Tag: poetic devices

Posted in Writing

Poetic Devices

Posted on by L. M. Montes

Below is a table of various poetic devices and their meanings. Over the past year I’ve done articles on individual ones, but here are I am putting them all together in one post. These are just some of them.

Poetic DevicesMeaningExample
AssonanceRhyming of the same
vowel sounds		Leaves blew in the breeze
AlliterationThe occurrence of the same letter or
sound at the beginning of adjacent
or closely connected words.		Sweet singing doves
MetaphorThis is where an object in, or the subject of,
a poem is described as being the same
as another otherwise unrelated object.		The sand is a warm blanket
SimileA figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind. It’s used to make a description more vivid.As fast as a cheetah.
PersonificationGiving an inanimate object human characteristics.The moon smiled back.
ImageryUsed in poetry, novels, or other writing that uses
vivid description that appeals to the readers’ senses. This creates an image or idea in their head.		The leaves sounded like clapping hands.
AllusionAn expression intended to
call something to mind
without mentioning it specifically. It’s a hint
towards something.		Chocolate is his kryptonite.
Superman is alluded to but not mentioned.
HyperboleExaggerated statements or not meant
to be taken literally		I am so hungry I could eat a whole side of beef.
AllegoryA story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted
to reveal a hidden meaning,
like a moral or political moral.		Animal Farm by George Orwell is an example of an allegory.
ConsonanceThe repetition of consonant sounds within
a line of text.		The boss had a loss.
Molly remained jolly.
RepetitionThe act of repeating something that has already been said. Used to create effect.Time after time.
Over and over.
EnjambmentThe continuation of a sentence or phrase from one line of poetry to the next.Birds fly
above a

dew covered
grassy meadow.
MeterIn poetry, meter is the basic rhythmic structure of a verseiambic pentameter
trochaic foot
anapestic foot
(More on these in another post)
Posted in Poetry

Types of Poems

Posted on by L. M. Montes

Here are a few types of poems I thought you might be interested in. There are more, but I went with some common types that people enjoy writing more often. They range in difficulty. For more information about each, you can go to www.Google.com

TypeDefinition# of Lines# Syllables
Per line		Rhyme Scheme
HaikuAn ancient form of
Japanese poetry.
Small in size		3 linesline one has 5
line two has 7
line three has 5		none
LimerickAre funny and
sometimes rude.
They have a set rhyme.
The subject is a short, pithy
tale or description		5 linesnoneAABBA
SonnetA poem expressing a single,
complete thought, idea
or sentiment. There are two types: Petrarchan and
Shakespearean
14 lines10
(Iambic Pentameter)		Petrarchan Sonnet: ABBA, ABBA, CDECDE

Shakespearean Sonnet:
ABAB, CDCE, EFEF, GG
Free VerseA popular style of modern
poetry. It has a great amount of freedom when it comes to number of lines, cadence, and rhyme (if any)		variesvariesvaries
VillanelleA short poem of fixed form, written in tercets, usually five in number followed by a quatrain.19 linesvariesABA for the first 5 tercets. Line 1 from the first tercet gets repeated in line 3 of tercets 2 and 4. Line 3 from tercet 1 gets repeated in line 3 of tercets 3 and 5. In the stanza 6 (the quatrain at the end), lines 3 and 4 are lines 1 and 3 from the first tercet in order).
Blank VersePoetry written with a precise meter, often in iambic pentameter but doesn’t rhyme.varies10 (Iambic pentameter)none
SestinaA poem of six six-line stanzas and a three-line envoy, originally without rhyme, in which each stanza repeats the end words of the lines of the first stanza, but in a different order, the envoy using the six words again, three in the middle of the lines and three at the end.39 linesIambic pentameter is optional. Otherwise there is none.Line 1: ABCDEF
Line 2: FAEBDC
Line 3: CFDABE
Line 4: ECBFAD
Line 5: DEACFB
Line 6: BDFECA
TankaA Japanese poem that means “short poem”5 lineslines 1 and 3 have 5 syllables. All other lines have 7 syllables.none
Posted in Writing

Metaphor

Posted on by L. M. Montes

Definition: (from Dictionary.com) “A figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something to which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance”.

Examples:

  • His hand on my shoulder is a frigid icicle.
  • The house was hot furnace.
  • The sand is a blanket underneath me.
  • The wildflowers are a color wheel.
  • The stain was an annoying fly; always around and refusing to go away.

As you can tell by these examples, pictures are created within the readers mind that heightens their reading experience. They pull the reader into the story.