This document provides information about various poetic devices and literary techniques used in poetry. It begins by defining a poem and discussing its key characteristics including rhythmic patterns and the expression of ideas and emotions. It then outlines several common types of poems such as haiku, free verse, epics, ballads, and sonnets. The document proceeds to explain various poetic devices based on sounds including alliteration, rhyme, personification, puns, similes, and metaphors. It also covers devices related to meaning such as irony, oxymoron, and synecdoche. Finally, it discusses poetic elements like rhythm, stanzas, and poetic forms including ballads.

1. POETIC
DEVICE
K.Priya dharshini

2. Poem
Definition
– A poem is a collection of spoken or written words that expresses ideas or
emotions in a powerfully vivid and imaginative style.
– A poem is comprised of a particular rhythmic and metrical pattern. In fact, it is a
literary technique that is different from prose or ordinary speech, as it is either
in metrical pattern or in free verse.
– Writers or poets express their emotions through this medium more easily, as
they face difficulty when expressing through some other medium.
– It serves the purpose of a light to take the readers towards the right path. Also,
sometimes it teaches them a moral lesson through sugar-coated language.

3. Types of Poem
– Haiku – A type of Japanese poem consisting of three unrhymed lines, with
mostly five, seven, and five syllables in each line.
– Free Verse – Consists of non–rhyming lines, without any metrical pattern, but
which follow a natural rhythm.
– Epic – A form of lengthy poem, often written in blank verse, in which poet
shows a protagonist in action of historical significance, or a great mythic.
– Ballad – A type of narrative poem in which a story often talks about folk or
legendary tales. It may take the form of a moral lesson or a song.
– Sonnet – It is a form of lyrical poem containing fourteen lines, with
iambic pentameter and tone or mood changes after the eighth line.

4. Types of Poem
– Elegy – A melancholic poem in which the poet laments the death of a subject,
though he gives consolation towards the end.
– Epitaph – A small poem used as an inscription on a tombstone.
– Hymn – This type of a poem praises spirituality or God’s splendor.

5. Poetic Devices?
– When we discuss a poet, we should understand that he has limited materials to
create his masterpiece.
– He can only use words to express ideas and feelings. When you have only a
weapon, then you need to use it sensibly. So as with the words, poetry
demands high order words.
– Use words in the right way and create a masterpiece. Words should be sound
right to the listener and delight the ears. But keep in mind it should have a
meaning. Words should also encourage the depth of human thoughts, empathy,
and feelings. Words in poems should appear simple, self-contained and natural.

6. – The English language has a wide range of words which can convey any emotion
and feelings. So basically writing a good poem demands a good arrangement of
words.
– There is a great range of methods and plans of the arrangement of these words.
These methods or plans are known as POETIC DEVICES.
– These devices help in creating strong expressions which appeal the readers.
Poetry is read silently, but it should have a feeling of being spoken aloud.
Readers should also have the ability of hearing, to understand the artful work
performed by poets.

7. – Sounds of words create a magical effect in reader’s mind. When word clustered
together, they create a specific effect when readers hear it.
– These sounds can hit readers in various ways. They can bring various emotions
like anger, happiness, love, hate or dislike.
– Let’s see these various poetic devices based on sounds.

8. Alliteration
– In literary work, alliteration can be defined as the noticeable repetition of same first consonant
sounds in close syllables within a group of words. For instance,
– Fast and Furious,
– Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
– Andrew patted the pony,
– Kim’s kid kept kicking like crazy.
– There are numerous examples of alliteration you can find over the internet or in libraries in
various texts. Alliteration helps the reader to focus on a particular section in text. It creates
rhythm and mood and may represent a specific connotation.(characteristic of word )

9. Paradox
– A paradox is a statement that appears at first to be contradictory, but upon
reflection then makes sense. This literary device is commonly used to engage a
reader to discover an underlying logic in a seemingly self-contradictory
statement or phrase. As a result, paradox allows readers to understand
concepts in a different and even non-traditional way.
–

10. Common Examples of Paradox
– less is more
– do the thing you think you cannot do
– you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t
– the enemy of my enemy is my friend
– the beginning of the end
– if you don’t risk anything, you risk everything
– earn money by spending it
– nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent
– the pen is mightier than the sword

11. Personification
– It is a poetic device in which an animal, idea or thing is given human
characteristics. The Non-human object is depicted like humans. We provide
human quality to non-human things.
– Personification is a figure of speech in which an idea or thing is given human
attributes and/or feelings or is spoken of as if it were human. Personification is
a common form of metaphor in that human characteristics are attributed to
nonhuman things. This allows writers to create life and motion within inanimate
objects, animals, and even abstract ideas by assigning them recognizable
human behaviors and emotions.

12. – Personification is a literary device found often in children’s literature. This is an
effective use of figurative language because personification relies on
imagination for understanding. Of course, readers know at a logical level that
nonhuman things cannot feel, behave, or think like humans. However,
personifying nonhuman things can be an interesting, creative, and effective way
for a writer to illustrate a concept or make a point.
– For example, in his picture book, “The Day the Crayons Quit,” Drew Daywalt
uses personification to allow the crayons to express their frustration at how
they are (or are not) being used. This literary device is effective in creating an
imaginary world for children in which crayons can communicate like humans.

13. Example
– My alarm yelled at me this morning.
– I like onions, but they don’t like me.
– The sign on the door insulted my intelligence.
– My phone is not cooperating with me today.
– That bus is driving too fast.
– My computer works very hard.
– However, the mail is running unusually slow this week.
– I wanted to get money, but the ATM died.
– This article says that spinach is good for you.
– Unfortunately, when she stepped on the Lego, her foot cried.
– The sunflowers hung their heads.
– That door jumped in my way.

14. Pun
– A pun is a literary device that is also known as a “play on words.” Puns involve
words with similar or identical sounds but with different meanings. Their play
on words also relies on a word or phrase having more than one meaning. Puns
are generally intended to be humorous, but they often have a serious purpose
as well in literary works.
– For example, the if you were to attend a lecture about managing finances
entitled “Common Cents,” this features a pun. The play on words is between
“cents,” as in coins, and “sense,” as in awareness. This pun is also effective as a
play on words of the phrase “common sense,” which is appropriate to
the subject of managing finances.

15. Example
– Denial is a river in Egypt.
– The cyclist was two tired to win the race.
– Take my wife, please.
– Her cat is near the computer to keep an eye on the mouse.
– When my algebra teacher retired, he wasn’t ready for the aftermath.
– Some bunny loves you.
– Now that I have graph paper, I guess it’s time to plot something.
– Make like a tree and leave.
– This candy cane is in mint condition.
– My librarian is a great bookkeeper.

16. Simile
– A simile is a figure of speech in which two essentially dissimilar objects or
concepts are expressly compared with one another through the use of “like” or
“as.” Simile is used as a literary device to assert similarity with the help
of like or as, which are language constructs that establish equivalency. A proper
simile creates an explicit comparison between two things that are different
enough from each other such that their comparability appears unlikely.

17. – Nutty as a fruitcake
– Slept like a log
– Sly as a fox
– Fits like a glove
– Cool as a cucumber
– Blind as a bat
– Light as a feather

18. Metaphor
– A metaphor is a figure of speech that makes a comparison between two unlike
things. As a literary device, metaphor creates implicit comparisons without the
express use of “like” or “as.” Metaphor is a means of asserting that two things
are identical in comparison rather than just similar. This is useful in literature for
using specific images or concepts to state abstract truths.
– For example, one of the most famous metaphors in literature is featured in this
line from William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet: What light through yonder
window breaks? It is the East, and Juliet, the sun! In this metaphor, Juliet is
compared to the sun. In fact, this figure of speech claims that Juliet is the sun.
Of course, the reader understands that Romeo does not believe that Juliet is
literally the sun. Instead, the comparison demonstrates the idea that Romeo
equates Juliet with the beauty, awe, and life-giving force of the sun. To Romeo,
symbolically, Juliet and the sun are the same.

19. Example
– Laughter is the best medicine.
– She is just a late bloomer.
– Is there a black sheep in your family?
– His heart of stone surprised me.
– I smell success in this building.
– He’s buried in a sea of paperwork.
– There is a weight on my shoulder.
– Time is money.
– No man is an island.
– That actor is a tall drink of water.

20. Synecdoche
– Synecdoche is a literary device in which a part of something represents the
whole, or it may use a whole to represent a part. Synecdoche may also use
larger groups to refer to smaller groups, or vice versa. It may also call a thing by
the name of the material it is made of, or it may refer to a thing in a container
or packaging by the name of that container or packing.
– Synecdoche refers to the whole of a thing by the name of any one of its parts.
For example, calling a car “wheels” is a synecdoche because a part of the car, its
“wheels,” stands for the whole car.

21. – The word “bread” refers to food or money, as in “Writing is my bread and butter,” or
“He is the sole breadwinner.”
– The phrase “gray beard” refers to an old man.
– The word “sails” refers to a whole ship.
– The word “suit” refers to a businessman.
– The word “boots” usually refers to soldiers.
– The term “coke” is a common synecdoche for all carbonated drinks.
– “Pentagon” is a synecdoche when it refers to a few decision makers.
– The word “glasses” refers to spectacles.

22. Rhythm &
– The word rhythm is derived from rhythmos (Greek) which means, “measured
motion.” Rhythm is a literary device that demonstrates the long and short
patterns through stressed and unstressed syllables, particularly in verse form.
– Types of Rhythm

23. Rhyme
– It is a repetition of words having the same sound at the end of a line in poems.
It brings musicality to the poems. Rhyme differentiates poems from prose. It
gives a pleasing effect in the poem. Children can easily recite and learn poem
because of rhyme. Rhyme makes the poem more enjoyable and fun.
– Examples
– Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.

24. – Baa baa black sheep, have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full!
– Mary had a little lamb its fleece was white as snow;
And everywhere that Mary went, the lamb was sure to go.
– Now after reading about poetic devices based on sounds, next one is poetic
devices based on the meaning of the words. Let’s read about them in detail to
know more about it.

25. Irony
Irony is a literary device in which contradictory statements or situations reveal a
reality that is different from what appears to be true. There are many forms of
irony featured in literature. The effectiveness of irony as a literary device depends
on the reader’s expectations and understanding of the disparity between what
“should” happen and what “actually” happens in a literary work. This can be in the
form of an unforeseen outcome of an event, a character’s unanticipated behavior,
or something incongruous that is said.

26. Example
– Many common phrases and situations reflect irony. Irony often stems from an
unanticipated response (verbal irony) or an unexpected outcome (situational irony).
Here are some common examples of verbal and situational irony:
– Verbal Irony
– Telling a quiet group, “don’t everybody speak all at once”
– Coming home to a big mess and saying, “it’s great to be back”
– Telling a rude customer to “have a nice day”
– Walking into an empty theater and asking, “it’s too crowded”
– Stating during a thunderstorm, “beautiful weather we’re having”

27. – An authority figure stepping into the room saying, “don’t bother to stand or
anything”
– A comedian telling an unresponsive audience, “you all are a great crowd”
– Describing someone who says foolish things a “genius”
– Delivering bad news by saying, “the good news is”
– Entering a child’s messy room and saying “nice place you have here”

28. Oxymoron
– Oxymoron is a figure of speech pairing two words together that are opposing
and/or contradictory. This combination of contrary or antithetical words is also
known in conversation as a contradiction in terms. As a literary device,
oxymoron has the effect of creating an impression, enhancing a concept, and
even entertaining the reader.
– The phrase original copy is a good illustration of an oxymoron. This is a pairing
of opposing words that contradict each other. If something is original, then it is
not a copy. In turn, if something is a copy, then it is not original. Yet, original
copy as an oxymoron commonly and figuratively means that the content of the
copy is original.

29. – Only choice
– Same difference
– Friendly fire
– Virtual reality
– Controlled chaos
– Freezer burn
– Silent scream
– Terribly good
– Wise fool
– Close distance
– Stiff drink
– Black light

30. – Clearly confused
– Genuine fake
– Living history
– Exact estimate
– Quiet roar
– Student teacher
– Passive aggressive
– Smaller half
– Magical realism
– Loyal opponent
– Random Order
– Live recording
– Jumbo shrimp

31. STANZA
– stanza is a set of lines in a poem grouped together and set apart from other
stanzas in the poem either by a double space or by different indentation. Poems
may contain any number of stanzas, depending on the author’s wishes and the
structure in which the poet is writing. However, there are many strict poetic
forms that designate the exact number of stanzas,
– In general, it is easy to think of stanzas in poems as being equivalent to
paragraphs in prose. That is to say that both stanzas and paragraphs contain
related information, while new thoughts and concepts become the next stanza
or paragraph. In some poems stanzas have regular meter and rhyme, though
this is by no means a requirement for all stanzas in poetry.

32. – Types of Stanzas
– While there are many dozens of obscure forms, here are a few common stanza
examples:
– Closed Couplet: A stanza of 2 lines, usually rhyming
– Tercet: A stanza of 3 lines. When a poem has tercets that have a rhyme scheme
of ABA, then BCB, then CDC and so forth, this is known as terza rima. One
famous example is Dante’s Divine Comedy.

33. – Quatrain: A stanza of 4 lines, usually with rhyme schemes of AAAA, AABB,
ABBA, or ABAB
– Cinquain: A stanza of 5 lines
– Sestain or Sestet: A stanza of 6 lines (when discussing Italian sonnets the
appropriate term is sestet; the Italian sonnet form starts with an octave and is
concluded by a sestet)
– Octave: A stanza of 8 lines in iambic pentameter or hendecasyllables, usually
with the rhyme scheme ABBA ABBA

34. Significance of Stanza in Literature
– Poets have been using stanzas in their works for thousands of years. Many
religious texts and works such as the Old English epic Beowulf are written with
stanzas. The purpose of stanzas, whether in longer works or short poems, is to
break the images and information into shorter pieces. Stanzas are also
important in formal poems in which there is a strict meter and rhyme scheme.
In the time of troubadours and oral literature stanzas had even greater
importance because they were helpful tools for the speaker to memorize long
works.

35. Forms

36. Ballad
– A ballad is a poem that tells a story, usually (but not always) in four-
line stanzas called quatrains. The ballad form is enormously diverse, and poems
in this form may have any one of hundreds of different rhyme schemes and
meters. Nearly every culture on earth produces ballads, often in the form of
epic poems relating to the culture’s mythology. However, the word “ballad”
typically refers to the relatively short lyrical poems produced by European poets
starting around the 13th century.
– In popular music, the word ballad can also refer to a slow, romantic, or
sentimental song. However, this has no significant relationship to the literary
definition.

37. Importance of Ballad
– Ballads are perhaps the most ancient of all literary forms – the earliest works of
literature that we know of are all mythological epic poems that tell the stories
of the culture that produced them. Today, a ballad is still a great way to combine
two separate forms of literature – like a novel or play, the ballad tells a story
with characters and a plot line; but at the same time, it has the meter and
rhyme of a poem. This combination of art forms lends ample opportunity for
creativity and individual expression.
–

38. Haiku
– A haiku poem has three lines, where the first and last lines have five moras, and
the middle line has seven. The pattern in this Japanese genre is 5-7-5. The mora
is another name for a sound unit, which is like a syllable, though there is a
difference. As the moras cannot be translated into English, they are modified,
and syllables are used instead. The lines of such poems rarely rhyme with each
other.
– Haiku became popular as tanka poems in Japan during the 9th and 12th
centuries. Initially, it was called “hokku” and Basho, Buson, and Issa were the
first three masters of the haiku genre. Haiku poetry is also full of metaphors and
personifications. However, this has often been argued against, since haikus are
supposed to be written on objective experiences, rather than subjective ones.
In English, several experiments were made in this genre as given below.

39. Features of Haiku
– It contains three lines.
– It has five moras (syllables) in the first line, seven in the second, and five in the last
line.
– It contains 17 syllables in total.
– A Haiku poem does not rhyme.
– Haiku poems frequently have a kigo, or seasonal reference.
– Haiku poems are usually about nature or natural phenomena.
– The poem has two juxtaposed subjects that are divided into two contrasting parts.
– In English, this division between two parts can be shown by a colon or a dash.

40. Example: Old Pond (By Basho)
– Old pond
a frog jumps
the sound of water
– In this example, we can clearly see two contrasting parts of the poem; one is
about a frog that is jumping, and second is about the sound of water. The
syllable pattern is also following a 5-7-5 format

41. Epitaph
– When somebody from our family, or a friend dies, we want to commemorate
his or her memory. For this, we use an epitaph, which is a brief writing or saying
inscribed on a grave. Generally, it is a brief composition, having figurative sense
in a verse or in prose form, written to pay tribute to a deceased person, or to
remember a past event.
– Strictly speaking, an epitaph is a short text on a plaque or tombstone, honoring
a dead person. It is derived from the Greek word epitaphios, which means
“funeral oration.” Many poets and authors, such as William Shakespeare, Sylvia
Plath, Oscar Wilde, and John Keats have written their own epitaphs prior to
their deaths.

42. Sonnet
– The word sonnet is derived from the Italian word “sonetto,” which means a “little
song” or small lyric. In poetry, a sonnet has 14 lines, and is written in
iambic pentameter. Each line has 10 syllables. It has a specific rhyme scheme, and
a Volta, or a specific turn.
– Generally, sonnets are divided into different groups based on the rhyme
scheme they follow. The rhymes of a sonnet are arranged according to a certain
rhyme scheme. The rhyme scheme in English is usually abab–cdcd–efef–gg, and in
Italian abba–abba–cde–cde.
– Sonnet: A poem with 14 lines; English sonnets have 3 quatrains with the rhyme
scheme ABAB and a closed couplet at the end, while Italian sonnets (also known as
Petrarchan sonnets) are made up of an octave and a sestet.

43. Function of Sonnet
– The sonnet has become popular among different poets because it has a great
adaptability to different purposes and requirements. Rhythms are strictly
followed. It could be a perfect poetic style for elaboration or expression of a
single feeling or thought, with its short length in iambic pentameter. In fact, it
gives an ideal setting for a poet to explore strong emotions. Due to its short
length, it is easy to manage for both the writer and the reader.
–

44. Types of Sonnet
– Sonnets can be categorized into six major types:
– Italian Sonnet
– Shakespearean Sonnet
– Spenserian Sonnet
– Miltonic Sonnet
– Terza Rima Sonnet
– Curtal Sonnet

45. Italian or Petrarchan sonnet
– Italian or Petrarchan sonnet was introduced by 14th century Italian poet
Francesco Petrarch.
– The rhyme scheme of a Petrarchan sonnet features the first eight lines, called
an octet, which rhymes as abba–abba–cdc–dcd. The remaining six lines are
called a sestet, and might have a range of rhyme schemes.

46. Shakespearean sonnet
– A Shakespearean sonnet is generally written in iambic pentameter, in which
there are 10 syllables in each line
– The rhyme scheme of the Shakespearian sonnet is abab–cdcd–efef–gg, which is
difficult to follow. Hence, only Shakespeare is known to have done it.

47. Spenserian Sonnet
– Sir Edmund Spenser was the first poet who modified the Petrarch’s form, and
introduced a new rhyme
– The rhyme scheme in this sonnet is abab–bcbc–cdcd–ee, which is specific to
Spenser, and such types of sonnets are called Spenserian sonnets.

48. Lyric

49. Ode
– An ode is a form of poetry such as sonnet or elegy. Ode is a literary technique
that is lyrical in nature, but not very lengthy. You have often read odes in which
poets praise people, natural scenes, and abstract ideas. Ode is derived from a
Greek word aeidein, which means to chant or sing. It is highly solemn and
serious in its tone and subject matter, and usually is used with elaborate
patterns of stanzas. However, the tone is often formal. A salient feature of ode
is its uniform metrical feet, but poets generally do not strictly follow this rule
though use highly elevated theme.

50. Types of Ode
– Odes are of three types, including
– (1) Pindar ode,
– (2) Horatian ode, and
– (3) irregular ode.
–

51. Pindar Ode
– This ode was named after an ancient Greek poet, Pindar, who began writing choral poems that
were meant to be sung at public events. It contains three triads; strophe, antistrophe, and
final stanza as epode, with irregular rhyme patterns and lengths of lines.
– Horatian Ode
– The name of this ode was taken from the Latin poet, Horace. Unlike heroic odes of Pindar,
Horatian ode is informal, meditative and intimate. These odes dwelled upon interesting
subject matters that were simple and were pleasing to the senses. Since Horatian odes are
informal in tone, they are devoid of any strict rules.
– Irregular Ode
– This type of ode is without any formal rhyme scheme, and structure such as the Pindaric ode.
Hence, the poet has great freedom and flexibility to try any types of concepts and moods.
William Wordsworth and John Keats were such poets who extensively wrote irregular odes,
taking advantage of this form.

52. Symbol
– Symbolism is the use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities, by giving them
symbolic meanings that are different from their literal sense.
– Symbolism can take different forms. Generally, it is an object representing
another, to give an entirely different meaning that is much deeper and more
significant. Sometimes, however, an action, an event or a word spoken by
someone may have a symbolic value. For instance, “smile” is a symbol of
friendship. Similarly, the action of someone smiling at you may stand as a
symbol of the feeling of affection which that person has for you.

53. – Symbols do shift their meanings depending on the context they are used in. “A
chain,” for example, may stand for “union” as well as “imprisonment”. Thus,
symbolic meaning of an object or an action is understood by when, where, and how
it is used. It also depends on who reads the work.
– Example:
– The dove is a symbol of peace.
– A red rose, or the color red, stands for love or romance.
– Black is a symbol that represents evil or death.
– A ladder may stand as a symbol for a connection between heaven and earth.
– A broken mirror may symbolize separation.

54. – Rhythm and its types
– forms
– Next class

55. THANK YOU
HAVE A GREAT DAY