Blank verse - For Flourchild
Hi,
Blank verse is, as the name suggests, poetry without rhyme; but it is not, as some think, free verse. That is something entirely different.
Blank verse still requires a regular metre, and in the case of the sonnet, other rules as well.
General.
At this early stage, I think it would be a mistake to delve too deeply into the various types of 'feet' in poetry. Briefly, a 'foot' is the name given to a unit of metre. Possibly the most used is Iambic. This simply means that the accent is on each other syllable, beginning with the second.
viz: daDAH daDAH daDAH... etc
The second consideration is the length of each line.
This is often (as in the sonnet) five feet (or ten syllables) and is known as pentametre.
But can be virtually any length. Personally, I (more often than not) use iambic hexametre (six feet, twelve syllables) in heroic or storytelling blank verse.
Here is an extract from a poem called "The Seduction of a Sprite." You will notice I've added three 'feet' at the end of each verse; that's just for effect.
Her toes to dip and seek and nuzzle gravel deep;
cool water ‘round slim ankles spreading languor’s sigh.
Hands splash small diamonds on white thighs too smooth to be
then run as lovesick tears from flesh back to the stream,
rejoining sweeter now
It is also desireable to let the poem flow from line to line without too many periods at the end of lines. This 'flowing-on' is known as enjambment and helps both to smooth the jerkiness which regular metre can impart, and, in the case of blank verse, also helps to disguise the fact that there are no rhymes.
The Sonnet.
The sonnet is inherently one of the most beautiful, and sadly one of the most abused of all poetry forms.
I will deal here only with the traditional form and leave you to make modifications when you have mastered the basic rules, if that is your wont.
The sonnet has 14 lines.
It is written in iambic pentametre.
There are two main rhyming patterns although many others exist. But here we are dealing with the Blank sonnet so we can put these aside for the moment. We might cover rhyme at a later date if you like.
The sonnet resembles a short story inasmuch as ideally it should have a beginning, a middle and an end.
The first six lines (or so) should state a position or introduce a situation.
The next six lines (or so) should offer another viewpoint on the same subject.
The last couplet should be a summing up or some kind of statement/climax/resolution.
Here is a blank sonnet I wrote some time ago:
I met a man who told me that the trees
have life; they breathe and feel and know of things
outside themselves. They hold great wisdom deep
within their woody cells and just require
your touch to share what God has given them.
Well, that may be, but I prefer to think
that nature gave us trees so we might share
their strength, their changing form and tender buds;
that we might take their willing lives to make a home
or build a coffin, crib or paling fence.
To lie within the shade they garnish from
the sun, and gaze at clouds through brokenness.
I guess it doesn’t matter why we love
the tree; it’s just enough to feel we should.
Hope this helps.
Good luck and let me know how you progress.
Cheers
Peter E
flourchld Traveller in the Arts
Posts: 12
(1/23/02 3:19 am) Reply
Re: Blank verse - For Flourchild
Hey Pete, you beat me here.
I've been working on something, it should be finished soon. The funny thing is, that it started out being something completely different than it ended up being. I started working on it before I read your post on the rules, so this may be more free verse than blank verse. So, as soon as I finish this, I'll begin work on a blank verse.
I have a feeling that these 'rules' may interject a discipline that will be quite challenging. I like challenges.
Re: Blank verse - For Flourchild
Hi FC,
Interesting how poems develop.
Sometimes I have the whole idea before I start writing. Oftentimes I don't and just start with an interesting line and make it up from there. I might change my mind about the direction of the poem a dozen times before I'm through.
Just as often, maybe after several hours of writing, I just give up on the idea altogether and start something new. One thing though, I NEVER throw abandoned ideas away. Every now and again I revisit these 'scraps' and I often manage to resurrect them.
Email This To a Friend
Topic Commands
Click to receive email notification of replies 
Click to stop receiving email notification of replies