines) (sometimes it's called a sexain)
 septet (7 lines)
 octave (8 lines)

Form:
A poem may or may not have a specific number of lines, rhyme
scheme and/or metrical pattern, but it can still be labeled according to
its form or style.

Types of poems:
1. Lyric Poetry:
It is any poem with one speaker (not necessarily the
poet) who expresses strong thoughts and feelings.
Most poems, especially modern ones, are lyric poems.

2. Narrative Poem:
It is a poem that tells a story; its structure resembles the
plot line of a story [i.e. the introduction of conflict and
characters, rising action, climax and the denouement].

3. Descriptive Poem:
It is a poem that describes the world that surrounds the
speaker. It uses elaborate imagery and adjectives. While
emotional, it is more "outward-focused" than lyric poetry,
which is more personal and introspective.
Poems sub-types :

Ode:
It is usually a lyric poem of moderate length, with a serious subject,
an elevated style, and an elaborate stanza pattern.

Elegy:
It is a lyric poem that mourns the dead. [It's not to be confused with
a eulogy.]It has no set metric or stanzaic pattern, but it usually begins
by reminiscing about the dead person, then laments the reason for
the death, and then resolves the grief by concluding that death leads
to immortality. It often uses "apostrophe" (calling out to the dead
person) as a literary technique. It can have a fairly formal style, and
sound similar to an ode.

Sonnet:
It is a lyric poem consisting of 14 lines and, in the English version, is
usually written in iambic pentameter. There are two basic kinds of
sonnets: the Italian (or Petrarchan) sonnet and the Shakespearean
(or Elizabethan/English) sonnet. The Italian/Petrarchan sonnet is
named after Petrarch, an Italian Renaissance poet. The Petrarchan
sonnet consists of an octave (eight lines) and a sestet (six lines). The
Shakespearean sonnet consists of three quatrains (four lines each)
and a concluding couplet (two lines). The Petrarchan sonnet tends to
divide the thought into two parts (argument and conclusion); the
Shakespearean, into four (the final couplet is the summary).

Ballad:
It is a narrative poem that has a musical rhythm and can be sung. A
ballad is usually organized into quatrains or cinquains, has a simple
rhythm structure, and tells the tales of ordinary people.

Epic:
It is a long narrative poem in elevated style recounting the deeds of
a legendary or historical hero.    
Qualities of an Epic Poem:
 narrative poem of great scope; dealing with the founding of a
nation or some other heroic theme requires a dignified theme
requires an organic unity requires orderly progress of the action
always has a heroic figure or figures involves supernatural forces
 written in deliberately ceremonial style

10 Famous Poets and Poems:

Edgar Allen Poe
Birthplace: Boston
Famous poem: ”The Raven”
Famous quote: ”I have great faith in fools — self-confidence my
friends call it.”

William Shakespeare
Birthplace: Stratford-upon-Avon, England
Famous poem: ”Sonnet XVIII” (Shall I compare thee to a summer’s
day?)
Famous quote: ”All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women
merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one
man in his time plays many parts. His acts being seven ages.”

Maya Angelou
Birthplace: St. Louis
Famous poem: ”On the Pulse of Morning”

Emily Dickinson
Birthplace: Amherst, Massachusetts
Famous poem: “‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers”
Famous quote: “Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the
soul — and sings the tunes without the words — and never stops at
all.”

Shel Silverstein
Birthplace: Chicago
Famous poem: “Where the Sidewalk Ends”
Famous quote: ”What I do is good. I wouldn’t let it out if I didn’t think
it was.”
Robert Frost
Birthplace: San Francisco
Famous poem: “The Road Not Taken”
Famous quote: “The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have
promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep.”

Pablo Neruda
Birthplace: Parral, Chile
Famous poem: “I Do Not Love You Except Because I Love You”
Famous quote: “To feel the love of people whom we love is a fire
that feeds our life.”

E. E. Cummings
Birthplace: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Famous poem: “i carry your heart with me”
Famous quote: “It takes courage to grow up and become who you
really are.”

Langston Hughes
Birthplace: Joplin, Missouri
Famous poem: “I Too Sing America”
Famous quote: “Hold fast to dreams for if dreams die, life is a
broken winged bird that cannot fly.”

Walt Whitman
Birthplace: Long Island, New York
Famous poem: “I Hear America Singing”
Famous quote: “Either define the moment or the moment will define
you.”

       Analyzing a Poem / Lesson

Plan.
How to teach a poen in the classroom:
Read
Have your students read the poem once to themselves and then
aloud, all the way through, at LEAST twice. Feel free to play a
recording of the poem or show a video of someone reading the
poem, too. Afterward, talk to your class about their first impression
and immediate responses, both positive and negative. Also, discuss
the poem's structure and rhythm.

The Title
Think about the title and how it relates to the poem. Titles often
provide important clues about what is at the heart of a piece.
Questions to talk about :
 Does the title immediately change how you think about it?
 Does the poem’s title paint a picture that gives a specific time
frame, setting or action?
 Does it imply multiple possibilities?

The Poet
Understanding the poet is at the center of a poem may help the piece
appear more tangible to students because they’re able to imagine a
person behind the language.
Questions to consider are:
 Who “tells” the poem?
 Does the poem give any clues about the speaker’s personality,
the point of view, age, or gender?
 Who is the speaker addressing?
 Does the speaker seem attached or detached from what is
said?

The Mood and Tone

After talking about the speaker, it’s important to address the attitude
or mood the poem is attempting to convey. Some can be brooding or
grieving; others may have a song-like cadence and rhyme. Discuss
the attitude each speaker or characters give off. Moreover, talk about
if there places where the poem's tone may switch and why.

  The Paraphrase
Since you discussed figurative language, mood, setting, and speaker
—there’s no better time than to apply what you’ve learned line-by-
line. Paraphrasing may seem pretty self-explanatory.You should
lead students line-by-line and translate figurative language or unclear
phrases into simpler terms that will not get in the way of analyzing the
poem later on.

The Theme
 The theme of a poem relates to a universal truth, issue, or conflict.
To determine the theme, look over all of your analysis and connect
the dots:
 What is the subject?
 Who is the speaker?
 What situation are they in?
 How do they feel about the subject?
 What is the mood?

 Besides:
Learners learn about the poem language, figures of speech, moral
lesson and express their impressions in groups.