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Intro to Shakespearean Poetry & Language. Mrs. Toney Spring 2011. Rhythm in Poetry. Like music, language has rhythm In poetry, this is a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables Meter Meter is the pattern of rhythm established by a poem
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Intro to Shakespearean Poetry & Language Mrs. Toney Spring 2011
Rhythm in Poetry • Like music, language has rhythm • In poetry, this is a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables • Meter • Meter is the pattern of rhythm established by a poem • dependent not only on the number of syllables in a line but also on the way those syllables are accented
Types of Meter in Poetry • The rhythmic unit is made up of one stressed syllables, and one or or two unstressed ones. • This is called a “foot” • The 3 types of feet are: • Iamb (reSIST) • Trochee (ABsent) • Spondee (GOAL LINE) • Number of Feet in a line: • 3 = Trimeter • 4 = Tetrameter • 5 = Pentameter
Shakespeare Uses Iambic Pentameter • A foot may be iambic, which follows a pattern of unstressed/stressed syllables • For example, read aloud: "The DOG went WALKing DOWN the ROAD and BARKED.“ • Because there are five iambs, or feet, this line follows the conventions of iambic pentameter (pent = five), the common form in Shakespeare's time. • Stressed syllables are labeled with a "/" mark and unstressed syllables with a "U" mark.
Shakespearean Sonnets • Sonnets are a form of poetry that follow a very specific formula. • They are written in blank verse (10 syllables) using iambic pentameter
Elizabethan/Shakespearean Sonnets • Poem consisting of 14 lines • Has a very specific rhyme scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG • Written in iambic pentameter • Each line contains 10 syllables. • The words in each line make a pattern where an un-emphasized (soft) syllable is followed by an emphasized (strong) syllable. • Sonnets are often love poems, but they don’t necessarily have to be.
Sonnets • In short, Shakespearean sonnets have: • 14 lines total which are made up of: • 3 quatrains • Stanzas with 4 lines each • 1 couplet • Stanzas with 2 lines each
The Language of R & J • The prologue is a sonnet • The rest of the play is written in blank verse • Blank verse = type of poetry with meter, but no rhyme • Much of the play is also written in iambic pentameter • In other words, this is a play that is written like a poem, that reads like a story!!
The Language of Shakespeare • ‘anon: soon; right away • aught: anything • coz: cousin; close friends • ere: before • e’er: ever • god-den: good evening • God gi’ go-den: God give you a good evening • hence: from here
Elizabethan Words to Know • hie: hurry • hither: here • marry: a short form of “by the Virgin Mary” and so a mild exclamation • morrow: morning • naught: nothing • o’er: over • prithee: pray for thee, or please • Sirrah: a term used to address a servant
More Elizabethan Terms to Know • soft: be still; quiet; wait a minute • thither: there • whence: where • wherefore: why • wot: know • yond, yonder: over there