POETIC DEVICES

1. POETIC DEVICES Beginners guide SGS peel 2007

2. THE IAMB • If you read most lines of Shakespeare you will notice a rhythmic pattern: • If music be the food of love, play on • I have underlined the stresses and you will notice a de-DUM de-DUM pattern to the line. • The de-DUM unit is called the IAMB… EASY. SGS peel 2007

3. De-DUM • Try to write two lines, (a couplet) using this device five times in each line. • If you are stuck, look around and write using what you can see in the room. SGS peel 2007

4. Well Done • You have just mastered the iambic pentameter, the King of poetic form in the English language. • To celebrate, write another pair. SGS peel 2007

5. The Trochee • If you invert the rhythm, you get a trochee. Dum-de Dum-de, • As in the line • “How I wonder what to do with Connor” • You can see that the stresses have shifted. SGS peel 2007

6. Try a trochee couplet… • Go on, try… SGS peel 2007

7. Now… • Poetry based on these alone would be pretty dull actually. • Let’s look again at the first example: If music be the food of love, play on. Does “play ON” sound odd? What happens if you say:; “PLAY on”? Is this still a line of Iambs? SGS peel 2007

8. If music be the food of love, play on. • If music be the food of love, play on. • Shakespeare has slipped in a trochee to a line of Iambs – cheeky devil. • What separates the trochee from the iamb before it? • The comma creates a breathing point and allows the speaker to shift emphasis easily. This break is called a CAESURA. SGS peel 2007

9. Task • 4 lines of Iambic pentameter. • 4 lines of Iambic pentameter in which you may use a trochee instead of an Iamb for effect. You may well need a caesura (or a drink) to help. • Give it a go – treat it as a game and aim for a high score. • For the really talented, an extra task: • 4 lines alternating Iambic and Trochaic pentameter. SGS peel 2007