I've been asked for a free lesson in meter: First, I'd have to explain what I mean by stressed and unstressed, (hard and soft, long and short, accented and unaccented et cetera)syllables. In brief, just what, exactly, am I talking about when I write something out as dadaDUMdadaDUMdadaDUM ... and why do I do that? Since this is the very root of meter in poetry, that question is a lot more involved than it seems on the surface...which is why this thread is opening up. Anyone and everyone interested, feel free to jump in with questions or to help me out.
Meter is the word used in the language of poetry to describe the different ways in which we create and use rhythm. It is compounded of beats, which (most of the time) correspond to syllables. For the most part, it is concerned with two types of beats which are variously described as long and short beats, hard and soft beats, stressed (or accented) and unaccented. What this pair (with so many names) boils down to is this. In words with more than one or two syllables, some syllables are spoken more strongly than others. In English class, that 'more strong' was called an accent. In music, it's a down-beat. When we write structured poetry, poetry using rhyme and meter, we try to keep the meter consistent with a pattern throughout the poem.
Let's take the word 'encyclopedia'. There are six syllables...two of them are accented syllables, and the word is usually spoken like this
enCYcloPEdia.
(if anyone cares, the technical name for this long, or stressed, beat is an ictus.) It's the DUM beat when I write da da DUM...so the word encyclopedia, in da DUMs, is spoken daDUMdaDUMdada. Since the meter of rhythmic speech wasn't really a huge topic of conversation before people started trying to DEFINE parts of poetry, they made up a whole language around it, and so we get a whole bunch of words to have to learn. It works like this.
There are several different arrangements of stressed and unstressed beats that have been named in poetry. These arrangements are called 'feet' and are roughly the same as a measure, in music. The number and kind of feet in a line determine what particular rhythm, or meter, a poem is written in. The basic foot of a sonnet, for example, is the foot known as an iamb. An iamb is a foot made up of two beats...the first one a soft, or unstressed, beat and the second one a stressed beat...an ictus. in dadummish, an iamb is written daDUM. To finish about the sonnet..IP stands for Iambic Pentameter. Since Penta is the Latin for five...like pentagon, pentacle and pentagram, we see that a line in Iambic Pentameter is a line made up of five iambs...ten beats, and each second beat carries an accent. A line of iambic pentameter would read with the rhythm
daDUM daDUM daDUM daDUM daDUM.
The point of this is not to READ the poem that way...it is to WRITE the poem choosing and using the words in such a way that their natural stresses fall in the proper pattern, and will come out that way for ANYONE reading it. (So, you can pretty well figure that you probably wouldn't see the word encyclopedia used in a sonnet. You can't make its natural stresses fall in an iambic rhythm.)
In the poetic form, double-dactyl, we employ a different foot, called a dactyl. A dactyl is a foot with three beats...the first one is stressed and the next two are unstressed. DUM da da. Using two for a line is why the poem is called a double-dactyl.
Here are a few dactyllic words, to give the idea. say them aloud, please, for the full effect of their pronunciation.
Jeopardy, harmony, tragedy, comedy, area, entropy...all three-syllable words with just one accent, on the first syllable. DUM da da.
Not all three syllable words are dactyllic. try saying these...
Carnation, placenta, poetic, rejection, creation, nutrition, salvation...all these words have three syllables, but all have the accent on the second syllable...da DUM da... they aren't dactyls.
The basic feet in poetry are: iambic, trochaic, dactylic, anapestic, spondaic, and pyrrhic...or the iamb, the trochee, the dactyl, the anapest, the spondee and the pyrrhic foot. The iamb, as we said, goes daDUM...the trochee goes DUM da (stressed beat first, then the unstressed.) The dactyl has three beats, DUM da da, the anapest goes da da DUM, with the accented beat last. A spondee is two stressed beats in a row...the pyrrhic foot is two UN stressed beats.
Looking at this, you should be seeing that just because a word fits one sort of foot, doesn't mean that it can't be used in a different sort of meter. If a trochee...DUM da... is placed behind single syllable word that is unstressed, you get da DUM da, right? If it is then followed by a single syllable word that IS stressed, you get da DUM da DUM...and there you have two iambs. Mixing words according to how their stressed and unstressed beats will line up is how we write in a particular meter. here's a line in iambic pentameter. Remember, you're going to see a line of ten beats, with each second beat stressed...
da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM .
When I consider how my light is spent
You see a few words that have only one beat...and they draw their accent, or their LACK of accent, from their position in the sentence....you also see a three-syllable word with the middle beat accented...con sider. Before the word consider, you see the word I...it gets a stress because of it's position as the subject of the sentence...we naturally tend to stress that word when we speak. We also tend to accent such words as verbs and verb-modifiers. (these aren't hard and fast rules, and the tricky part is to get yourself to read a sentence aloud as its beats fall in natural speech, without trying to force it into the meter you are looking for!) 'How', as a modifier, draws that same stress. So, just speaking naturally, you see that the words line up to make "when I consider how my light is spent"...
da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM...five iambs.
This is the basics of what we're doing when we try to write in meter.
I'm gonna take a break from this now and wait for questions,ok? Please ask...I'm terrible at lesson-plans, and we may never get any further if you don't give me the direction I need to go next.
Meter is the word used in the language of poetry to describe the different ways in which we create and use rhythm.
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This is a good introductory column Eric. It's always a good analogy to make with musical beats. Of course the real problem I have with prosody, & I think lies the inherent problem people have with it, is that concepts from ancient Greek quantitative principles are being applied to English stress patterns. It's all Greek to me! Good column.
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Think of it as an exercise in cultural diversity...much like that lady treated poor Cupid to in your last column on sonnets!
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Is that like 'multiculturalism' because I may have some serious 'issues' with that as a concept. Oh no... I've turned into a Nazi again!
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thank you
i appreciate your time that you have put into teaching us this
but i to agree that you should use examples as some people learn more by an example
i feel that you arre a wonderful person to help others
bless you
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I havn't been writing poetry long but am already improving through being in ap. Now I'm even more excited!
This could be just what I'm looking for to enhance my poetry, it'll also help with song-writing of course, although that seems to write itself.
I'm wondering if you decide the meter before you decide on words? I'll go and test it out now anyway. Thanks for this huge encouragement to try harder and learn more.
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I am not a native english speaker and like me I have noticed many others too though they may write good poetry are often unable to grasp the idea of meter, from all the advice i have had on meter I find that it is only after reading this thta some rays are shining through the overcast sky of my mind on this subject. You have explained well at this point I want to read more before asking any questions then maybe I will write a quatrain or so to see if I have understood it. Still trying to absorb this. thanks for taking the trouble to do this. It will certainly help many of us who are quite lost about meter.
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Hello eric,
I know I have read this article somewhere else, perhaps at the old PK site, but I wanted you to know I re-read it again and found it to be thorough and enlightening and written with a slant that even the most novice of writers could gain insight.
Well done.
Kind regards,
Del -
Hey this has some good info in the lines so I think I shall bookmark it to come back to again and again for some brush ups when I get to lacking. I appreciate yall taking the time to write this out for folks like me looking to learn what I can of the different styles and fundamentals of what I enjoy doing.
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Thanks, Balladeer...when the material is this abstract, any new way of phrasing it can only be helpful.
It's an important distinction, one that can't be made too often, that a syllable does not ALWAYS equal a beat.
There are words that, properly spoken, have three syllables, such as every, but that are almost never properly spoken. A poet would do well to reaize that the reader will say ev'ry, and approach his use of that word accordingly.
There are words that have every syllable pronounced, but in which some are so understated as to be non-beats in a poetic reading. I think this is a good area to explore for the next little while, if y'all will indulge me in this.
I'll be back. -
Well, these are my thoughts on meter. They start off with a poem of a friend of mine, Kit McCallum, who is as much of a stickler for meter and flow as I am....
I tried to help a friend to understand the other day,
The many forms of poetry, with which I like to play;
I have my favorites, true enough . the one I'm writing in .
Is often how I choose to play, and so I shall begin.
Yes, I myself, am partial to - da DUM da DUM da DUM,
I like the soft, then hard of the Iambic's gentle drum;
I often stick to seven feet (that's fourteen taps a line),
Heptameter, they call it, and I think it's rather fine.
It seems to lead a story with it's gentle, rhythmic hold,
Enough da DUM's to tell the tale, and let it all unfold;
A ballad tends to lend itself quite well to this, you'll find,
Iambic, plus Heptameter . it is my favorite kind.
Iambic has two syllables, the stress upon the last,
It goes da DUM da DUM da DUM - from there, the dye is cast;
Trochaic has two syllables, but flips it's beat around;
Its DUM da DUM da, sets a very different tone and sound.
Another form's Dactylic, with three syllables in kind,
The stress is on the first of three . it's trying on the mind;
Now Anapestic, it has three, with stress upon the third,
A little harder, some might say . at least that's what I've heard.
Together with the pattern that you choose to stress above,
Comes tapping of the feet per line . it's meter that I love;
Each grouping of your pattern, sets a rhythm to your feet,
Just tap it out through every line . consistently repeat.
The numbers in your meter have some very silly names,
But if each line repeats itself, you won't go down in flames;
There's Monometer (one foot line), and Dimeter (that's two),
Try Trimeter (a three foot line), there's many you can do.
Tetrameter (a four foot line) is one I like to use,
Pentameter is popular (a five foot line) to choose;
Hexameter (a six foot line) is more obscure to me,
Heptameter's my favorite though (with seven feet you see).
Of course, there's still Octometer (with eight feet in a line),
A little longer, but it's still a meter that is fine;
That's just the basics for a start, the key is in "repeat"
Just choose a pattern, count it out, and tap it with your feet.
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Still keeping with Iambic's trait,
I've changed again . another gait;
You'll notice my da DUM's are here,
Though now I have less feet, I fear.
Tetrameter, I think is nice,
Four feet (eight beats) my other vice,
When paired with the Iambic hum,
A gentler side of me, will come.
I find my thoughts are more concise,
Less words to ramble, yet entice,
Oh yes, I love this form for sure .
Iambic, plus Tetrameter.
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Da da DUM, I can try, da da DUM,
Change the stress and hope words will still come,
Anapestic is something I find,
That is hard for this feeble, old mind.
Yet I try, and I try, just the same,
For these formats are just a nice game,
Using Trimeter helps, though I've found,
Only three feet to tap on the ground.
~
Wait! Let's try another sample,
Change the stress, the meter's ample .
With Trochaic, you can change it,
Pair Tetrameter to pace it.
Oh! The joy, to change your cadence,
Let me give you this, for instance.
Four feet in these lines, I'm counting,
Can you see the fun is mounting?
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Well IF you've followed all above, you'll think I've lost my mind,
You'll see that I have switched again, back to my favorite kind;
Iambic's how I like to go . Heptameter's for me,
It's simply how I like to write . it sets my spirit free.
If you da DUM, or DUM da too, or even da da DUM,
Just keep your meter repetitious . count your feet, each one;
Exaggerate your words aloud to see if they will flow,
(Just do it in a room alone so others will not know!)
I hope you had some fun with these . I did, I will confess,
It's great to try a different meter and a different stress .
The key is in the repetition, hold to it throughout,
Or you will lose your readers (like I do sometimes, no doubt!)
So, basically wht this poem points out is that there are four basic forms of meter (atually there are 6 but the other two are very rare)
Iambic - trochaic - anipestic - dactylic
Iambic is the da DUM da DUM sound.....i WANT to TEACH the WORLD to SING
Trochaic is DA dum DA dum...................AS i PON-dered WEAK and WE-ary
Anipestic is da da DUM..........................to the GIRLS i have LOVED in the PAST
Dactylic is DA da dum.............................WOR-ship the GOD of your CHOICE ev-ry DAY
These can also be mixed and matched if you prefer. Example:
she CAME and i SAW the LOVE in her EYES (iambic - anipestic - iambic - anipestic)
It doesn't matter what you use. What matters is that the rhyming lines are the same to achieve the perfect meter and flow to a poem. If your rhyme scheme is a-a-b-b, then a-a needs to be the same and b-b the same. If you are using a-b-a-b, then its the first and third lines are the same, along with the second and fourth.
She said that she was happy to be here
Often she had thought of me in dreams
But sometimes dreams are not so very clear
Things are not as simple as they seem.
Lines one and three are iambic while lines two and four are trochaic. That's fine. The mind will anticipate how the ryming line will sound. Should it fluctuate to another meter, the poem will sound choppy.
The only other point I want to make clear in this message is probably the hardest one to master. You must make the reader read the line the way you want it read. Sometimes lines can be read different ways. For example:
She went to the movies yesterday..
Who went? SHE went...
She did what? she WENT ....
So the way you have set up the poem will make this either iambic or trochaic. If your poem is in iambic and you cause the reader to read this as SHE went, then it will be choppy to the reader. Also there are some words in which all of the syllables are not read...or counted. For example, the word EVERY. It is a three syllable word but is read generally as a two syllable word and must be counted as a two syllable word when following your preferred rhyme scheme. "I SAW her EV-ery DAY" is iambic because the "ery" in every is counted as only one syllable since that is the way it will be read. So syllable counts must be maintained by the syllables READ, not COUNTED. This is a very important point.
I hope that doesn't confuse you too much! It's a pain, I know, but these are little subtleties that must be observed to have complete fluidity in a line.
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Thank you for taking the time out to write this information. I am always looking to learn more and to improve. Illutstrating the syllables with DUM and da, proved to be most helpful. This was definitely worth my time to read.
~~whims
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ok, you recommended this to me and here I am! this must have taken a lot of effort and time, congratulations on that. I loved how you gave us words that went DUM da da or da DUM da (e.g. entropy or placenta)- that made it very clear.
ok, MY problem is though that I can get a rhythm but I can never find good words to go in. so it looks forced and kind of stupid. any tips?
take your time.
-Moonrider -
Good info but explaining meter as a concept can get very dense and confusing. I would structure the clas by leading each section with an example (a good chunky one at that) then saying, for example, 'Here Shakespeare is using Iambic Pentameter because ...xyz... Iambic pentameter is where the strong syllable is on the second foot such as 'shall I comPARE thee TO a SUMMers DAY?'
Good class structure and info though. It just seems quite dense and theoretical (which it is) and by seeing it applied, people might be able to absorb it quicker and be less daunted if they are unfamiliar with formal poetry. -
Very informative
OK, I got the 'jist' of this, but I always get lost in intracies. I'll give my poem a re-write and see what I can do. -
The lucky part is, while you need these term-names to talk about meter...you don't need the names to USE meter.
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nice...ok...i don't like all those term names, but i'll try and get used to them...this is the first piece of instruction i have recieved in poetry since i graduated from high school. So i'm kind of rusty in the learning process, but i will intake all i can, and attempt some shots at meter in my notepad...if there's anything i'm particularly proud of, i'll post it...thanks a bunch
peace
chris -
Fair question. Essentially the basic meters are determined by
1) which foot you use, and...
2) how many feet to a line.
So Iambic Pentameter is five iambs to a line. Trochaic Tetrameter is four trochees to a line. Et cetera. There will also be meters that combine different feet: a repeated combination of feet is called a 'measure'.
Iambic is the most commonly used foot. In fact, Frost was fond of saying "there are only two meters...iambic and loose iambic". It's not true, but it points up the fact that, in English, the most common beat-interval is a straight alternation...daDUMdaDUMdaDUM.
In addition to the basic feet mentioned above, there are also two classic measures frequently employed...the amphibrachys (daDUMda) and the amphimacer (DUMdaDUM).
What meter you choose to employ is going to be one of the strongest and most critical choices you make when beginning a poem: the rhythm of a piece is intimately associated with the reader's response. The straight alternation of iambic sort of 'marches' the reader forward. Here's an example of a poem that employs a loose meter formed around the amphibrachys...notice, as you read the poem aloud, how there's almost a sense of 'galloping horse' rhythm. Meter can be used to impart a sense of urgency to the reader even more effectively than word-choice...more effective because the reader doesn't know why it's happening! When reading, an urgent meter can quicken the reader's breathing even if not reading aloud, and quick breathing means rapid heartbeat...which translates to heightened emotional involvement.
Here's that poem...try it out.
'...inexpressible!'
Your soft breath caresses me, setting aquiver
the whole of my body, like ice and like fire!
Awakens inside me the burning desire
to feel you flow over me, cold like a river.
Just look how the thought of your touch makes me shiver!
Your voice is the torch, setting light to my pyre!
Your love builds this ecstacy higher and higher!
The gift is my life, Love, and you are the giver!
I now know love stronger than ever I dreamed
in all of my fantasies. Nights without end
carry my soul to the highest of peaks.
Lost, once, my heart no more yearns, no more seeks
for what it had ceased to believe Life would send.
In Joy (though in silence), my spirit just screamed
"How I Love You!!"
©2003 by eric lee
Edited on May 18, 4:33 p.m. because 'supplemental info.'. -
interesting....i got some info out of this...let me see, questions? hmmmm, ok, i think you sort of covered the iambic pentameter well, but what else is there? what other meters are there....sometimes i get confused in trying to find accents and words that will combine together to make a nice meter, so instead i just stick to what i know, and write what makes sense to me...i have no idea if i've been using meter, but i'm sure there's some sort of beat to my work...cause i meant it to be there...but yea, what other meters are there? that is my question
peACE, and thanks for the instruction
chris`
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