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Lea diagrammes sulvants illustrent la mAthode. 1 2 3 4 5 6 »««OC0fY «fSOlUTK)N TIST CHAW (ANSI and ISO TEST CHART No. 2) 2J la la l^^g us 12.0 1.8 1.6 ^' iJPPUEDjVHBE '65J Eost Main Street (716) 288 -5989 -Fax £iy DOHALD G. FnENCH V ^ « POINTS ABOUT POETRY BY DONALD G. FRENCH (PuNCiPAi Cakadiam CoRKiaroMDiHci CoLLisi. Toronto Cakada) RIDGEWOOD, N. J. THE EDITOR COMPANY 1 910 COPTKIOBT, 19 lO ■T THE EDITOR COMPANY FOREWORD The essa3rs which fonn the body cf this book are reprinted by permission from The Editor (A Journal of Information for Literary Workers), Ridgewood, N. J. They are the outcome of several years of reading, study- ing, and teaching literature — the latter both orally and by coirespondence. This book is offered to students of literature by a fellow-student with the hope that it may be a help to them in showing what to look for in a poem; it is pre- sented by a teacher of literature to fellow-teachers that it may serve in some measure as a guide to what is to be taught regarding a poem. And — this may be treading on dangerous ground — it is respectfully tendered to verse-makers with the suggestion that it may be of some assistance in pointing out what may be put into a poem. DoNAU) G. French. Toronto, Canada, February, 1910. 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS FOREWORD '*"■ CHAPTER I The Language of Poetry - CHAPTER II FiomiEs OE Speech in Poetky . *4 CHAPTER III The Simple Laws op Rhythm jo CHAPTER IV The Mdsic op Poetry „ CHAPTER V Tone-color in Poetry .... 3° CHAPTER VI Rhyme and the Reason ,. i 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER VII Vnss-rouis and Rbyice-scheiies '*5i CHAPTER VIII The Subject-mattu or Poetsy ^p CHAPTER IX The Mecbanish or Vekse -j CHAPTER X The PsYCHoiooY op Poetby 66 CHAPTER XI A Sttoy in Emotional Epiects .» APPENDIX A Recognized Teshs in VERsincAnoN gi APPENDIX B Books TO Read o. POINTS ABOl'T POETRY CHAPTER I THE LANGUAGE OF POETRY / I AHERE is not a distinct language for prose and _£ another for jjoetry, yet it is quite certain that words which are suited to the conveyance of plain, everyday information are not always fitting for the expression of poetic thought. Words are imporUnt not only for what they denote, that is, for the meaning which they of themselves actually convey, but also for what they connote, what they suggest. The simplest w„. Is of the language may convey the most beautiful poetic truth, may paint "the Ught that never was on sea or land," but the use of a word wliich is habitually associated with the commonplace, the mechanical or technical, will grate harshly on a cultivated ear. I'here is a vast difference in the poetic value of: A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard In springtime from the cucJtoo-bird, Breaking the silence of the seas Amid the farthest Hebrides. — Wobdswokth: "The SoUtary Reaper,' 7 8 POINTS ABOUT POETRY y and the foUowing lines found toward the end of the same poem: "I listened till /AarfwyyH/ And then I nounted up the hiU." This second extract recaUs the pathetic tale of Jack and Jill, and is of a very little higher order of poetry The Idea of suggestion affects not only the choice of words .a poetry but also the entire sentence structure A mere hint may serve the purpose which in prose" could be attamed only by a definite, clear-cut statement. Mence, the poetic sentence has frequently no exact grammatical structure, but may be a mere fragmen. --ckmg Its subject or lacking predicate. There Shakespeare, on whose forehead climb T^T"™" °' "" *°'"'''- Oh eyes sublime. With tears and laughter for all time! -Mks. Browning: "A Vision of Poets." The purpose of pro* writing is to convey facte; poefa^^conveys facte or truths plus feelii^s. This expnOEs-the prevalence of the exclamatory sentence in poetic composition. The difference in effect may be seen by comparing the statement, "This night is verv ^autiful," with the exclamation, "How beautiful Z The characteristic features of poetic language may be summed up as foUows: * ^ shotSSft;: "''' ''"''"' '° ~°''°" "''' '''"'«"*»« I THE LANOUAGE OF POETRY Q 1. Shorter forms of words. OJt have I leen at break of day. — WORDSWOSTH: "Lucy Gray." 2. Omission of particles, as the article, the relative conjunctive, infinitive: There never was (a) knight like the young Lochinvar. —Scott: "Mannion." 3- Frequent use of the possessive, even for inanimate objects: Crushed beneath the furrow's weighi. — BuBNs: "1o a Daisy." 4. Use of temporary compounds in place of phrases or clauses: His aU-accomplishtd maid. —Holmes: "My Aunt." II. In the attempt to get away from commonpUceness J>f expression there is found the use of: 1. Archaisms, or words or forms not now in general use, but whose meaning is intelligible: For thee who thus in too protracted song Hath soothed thine idlesse with inglorious lays. — Bwon: "ChUde Harold." a. Uncommon words for prosaic things: "At the church door they made a gathering for him." 3- Sparing use of coUoquial abbreviations, as 77/ don't, etc. ' 10 POINTS ABOUT POETRY III. To preKnt dear, beautiful pictures to the mental eye the poet uaes: I. Imagery, or word-pa" ting, comparative descrip- tion (this involves the whole subject of figures of speech, which reqmres separate treatment). The gemmy bridle glittered free, Like to same branch of stars vie see Hung in the golden Galaxy. —Tennyson; "The Lady of Shalott." a. The employment of epithet, that is, the use of the descriptive adjective. There are three classes of epithets: (o) The essential epithet, the idea being abeady sug- gested by the noun; as, "green pastures," " briny ocean," "bold Sir Bedivere," (where the epithet "bold" has become a par* of the name). (6) Decorauve epithets; these are used most fre- quently ard give life and color to the poem. The long white drift upon whose powdered peak I sat in the great silence as one bound; The rippled sheet of snow where the wind blew Across the open fields for miles ahead; The /or-o/ city towered and roofed in blue A tender line upon the western red. — Lampman: "Winter Uplands." (e) Phrase epithets, or the use of a condensed form of expression which would require a phrase or clause to convey the idea in detail So those brothers with their murdered man Rode past fair Florence — Keais; "The Pot c' Baail." I THE LANGUAGE OF POETRY 11 Here the word "murdered" really means "whom they were about to murder." IV. Uflguage is modified for the sake of sound; U>e general modifications exacted by meter and rhyme do not .ome within the province of this chapter, but we find: I. Names chosen for euphony. "Erin" for Ireland, Columbia " for America. a. Much greater use of alliteration and assonance The combmation of both these devices is shown in: "Aiiy, fairy Lilian, Flitting, fairy Lilian." 3. The sound in poetry more frequenUy correspond* to the sense. This aspect of poetry deserves a special study by itself, since the form and movement of poetry IS but a natural out^owth of the emotion and the ideas requiring expression. The study of poetry should be of great value to the would-be verse writer. Study it with a view to learning how It IS constructed, not that you may imitate, but that you may understand the main principles of poetic composition. This chapter aims merely at touching upon main features in which poetic diction differs from prose Simply reading it over may be helpful, but following out a course of independent research and study along the lines therein indicated wiU be of much greater prac- tic»l value. 13 WINTS ABOUT POETRY Sdocistions roi Study and Piacticc 1. Select example, from the works of «, different 7^' TT^ "" P"'"'* «'^" '" "-i. article. NotS Wordaworth Coleridge. Te„nyK,„, Kea.,. Brownie Chaucer, and Spenser are recommended .nrf .?**"!! "''*.•''""'' '° P"*. avoiding the rhyme and the words which are characteristically poetic. "On either side the river lie Long fields of barley and of rye That clothe the wold and meet 'the sky And thro' the field the road runs by To many-towered Canelot; And up and down the people po Gaiing where the lilies blow Round an island there below, The island of Shalott." idea ^*''^' ' compound word which will express the (a) A person who has recently arrived. (A) Covered over with ivy. (c) The panels of which shone with wax (d) The house which had been his familiar haunts. W Which have been newly discovered *'!:^'Z hT '''''"f "' '" exclamatory structure. (a) The duke struggled, rose from the block and looked reproachfully at the executione-. (ft) The impression produced on my mind will never be forgotten. uu win (f) Everywhere around you are evidences of a mysterious power. pent Dtr: ing. ■me he THE WNGUACE OF POETRY 13 S ^"*««n« «"nd, the people offered the prize. W The moon i. shining down upon the water. !r Ind ° T"*' I'""^ 'y ■"»'•"»« P*"'^'". verbs, etc and mdcmg the necessary change, in words to give rhyme and metrical form. (J'Z"a " *"" °' *'■""" °' '"«*P»'°" describing (a) a andscape covered with snow. (4) the same land -P« '" autumn dress. (.) .he same'lanLapeTspnllJ: Ju^^' *!i '^^l 'P'""" " P""'"' "hich might be^ .„ descnbmg: a lake, a mountain, a viofct. 8. Select a paragraph of narrative prose and write phras^puheu wherever possible for phrases or clau*, 9. Take a paragraph of prose and tmn it into poetry, usmg several aUiterated words ^ 10 (a) Select a line of poetry which is raoid in move- ment. Alter It so that the motion will be slow (4) Select a line in which the motion is slow and alter It to make the movement fast. CHAPTER n FIGURES OF SPEECH IN POETRY F CURES of speech a« used in poet^ chiefly to convey to .he mindconcrete pict^s^ Two dis! t net attitudes of mind must be realized-the in^ culd "k' "' '""°"°°'^- T*^" f°™- deal w^" facts and absfract calculations; the latter is impre^ nd^ctly The mdirect influence of the senses come, otms faculty that the poet must almost always appeal In h. own mmd the poet has definite though^ dear-cut pictures, and he uses figurative lanial to make his readers see eye to eye wl^h him. pS'aJy SSe 'r' °' ^'^^' ""^ '" P-^ •>-« their 3 wjthe one common purpose of conveying an idea « Sav^theTrT- ^' '" ^"^ ^'='''" "-'- ' "^ The^ixtfrsJiri^:^^ «ntmg the object as like something £ witlf S Simile, which IS usuaUy introduced by the w^.^^ U FIGURES OF SPEECH IN POETRY 15 M, '■>, etc. The comparison must be made between objects o different classes so that there is conSsTas weU as hkeness. The poet seizes upon the s^ng helps to brmg out more strongly the points of similarity. Blue were her eyes as Ike fairy flax Her cheeks like ike dawn of day And her bosom white as ike kawlkorn buds that open in the month of May -Longfellow: "Wreck of the Hesperus," there is the concrete coloring of the flax, the momine dawn and the hawthorn blossom clearly presented ' re J K, ^ " /' ^'^^ ^ ''"P f""*"" ''nd bemuse of the England hath need of thee; she is a/« Of stagnant waters; a/tor, .awrf, and ten, Have forfeited their ancient English dower Ut inward happiness. -Wordswokth: "Sonnet on London." There are very many metaphoric terms, as altar for religioMconcrete for abstract), sword for war, pen Z irT"^^"- '''^""'*' '" P°""y ^"d '" prose. It is freely used ,n everyday speech. It has m^ varie"e Synecdoche, Metonymy, Personification, Allegory Tje' are but particular types of metaphor «°'y' *'""^- 1« POINTS ABOUT POETRY Synecdoche consists in putting part of an object for the whole (or the whole for a part), in seizing on the most conspicuous detail. Round about the keel with faces pale The mUd-eyed, melancholy Lotos Eaters came —Tennyson: " The Lotos Eatets." Here keel stands for the whole ship. Picture a vessel drawn up on the beach and consider what would be most prominent. But in "Thirty saU were seen off the coast," the sail, under these conditions being the noticeable detail, serves to represent the complete vessel Metonymy is a metaphor which presents an object by naming something closely associated with it In the extract from Wordsworth's somiet the metaphor a fen of stagnant waters" may be classed as a general ^japh^ whUe. altar, sword, etc., are e.mK Personification represents an abstraction as a living person: "nug In the fight was Death the gainer, Spite of vassal or retainer. -LoNGPEiLOW: "The Nonnan Baron." fJ\^'^°'^ ^'^'' '""^ metaphorical idea through the whole composition. The best-known allegory 1„ English hterature is "Bunyan's Pilgrims's ProgrL- 2?: '.V^S""^ ''""""^ "'""^ *3ueene." Tenny- FIGURES OF SPEECH IN POETRY 17 The Other class of figures of speech used in poetry have their ongm in the desire for strength or fo^ of expression. These are Apostrophe, Exclamation, and Hyperbole. / In Apostrophe absent persons are addressed as if present, inanimate objects spoken to as if they had life The strength of the figure lies in the realization of the objec* as concrete, living, and present. Milton! Thou shouldst be living at this hour. -Wokdswokth: "Sonnet on London." Hail to thee, bright Spirit! —Shelley: "The Skylark." This figure closely resembles Personification; the difference consists in the realization of the person or object as present, making a stronger picture. The Exclamation bodies forth the emotion of the ^aker, presents to the Imagination a concrete con- dition. Compare these two modes of expression and notice the wide difference in effectiveness. " But she is in her g.«ve, and oh The difference to me!" " But she is in her grave and It makes a great difference to me." In the second mode we have the thought fully expressed but in the first we have the thought plus the concret(^ condition— the emotion. Hyperbole is a sort of mental microscope. By multiplying the effect through exaggeration, the desired % 18 POINTS ABOUT POETRY clearness and strength of outline of the mental picture is obtained. " The waves rolled mountains high." In the use of similes these points should be ob- served: I. A simile is not a real comparison of like things: therefore, the simile should not be drawn from something which bears too close a resemblance to the object com- pared. a. The simile should be simple and natural, and to be so must not be drawn from something which has too faint a resemblance to the compared object. 3. The simile should be drawn from objects in keep- ing with the intellectual and emotional tone of the poem. 4. Make similes for the sake of clearness and not for the mere pui pose of making similes. In the use of metaphors: 1. Do not mix metaphorical and literal in the same expression or sentence; strive for unity of effect. 2. Do not mix your metaphors; keep to one point of view. Notice: " I bridle in my struggling muse with paj That longs to launch into a bolder strain." - The writer here began by comparing the muse to a horse, but in the second line proposes to launch it as a ship. FIGURES OF SPEECH IN POETRY 19 SUGGESnONS FOB STUDY AND PRACTICE ANALYTIC I. Select from poems by standard authors examples of the difiFerent figures discussed. 7. Select examples of similes that appeal to the imagination through the (a) sense of sight; (b) through the sense of hearing; (c) through the sense of taste. 3. Select three examples of comparisons which are not similes. Select examples of faulty similes and mixed metaphors and discuss their defects. 5. Compare the use of figurative language in Tennyson with that in Browning. Compare both with Pope. *H CONSTRUCTIVE I. Write original examples of all the figures given. 1. Take several examples of descriptions of incidents and put them into exclamatory form. Note the effect. 3. Select examples of apostrophe and exclamation. Turn them into ordinary declarative sentences. Note the effect. 4. Write a simile which appeals to the imagination (a) through the eye; (b) through the ear. 5. Write out a list of metaphorical expressions which you find yourself using in ordinary conversation. CHAPTER III THE SIMPLE LAWS OF RHYTHM THE demental laws of rhythm are few and simple; they are older than poetry; they existed before music. When man first began to express his ideas by means of sounds he was unwittingly pre- paring the raw material of verse; when his ear first appreciated the pleasant effect of a succession of sounds striking it at regular intervals, he had discovered the secret of rh; hm. When he uttered these thoughts by arranging these sounds to meet the ear with pleasing regularity, the first poetry of the world was bom. For poetry is but the music of words, define it as you will. It is the expression of ideas, emotions, fancies, always in rhythmical form. To trace the laws of rhythm is an easy matter. Away with dry text-books, and learned treatises on amphi- brach, choriamb, initial truncation, cataletic, acateletic, etc. Let us study poetry. Since rhythm is a matter of sound it is necessary that poetry be read aloud in order that this quality be appreciated. Take a few lines of Scott's "Lay of the Last Mmstrel"; read naturally, the words f^ apart into groups, thus: "The way | was long | the wind | was cold. The min- 1 strel was | infinn | and old." 20 THE SIMPLE LAWS OF RHYTHM 21 Read Portia's speech on Mercy in the Trial Scene of the "Merchant of Venice." Notice aiiin the group- ing: "The qual- 1 ity | of mer- 1 cy is | not strained, It drop- Ipeth as | the gen- |tle rain | from heaven;" orinPoe's"Raven": "Once up- 1 on a I midnight | dreary While 1 1 pondered | wealt and | weary;" or this from Tennyson: "Brealclbreaklbrealc On thy cold | gray stones | O, sea And I would | that my tongue | could utter The thoughts | that arise | m me." What is the basis of this grouping? Merely the fact that each group requires the same length of time for utterance. In the first quotation we find four distinct groups to each line, each requiring equal time for utterance. There may be one, two, or three syllables in each time- group. In the last extract the time occupied in utter- ing the monosyllable "Break" (or filled in by a pause) is the same as that occupied in the utterance of the three-syllable group "on thy cold," or the two-syllable groups "gray stones," "O, sea." Time, then, is the first law 0/ rhythm. Going back to the fundamental law of language we find that the simplest grouping of soimds to express ideas forms a word of one syllable — the syllable is the unit of utterance. But the force of utterance of every 1i !l 22 POINTS ABOUT POETRY syllable is not the same. The vocal chords are not capable of uttering a continuous stream' of sounds of equal strength. In each group of uttered syllables we notice a certain stress of voice on certain syllables, and a slighter vocal impulse in the utterance of others. Referring again to the first quotation, this stress will be found on "way, loog, wind, cold, min-, was, -firm, old." In the third extract the stress will be found to come on the first syllable of each group, "once, on, mid, drear." The first line of the last extract shows a single stressed syllable filling out each time-group. In the second line the stress falls on the last word of each group. This stress or accent is found to come at regular time- intervals. It serves to mark off the time-groups. This is the second law of rhythm. And now we have them all, for all variations of metrical form are based, first in time of utterance of sounds, and, secondly, on the regular recurrence of aaented syllables. The examination of a ntmiber of extracts will show that the number of syllables in the time-group may vary from one to three; that the accent may fall on any syllable of the group, but it must, as a rule, continue regular throughout the poem, that is, either regularly falling on the first syllable, or always, in the particular poem, on the third syllable, or on the second, but not first on one syllable and then on the other. The term meter is usually applied to the marking off of the lines of poetry into time-groups or feet. The mere doing of this in the usual academic manner, like the chopping up of fagots with a hatchet, is colorless THE SIMPLE LAWS OF RHYTHM 23 and utterly useless. The rhythm of a poem is really the lilt of the musical air. It expresses the time and accent of the tune but not the pitch. This may be shown by taking the above selection from Tennyson and representing it thus: W I la' I la' U la la' |Ia la' { la la' U la la' I la la la' I la la' la la' I la la la' | la la'. Giving due consideration to relative time and accent we here have the rhythm apart from the poem itself — that is, we have the bare lilt of the tune. The correctness of this interpretation of rhythmic laws is proved by the methods of the poets themselves. Tennyson tells us that the peculiar meter of the "Charge of the Light Brigade" had its origin in his hearing or reading the phrase, " Someone had blundered." This gave the impulse that somehow created in his mind the rhjrthm which so aptly pulses through the poem. Bums, one of the world's sweetest singers, knew probably nothing about the technicalities of versification. His songs were built upon the rhythm-, of the tenderest of old Scottish airs. itil Suggestions for Study and Practice I. Select examples of two-syllable meter (o) with accent on first syllable of the groups, (6) with accent on second syllable. Divide off the groups and mark the accents. 3. Select examples of three-syllable meter (a) with 24 POINTS ABOUT POETRY tccenta on first syllable of the groups, (4) with accents on second syUable, (c) with accent on third syllable. 3. Look up examples of each kind of meter, in which single syllables are lengthened, in to take the place of two or three syllables. 4. Try to write a couple of lines of original verse in each kind of meter. S- Take, at random, from a magLzine a stanza from a number of different poems and mark off the meter. Read the verse aloud and get the swing of the meter. Practice this with poems of standard authors. CHAPTER IV THE MUSIC OF POETRY MUSIC is the expression of emotion without woid* and may, therefore, arouse feelings of sadness, joy, peace, etc., without involving the concep- tion of any definite ideas. Poetry is the expression of emotion m words, and an attempt is made to pro- duce, as nearly as possible within the limitations of ordmary speech, the effects of music. This attempt is the basis of all forms of meter. Almost anyone can recognize the difference between the slow, solemn tones of the Dead March ard the quick, cheerful movement of an Irish jig: the dreamy music of the waltz is readily distinguished from the "ragtime" of the negro melody. The difference in effect is caused by a difference in the length of the notes used and the number grouped in each measure, and a consequent variation of the accent. The fewer and longer the notes m a bar the more solemn and stately the music, while several short notes in succession produce a lively effect. ' We find precisely the same thing in poetry; long vowels and short measures are in keeping with verse of dignity and deep thought; longer measures with shorter vowel unds produce a form of meter suitable to lighter themes. 35 }\ 26 POINTS ABOUT POETRY We need only to read aloud the lines: and "Break, break, break. On thy cold, gray stones, O Sea," "So this is your cradle, why, surely, my Jenny, Such cosy dimensions go clearly to show," etc.. to tell from the movement of the voice alone that the theme of the former is full of licep, serious emotion, and that the latter is an extract from something light and humorous. Examine the metrical form in these quotations: the first line of the first extract has but one syllable to a measure; in the second line two syllables is the rule; the vowels are mostly long. In the second quota- tion there are three syllables to a measure and the vowels sounds are mostly short. Vou may refer to any poetical selections from goou authors and you will find that our rule invariably holds true. Wordsworth, in his disregard for form, gives us his sweetly serious "Reverie of Poor Susan" in lively dance time and thus spoils the whole effect. How can one feel serious in reading: "At the cor | ner of Wood | Street, when day | light appears Hangs a thrush | that sings loud; | it has sung | for three years?" The imitative harmony of poetry is usually the musical effect resulting from the variety in arrangement of long and short vowel sounds, changes of accent, and dif- ference in the number of syllables used in the measure. Every lover of poetry can collect abundant examples THE MUSIC r POETRV 27 of miuiral effect in poems. We will, however, cite here a few quotations which will further illustrate the points mentioned. In Tennron's Lullaby we find an exact imitation of the rockmg of the cradle. "Sweet I and loi | Swee't | and 'low, Wind I of the west | em sea." Observe carefully how the monosyUabic foot and what we might call the curve of «,und, produce a rhythmical movement which, aside from any idea con- veyed by the words, impresses a mental picture of the rocking cradle by imitating its sound In Longfellow's "Old Clock on the Stairs" the tick- Wg of the pendulum is imitated by a similar device. " For-cv-er | Nev-er Nev-er | For-ev-er." Tennyson in the "Northern Farmer" makes the old man speak of the canter of his horse thus: " Proputty, proputty, proputty, that's what 1 near em say." Can't you hear the hoof-beats on the hard road? The use of long vowels to give a slow movement to the verse corresponding to the sense, is shown in: "The long day wanes; the slow moon climbs; Ihe deep moans round with many voices." .'iji .1 41 Mi. 28 POINTS ABOUT POETRY Compare with the above the movement of: "Haste thee, nymph, and bring with thee Jest and youthful jollity, Quips and cranlcs and wanton wiles. Nods and becks and wreathed smiles." In Tennyson's "Bugle Song" the arrangement of accent changes in the last two lines of each stanza. First we have: / ' / / "The splen i dor falls | on cast |le walls." Then in closing: "Blow I bugle I blow | set the wild | echoes | flying Blow I bugle I Answer | echoes | dying | dying | dying." In the refrain the gradual falling of the stress of voice in the pronunciation of the words in each measure imitates the dying away of the echoes. With the stress falling on the word at the end of the measure this effect could not have been produced. WhUe in much poetry the element of music is greatly subordinated to the meaning, in none— except such as Walt Whitman's— is it entirely absent. Tennyson and Swinburne are masters of the art of infusing subtle music into verse, whUe Dryden and Pope give us a minimum of musical effect. The poetiy of the latter appeals more to the intellect, yet that of the former has a deeper effect since it touches the chords of human sympathy and through its music wakes to life our ten- derest emotions. THE MUSiJ OF POETRY 29 A Canadian poet-, i.ss Carm.m-. ays, "The measure ofve^e has an influx, eon us be.ond our trn 1 Jet z::?'''''"^-: " "'"'• '"-- ■•"'° -2 verse, comes to us with new force." Suggestions for Study and Practice whth^''"",' '7 '■'"'' ^™™ ^'^'^'^ °^ "^ """"^r of poems stir ""'' "" '"°^"°"- -^-'^^ '"-^ ^MhTal ..Select a few lines from each of a number of poems ' the^hyZ.""^^ "' ''''''''' ■■" -~ An^y- rhvthm°H ' " ^"''^^"' '""""P'" °f P'^'"^ ■"" which the rhythm does not seem to correspond to the thouX Analyze carefully and note the reason ^ aWertZ'^^"^"""""'"'^^'^^"-- ^^ -""■ ^ffjf^ /^''"'"^ '^" '"""^ '"'^ ""d thought try the a 4£leT:;^:^^^""-°^^'-- --verse, using 'ive.nhSr^:;:r2::''^-^---^-Ha i I'J CHAPTER V TONE-COLOR IN POETRY ALL the musical effects in poetry are reducible to the one common basis — sound. These sound- effects may be divided into two groups. In music there is melody, i.e., the regular succession of ac- cented notes, with slow, quick, or moderate movement; in poetry ^there is rhythm with more or less differentiated motion. In music different qualities of tone are pro- duced by different voices or different instruments: in poetry the reciurence of like sounds produces a variety of minor sound-effects. The rhythm of a stanza cor- responds to the tune of a musical composition, and while the minor sound-effects are not by any means identical with the timbre of music, there is an analogy between the two wliich is recognized by the use of the term "tone- color" in poetry. A brief survey of phonetics will be useful here. Let it be remembered that words are made up of certain sound-elements. In a purely phonic alphabet of the English language there would be forty or more indi- vidual letters, one for each elementary sound. With only twenty-six letters to represent these forty sounds certain arbitrary combinations have been found necessary. The letters used to represent these sounds are divided into two groups, vowels and consonants. For our 30 TONE-COLOR IN POETRY 31 purpose it is important to note that the vowel sounds are produced almost entirely by the action of the vocal chords and thus admit of a greater variation of effects than is possible with the consonants. The vowels are open sounds; the consonant sounds are formed with the aid of the tongue, the lips, teeth, etc. They differ among themselves in ease of utterance. They are frequently classed as follows: Liquids: /, m, n, r. Aspirates: h, y, g (soft). Sibilants: s, or c {soft). Labials: p, b, ph,f or v. Palatals: k (or c, hard), g (hard), ch (guttural). Linguals: t, d. The liquid sounds give the smoothest effects, the sibilants quicken tH lovement, guttural .tunds pro- duce harsh effects. >' . ; in: A land where all tnings always seemed the same. And round about the keel with faces pale The mild-eyed, melancholy Lotos Eaters came. —Tennyson: "The Lotos Eaters." the prevalence of the sounds /, m, n, r, and the consequent smooth and monotonous effect. The commonest variety of tone-color is rhyme. This is the repetition of like sounds at the end of different lines of a poem. It may be purely a vowel-likeness as in single rhyme ending with jT vowel sound. There she weaves by night and day A magic web with colors gay. —Tennyson: "TheUdy of Shalott"— '•■I 32 POINTS ABOUT POETRY or it may be both consonantal and vowel resemblance: What objects are the fountains Of thy happy sirainf What field or waves or mountains? What shapes of sky or plain? —Shelley: " To a Skylark." A rhyme must always contain a consonantal con- trast as above, / and m in fountains and mountains. There is always a close relation between the rhyme and thought of a poem. When the poet attempts to convey to us his own emotions, he plays upon the inner chords of our natures and tunes us to the mood of his own thoughts. Thus lyric poetry is almost always rhymed. But the poet may aim chiefly at telling a story. He may do this by direct narrative, or he may create his characters and let them enact the plot. The emotional effect is produced not so much by what is said as by what is suggested. Hence in epic and dramatic poetry rhyme is generally absent. f. Alliteration is the repetition of like consonantal sounds in words occurring at different points in a line of poetry. These sounds may be either initial or in- ternal. Initial alliteration is the head-rhyme of early Anglo-Saxon poetry. The usual type had two aUitera- tions in the first half of the line and one in the second. Some lines from Beowulf, the early Saxon epic, by careful translation show this: I. Grendel going, God's anger bare. a. The floater foamy-necked to a fowl most like. 3. Noisome night and northern wind. TONE-COLOR IN POETRY 33 Initial alliteration is present in almost all English verse. The alliterated syllables are usually accented. The vowel sounds foUowing the consonants almost always different, so that the contrasted vowel-effect heightens the consonantal similarity. Examine these lines: With lisp of leaves and ripple of rain.— Swinburne. The bare black cliff clanged round him .—Tennyson. Internal alliteration is not quite so noticeable as head- rhyme, but it is frtdly used. It bears a closer relation to rhyme. Examples are: Stinging, ringing, spindrift, nor the fulmar flying free. — KiPUNO. Here the syllable ing is repeated. Murmuring fror Glaramara's Inmost caves. —Wordsworth. The alliterations are: mur, mur, and ara, ara. A careful study of examples and reference to the table of consonantal sounds will show that if the allit- erated sounds come from he same group the effect will be smooth and melodir-is, but if they are taken from sharply contrasted gro j.;, the impression of harshness will result. Assonance is the repetition of like vowel sounds throughout the lines of a stanza. In some cases it is closely woven with alliteration, in others it resembles rhyme. It is a quality which has received but little attention from writers on versification, but a careful study of poetry will show that this variety of tone- Mil 34 POINTS ABOUT POETRY color is much used, although its effects are so unob- trusive as to escape casual observation. Deep on the convent roof the snows Are sparkling to the moon: My breath to heaven like vapor goes, May my soul follow soon. —Tennyson: "St. Agnes Eve." T'le deep, soft, organ-like tones of this passage will be found to result from the i)lay upon the various sounds of the letter o, because assonance does not imply merely the repetition of identical sounds, but the use of cognate sounds, i.e., those which are nearly alike. The sounds of o may be represented as aw, oh, oo. These are found in: on, convent, roof, snows, to, moon, to, vapor, goes, soul, follow, soon. Examine also: Hear me, for I will speak and build up all My sorrow with my song, as yonder walls Rose slowly to a music slowly breathed. —Tennyson: "Oenone." The musical tones are o and e. Again, the exquisite vowel-music in: O Sweet! To-day thou art all my own; No dank winds blast Love's outward cast: O Sweet! To-day thou art all my own. —J. D. Logan: "Mezzotints of Love." The play here being on the vowel sounds o and a. In assonance we have the closest approach to pitch in TONE-COLOR IN POETRY 35 music that is possible within the scale of tones of the common conversational voice. Onomatopoeia, or the correspondence of the sound of a word to its meaning, is not primarily a poetic device: it is the application of one of the fundamental laws of language. Since our ideas are conveyed by concrete sounds which are represented by written symbols, it is but natural that the word should be an attempt to reproduce the sound which is represented. Thus we get: clang, buzz, bang, etc. ■ In poetry this onomatopoetic device is carried much farther, and extends often to the whole movement of a line, a stanza, or a complete poem. Proputty, proputty, proputty; that's what I hear 'em say. — Tennyson: "The Northern Farmer.". This imitates the canter of the horse. Browning's "Ride from Ghent to Aix" is a gallop throughout: so, too, "John Gilpin," by Cowper. Repetition of whole lines is another device in tone- coloring. Sometimes this occurs regularly at the end of the stanza and is then called a refrain (or burden). The general effect is to impress strongly the particular mood of the poem, for example, read "Oriana," " The Sands o' Dee," "The Bells," "The Raven," "The Bugle Song." The student of poetry who fails to cultivate an ap- preciation of the niceties of tone-color will miss much of the melody and harmony of verse; the writer of verse who understands not .ae simple principles which under- t J W POINTS ABOUT POETRY Me iJl these delicate musical effects wiU grope lonir and blindly for the proper chords. Suggestions for Study and Practice 1. Collect examples of different kinds of rhyme and observe the relation between the rhyme and the thouRht or mood of the poem. 2. Read the speeches of Brutus and Antony on the Death of Caesar in Shakespeare's "Julius Cssar" and account for the difference in form. 3- Read Browning's "Last Duchess" and say why the rhyme is scarcely noticeable. 4. Study alliteration and assonance in the poetry of Shakespeare, Milton, Coleridge, Tennyson, Swinburne. S- For the choice of harsh combinations read Brown- ing "Up at a Villa," "Childe Roland," "Epistle to Karshish," etc. 6. Collect examples of onomotopoeia and refrains. 7- Take an extract containing harsh sounds, and rewrite it to make it musical. 8. Select a passage of figurative prose and turn it mto verse, using alliteration. 9- Select a stanza of magazine verse and improve It by the use of assonance. lo. Rewrite a short poem, adding a suitable refrain. CHAPTER VI RHYME AND THE REASON THE repetition of similar sounds always adds to the musical effect of verse. When these are found at the end of the line, we have rhyme. This rhyme may consist of one or more syllables. The initial consonants must be different, but all sounds after the consonants, alike; to prodiue effective rhyme there must be contrast as well as similarity. The repetition of identical sounds is not rhyme; falls rhymes with ivalls, but air and heir do not make a rhyme. Rhyme always emphasizes in meaning somewhat the words on which it falls. In a rhyming couplet the force of the second word is usually a little stronger than the first; hence that ^vord should be more important in meaning. Single Rhyme.— The simplest form of rhyme is the coincidence of sound in words of one syllable: There she weaves by night and day A magic web with colors gay She has heard a whisper say A curse is on her if she slay To look down to Camelot. — Tfnnyson: "The Lady of Shalott." This kind of rhyme is the commonest for the simple reason that it is easier to find rhymes for monosyUabic 37 ! i I ! .; J I • .(I • If ' I. ». a, 3. 2, 3, 3. The ninth line contams an extra foot and thus adds a stately swing to the whole stanza. VERSE-FORMS AND RHYME-SCHEMES 45 Compared with the Ottava Rima its greater variety of rhyme enhances the melodic effect: There was a sound of revelry by night, And Belgium's capital had gathered then, Her Beauty and her Chivalry and bright The lamps shone o'er fair women and brave men; A thousand hearts beat happily and when Music arose with its voluptuous swell. Soft eyes looked love to eyes that spake again And all went meny as a marriage bell; But hush! a deep sound strikes like a rUing knell. —Byron: "Childe Harold." The Spenserian stanza is also employed by Tennyson in "The Lotos Eaters." In long poems, particularly in narrative or dramatic verse, the stanza form gives way to a sort of paragraphic structure, the subdivisions corresponding to certain logical divisions of the narrative. The verse forms used in this way are: The Short Couplet: iambic tetrameter lines rhyming in pairs: There let the pealing organ blow To the full-voiced quire here below, In service high and anthems clear As many with sweetness thro' mine ear Dissolve me into esctasies And bring all Heaven before mine eyes. —Milton: "II Penseroso." The Heroic Couplet: iambic pentameter lines, rhyming in pairs. This is the favorite meter of the Pope-Dryden prose-poetry school of poets: i 46 POINTS ABOUT POETRY Hope springs eternal in the human breast; Man never is but always to be blest; The soul, uneasy and confined from home Rests and expatiates in a life to come. — Popk: "Essay on Man." The Alexandrine consists of iambic lines of six feet, rhyming in pairs. The English hexameter is unrhymed, in lines of six feet. It is slow and stately in movement and is an imitation of the Latin and Greek dactylic hexameter: Into the open air John Alden, perplexed and bewildered, Rushed like a man insane and wandered alone by the sea- side. —Longfellow: "Courtship of Miles Standish." Blank verse is the name applied to the unrhymed iambic pentameter which is much used in drama: This was the noblest Roman of them all; All the conspirators, save only he Did that they did in envy of Great Csesar; He only, in a general honest thought Of common good to all made one of them. — Shakespeabe; "Julius Cssar." The regular sonnet is a fixed form of fourteen lines, divided into two parts, the octave and sestet. It must deal with only one main thought or sentiment. In the octave the motive or theme is developed and the sestet is a sort of commentary or reflection upon the octave. The octave is a sort of crescendo passage and the sestet a diminuendo. The prevailing rhyme-scheme is i. 2^ 3, I, I, 2, 2, I, 3, 4, 5, 3, 4, 5. Lofty, concentrated VERSE-FORMS AND RHYME-SCHEMES 47 thought and noble sentiment are necessary for the mak- ing of a successful sonnet. The world is too much with us; late and soon, Getting and spending, we lay waste our powera: Little we see in Nature that is ours; We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon I This sea that bares her bosom to the moon; The winds that will be howling at all hours And are up-gathered now like sleeping Howers; For this, for everything we are out of tune; It moves us not. Great God! I'd rather be A pagan suckled in a creed outworn; So might I, standing on the pleasant lea, Have glimpses that would make me less 'forlorn Have sight of Proteus coming from the sea, ' Or hear old Triton blow his wreathed horn. — Wordsworth. Suggestions for Study and Practice 1. Collect examples of various Jtinds of stanzas, (o) from standard authors, (i) from recent magazine verse. 2. CoUect examples of different rhyme-schemes with similar stanza forms. Note any difference in effect. 3. Study the construction of several sonnets as to metrical form, and also as to thought arrangement. 4. Collect examples of over-run lines and observe effect. (Refer to Browning.) S- Break up a poem written in quatrains, six- or eight-line stanzas, into couplets or triplets. 6. Rewrite a quatrain, altering the rhyme-scheme. 7. Take some narrative poem in hexameter and throw it into ballad form. Hi 15 48 POINTS ABOUT POETRY 8. Take a poem written in quatrains and by changing the rhyme-scheme cast it in octaves. 9. Write a series of sonnets. 10. Draw up a sort of dummy of several types of stanzas, showing the syllabic construction of the measures. Then build up poems on these rhythmical dummies. ^- 1; CHAPTER VIII THE SUBJECT-MATTER OF POETRY IN the treatment of the subject-matter of poetry we recognize two distinct attitudes on the part of the poet. He either presents to us thoughts, and emo- tions regarding them, which originate within his own mmd or he tells us of persons and events outside of himseU. The first is the subjective treatment of mat- ter; the second, objective. Subjective poetry is Lyric wh.le objective poetry may be (a) Epic, in which the author narrates the experiences of the persons of the stopr, (A) Dramatic, in which he creates the personages and lets them tell their own story. The L.m of a story is always closely dependent upon Its meaning and matter. The typical lyric poem IS short, concentrated and strongly emotional. As the lync of earher times was always sung, usually by its composer, the modem lyric retains as much as possible m the way of musical effects. It has practically no limitations as to metric form and adopts any complexities of rhythm and rhyme which may be in keeping with the thought and emotion to be expressed. Objective poems are much longer and employ verse forms which wiU permit of sustained action without becoming weari- some to the ear. In many cases the rhyme is dropped as m heroic blank verse-the iambic pentameter-or in 40 m 50 Pi^.NTS ABOUT POETRY It;, lih; the dactylic hexameter. When rhyme is used, its effect is often subordinated by the use of run-over lines. As in subjective or lyric poetry the writer is at liberty to treat his own themes in his own way, it naturaUy foUows that the varieties of lyric poetry are incapable of any rigid classification. Epic poetry conforms more closely to regularity of form, yet even here the -.'ealth of subject-matter is so great and the aspects of treatment so varied that the classification can be made only in a broad way. I. The chief forms of Epic poetry are: I. The National Epic, which is usuaUy a coUection of narratives in the form of a song or chant, handed down from generation to generation and molded together into a connected poem. In this manner the Greek Iliad and Odyssey and the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf had their origin. The folk-song and ballad of later date are but modified forms of the greater epic; these are frequently lyrical as to metrical form but narrative in treatment. , a. Legendary poems: Layamon's "Brut, Chaucer s "Canterbury Tales," LongfeUow's "Evangeline," are examples. They are narrative poems based on historic legend. . 3. The Allegory. This marks a step toward original invention, instead of the reproduction of past occurrences. The Allegory embodies certain moral teachings. The finest example in English literature is Spenser's "Faerie Queene." 4. Reflective poetry is the moral lesson without any aUegorical setting. This approaches too nearly to THE SUBJECT-MATTER OF POETRY 51 pure Mrmonizing to be of a high order of poetry. Ex- amples are Pope's "Essay on Man," and Cowper's "Task." 5. Descriptive poetry. This is usually combined with the reflective. The descriptive portion forms a very effective background or setting in almost any type of poem. Goldsmith's "Traveller," and "The Deserted Village" are two well-known poems of this class. 6. Pastoral poetry is a sort of combination of narrative, descriptive and dramatic. In it conditions of nature or society are described from the simple aspect of rustic life. " The Idyll " is a variety of pastoral poetry. Bums' "Cotter's Saturday Night" is a good example. Tenny- son's so-called "Idylls of the King" really belong to the legendary epic. 7. Satirical and Humorous poetry. The purpose of the satire is to ridicule persons or events and indirectly inculcate some moral lesson. Humorous poetry has partly the same purpose as satirical, but serves also to amuse. II. As lyrical poetry comes from and appeals to the feelings it may be divided according to the nature of the feelings aroused. The emotions may be (a), simple, the natural expression of immediate feeling; (6) enthu- siastic, from which arises the dithyramb or ode; or (c) reflective, in which the intellectual mingles with the purely emotional. The modem lyric belongs largely to the latter type, consisting usually of a descriptive setting with the moral reflection thereon. Considering the subject-matter of the lyric rather > 1] 52 POINTS ABOUT POETRY than the emotions expressed we have the following types: I. Th jacred Lyric, to which belong hymns, psalms, sacred songs and odes. t. The Patriotic Lyric, national hymn- expressive of love for one's native land. Narrative lyrics of war are included here. 3. Love-Lyrics. There is such a multiplicity of these that a book might be written in the attempt to classify them. 4. Nature Lyrics. These are usually of the type already described under the reflective lyric, although the ode, sonnet and other metrical forms are used. 5. Lyrics of Grief. The elegy deals with grave problems of life and death in a general way; the threnody commemorates the death of an individual. Gray's Elegy is well known. Milton's "Lycidas" abd Ten- nyson's " In Memoriam," are examples of the threnody. 6. Convivial Lyrics deal with the praise of wine o' good-fellowship. For examples see Thomas Moo'; and Robert Bums. 7. Didactic Lyrics. To this class belong poems where the moral application is the strong feature. The appeal to the emotions is almost entirely absent. The metrical treatment is lyrical, but from a literary stand- point it is only a short remove from actual prose. Observe here Wordsworth'- "Ode to Duty.' Just how far reflection should lead toward the didactic depends upon its naturalness; when we feel that the writer has chosen the subject in order to follow out a certain theme — when in a sense the writer starts out with a text — THE SUBJECT-MATTER OF POETRY 63 we ore likely to object to being preached at. On the other hand many popular poems of a reflective char- acter teach just as certainly some moral lesson, but they are constructed so as to lead the reader naturally up to the reflection of his own accord. 8. The Lyrical Ballad somewhat re.scmbles ihe Folk- song, but is individual in its nature. The personal touch of the writer is plainly noticeable. Soir.e examples are Longfellow's "Old Clock on the Stairs," "The Warden of the Cinque Ports." Ill Dramatic poetry may embody qualities of the epic and lyric, but it is more impersonal than either. The poet may tell us his story while we sit round in an imaginary circle and listen; but the dramatist must create his characters and let them act out the story while he remains invisible. The events of the action must be the natural outcome of the character of the persons concerned in that action — the deeds must be consistent with the personality of the author and a distinct thread of cause and effect must unite all the subordinate incidents of the drama. In form, a dramatic poem may be dialogue partici- pated in by many characters, or it may be monologue, in which the speech of a single person conveys the whole story. As to subject-matter and emotional effect, dramatic poetry is divided into tragedy and comedy. In tragedy there is a conflict and final overthrow of some indi'-'dual; in comedy, there are obstacles and complications, the overcoming of which causes amusement and not pathetic emotions as in tragedy. No drama is, however, all 64 POINTS ABOUT POETRY tragic, ai the emotional effect is usually relieved and lightened by the introduction of comic situations and effects. On the other hand the obstacles which are necessary, as the plot-interest of comedy, often approach perilously near to pathos and tragedy. Much drama is not poetry, but prose. Tragedy is usually written in verse, comedy frequently employs prose. , • V ii; Suggestions for Studv and Practice 1. Study Tviems which are types of the various classes here discussed. Read at least a portion of an English translv.-on of the "Iliad," the "Odyssey," "Beowulf," aid dummarize the story. Read Milton's "Paradise Lost," Book I. Study the metric form in all details. Draw up a synopsis of the story. 2. Study carefully and classify under proper head- ing: "The Star-Spangled Banner"; "Nearer, My God to Thee"; "Highland Mary"; "Battle of the Baltic"; Bums' "To a Mouse"; Shelley's "To a Skylark'; Gray's"Bard"; Longfellow's "Hiawatha"; Tennyson's "Vision"; Tennyson's "Dora"; Longfellow's "Wreck of the Hesperus"; Lowell's "Biglow Papers." 3. Take some lyric of reflection and trace out (a) the descriptive setting, (6) the moral lesson. 4. Classify several poems which have appeared re- cendy an magazines. Draw up an outline of the metric form and a synopsis of the thought or story. 5. Read Shakespeare's" Julius Caesar" or"Macbeth" as an example of Tragedy, and "The Tempest" or THE SUBJECT-MATTER OF POETRY S5 "As You Like It," as example of Comedy. Make a study of the chief characters and note in what respect the action is a result of the character of the personaf i. of the play. Observe the use of prose in these p\t,- in certain scenes ar^ account for it. Draw up an out- line of the main and subordinate actions and show the unity. 6. Describe a calm, moonlight scene, and add a moral lesson, thus making a reflective lyric. (For a model, refer to Longfellow's, "The Bridge.") 7. Write a narrative poem, taking your subject some event in the history of your nation. (Use ballad form.) 8. Write a short, humorous poem basing it on some humorous sketch in the joke column of a magazine or newspaper. 9. Write a commemorative ode for some national holiday. 10. Write a dramatic monologue. (For model see Browning's, "My Last Duchess.") CHAPTER IX THE MECHANISM OF VERSE IN a recently published volume of poems (Preludes by John Daniel Logan: William Briggs, Toronto), the author includes an essay on verse-making. He says: "The strictly musical element in verse is not a certain quality in the tones of the syllable or of the rhymes, but primarily rhythm. Just as much, too, an efficient means to the actual process of poetical com- position is not imagination and knowledge, but a rhythm actually singing itself persistently in the mind." He recommends as an aid to verse-making, the employ- ment of the " rhythmical dummy " and goes on to remark : "The dummy itself is a mechanical form. It had, however, a mental counterpart in an inward ihythm; and this inward rhythm is at the moment of composi- tion actually pulsing through the mind, or if not, can be caught up again by way of the rhythmical dummy." Now, the laws of rhythm are simply these: i. The units of sound (syllables) must be grouped together according to the time required for their utterance. 2. The time-groups are marked off by a regularly recurring stress or accent. The rhythm of any poem corresponds to the bare lilt of a musical tune and the rhythmical dummy is a device by which these time-groups and accented syllables are marked. 66 THE MECHANISM OF VERSE 57 Let us construct a rhythmical dummy of the stanza- form used in Gray's Elegy. Reading the stanza slowly, letting it break up naturally into time-groups, and mark- ing the accents, we get: The cu'r | few to'lls | the kne'il | of pa'rt- 1 ing day', I he lo'w- 1 ing her'd | winds slo'w- 1 ly o'e'r | the lea' 1 he plo w I man hom'e- 1 ward plo'ds | his wea'r- 1 y way* And lea'ves | the worl'd | to dar'k- 1 ness a'nd | to me'. The lilt or dummy may be constructed thus: Tra la' | la la' | la la' | la la' | la la' Tra la' | la la' | la la' | la la' | la la', Tra ii' I la U' I U la' | la la' | U la', Tra la' | la la' 1 1,- la' | la la' | la la'. The meter of this stanza is perfecUy regular, each verse (line) being exactly the same. The result is a monotone, slow and dignified in movement, in keeping with the feelings and ideas expressed. The only varia- tion from this form through the whole poem is the occasional addition of a syllable to a time-group, like the insertion of a grace note in a musical bar: Now fa'deslthe gli'm- 1 mer-ing la'nd- 1 scape on' I the sig'ht. Tra la' | la U' | la-la la' | U la' | la la'. The group la-la requires only the same time for utterance as the unit la. There is no reason why the ear should not recognize rhythms just as it does musical airs which it has heard several times. Here is the dummy of a rhythm found in one of Kipling's ballads: 68 POINTS ABOUT POETRY Tr'ala Tr'aUl Tr'ala I Tr'aUl Tr'aUl Tr'aUl Tr'aUl Tr'aU Tr'aU Tr'aU U'U U'Ul U'U I lU'Ul I U'Ul I U'U I U'U I U'U I U'U u U'U u' u U'U iU'U I U'U U'U U' U I U' U' U 1 U' u IU'U U' U 1 U' u lU'UlU' IU'U I U'U lU'UlU'. The words of the ballad run: .. 4. T Mt the Halls at Lumley, rose the vision of a comely Maid tt^n w°"*'PP«'l '»"-'"y' "*'**' "'* ''"" from afar," etc. Anyone who has read Foe's "Raven" can teU where KiXg got his rhythm: when he wrote this ballad he SSy used the rhythm of "The Raven" in buddmg up^ form of his poem; and, whether consciously or I,he employed the device of the "rhythmical dummy Compare the two poems; a line from each wiU suffice. X Onc'e up- 1 on' a 1 m'id-night | dr'eary, I as' 1 1 p'ondered . A's llr;;"'th:iH:^t''at|Lu'mley|ro'se the | Vision | o'f a I co'mely. The identity of rhyme-scheme strengthens the tone- resemblance of the two poems. But KipUng did not slavishly imitate Poe; in the dummy you find nothmg to correspond to the melancholy refram. Quo'th the 1 RaVen | neVer | mo're. THE MECHANISM OF VERSE 59 Kipling left o£F this refrain because it would not have been in keeping with the light, humorous spirit of his love ballad. We suspect that Kipling on other occasions practised with dummies built on the rhythms of other writer's poems. Compare: I. Wh'ere the | so'ber | co'Iored | cu'lti- 1 va'tor | s'miles O'n his I by'les; Wh'ere the | c'holer- 1 a', the | c/lone | a'nd the | c'row Com'e and | go'. — Kipling. a. Whe're the | q'uiet | col'ored | en'd of | e'vening | s'miles M'iles and | m'iles On' the I s'olit- 1 a'ly | p'astures | w'here our | s'heep Ha'lf a I sl'eep. — Browning. Let us see how the dummy will help us in constructive work. Taking the rhythm of Gray's Elegy as a basis, let us write a stanza about the warning of ships by a fog bell. The ideas to be expressed in the stanza are: The bell, as it rings, sounds a warning over the sea, through the mist, and we trust this warning will be heard by all who are sailing near this rocky coast. Here is the stanza: The be'U | rings ou't | its wa'r- 1 ning o'er | the se'a, Thro' mi'st | and gloo'm | it sou'nds | its boo'm- 1 ing n'ote. Oh, ma'y | its mes's- 1 age rea'ch | to a'U | that b'e, tTpo'n I this ro'ck | bound co'ast | in shi'ps | afloa't. Just here we may point out that the rhythmic accent must correspond with the natural accent, and also that »:5: 00 POINTS ABOUT POETRY this accent should faU upon words of some importance amd not upon connectives and particles, such as: a, the, of, to, etc. And also, the rhyming words should be words of rather greater value in the matter of expres- sion than the unrhymed words. Considenng these points, our stanza is, no doubt, rather weak in Us end- ing of the third line; grammatically, too, it is incorrect, "who be" should be written instead of "that be," but this would make a more awkward phonic combination. Since it is difficult to work in a suitable rhyme for "sea," let us change this to the word "deep": The beU | rings out | its wnm- 1 ing o'er | the deep. Thro' mist j and gloom | it sounds | its boom- 1 ing note. Oh, may I its mess- 1 age serve | to safe- 1 ly keep Those on | this rock | bound coast 1 in ships 1 afloat. Another method of composition is to choose a theme, and see how it wiU shape itself as to form. Suppose the idea to be worked up is: The modern poem is made up of a short descriptive setting, a few thoughts on love or phUosophy, and a moral appUcation. We wish, then, to write "The Recipe for a Modem Poem." It is not to be serious, yet hardly humorous. How shall we begin ? Remembering, ' ' First, catch your hare," we may start out: Ta'ke a | li'ttle 1 pa'tch of | Na'ture Tr'a la |la' U I la' la | la' la. The movement of the opening line is fairly quick, the unaccented syUable at the end being responsible for this. To quieten it down a littie, we can build the the next line: Tr'a U I la' la I la' U I la'. THE MECHANISM OF VERSE 61 ending with a foot of one long accented syllable. Put the "love" idea in here: An'd a | li'ttle | bi't of | lov'e, seems to follow very naturally. If we make our stanza a quatrain, we can now complete our dummy, as the meter of the third and fourth lines must be the same as that of the first and second. The lilt of the stanza is: Tr'a la | la' la | la' la | la' la Tr-a la | la' la | U'l a | la' Tr'a la I la' la I U' U I la' la Tr'a la I la' U I la' U I la'. Having taken some of the ingredients, we may now do a little mixing. Inspiration from the Divine Muses will be a good thmg — since we are not attempting to be original: Ta'ke a | U'ttle | pa'tch of | Na'ture, An'd a | li'ttle | bi't of | lo've; Mi'x it I w'ith some | in'spir- 1 a'tion Fro'm the | Go'lden i La'nd a- 1 bo've. The stanza is now completed — if you want any more ot ■■ I'he Recipe" you may finish it yourself. In adopting the rhythm from any poem you have read and using it as your own, you must remember this: thought, feeling and form are inseparable. Unless your theme corresponds in its development and in its mood to that of the poem from which the rhythm was chosen, your poem will be but a parody. Do we ever see the rh}rthm of: Break, { Break, | Break, On thy cold | gray stones, | O sea! 62 POINTS ABOUT POETRY used by any writer other than Tennyson? If not, why not? On the other hand, have you not read many poems based on the rhythm we have used in our "Recipe"? Why. is this? Just because we have here the keynote of thought and feeling upon which so many modern poems are based. For another example in proof of the relation of form, mood and thought compare: 1. It was late in mild October, and the long autumnal rain Had left the summer harvest-field all green with grass again. 2. The melancholy days are come, the saddest of the year, Of wailing wind and naked wood and meadows brown and sere. The poems from which these extracts are taken both voice the thought of the quiet of the autumn. In the second poem the calm is tinged with sadness, but this effect is accomplished more by the tone-color than by the rhythm. A question arises here: In employing any rhythm upon which to build a poem, what deviation from the form of the rhythmical dummy is allowable? In most cases, the only change permissible is the introduction of syllables to correspond to grace notes; a simple example of this has already been given. The number of syllables in a measure may vary from one to three. If the usual foot of the rhythm contains three syllables, one may be occasionally dropped: I spra'ng | to the sti'r- 1 rup and Jor- 1 is and he THE MECHANISM OF VERSE 63 If the Standard bar contains two syUables, the varia- tions may run from a one-syUable to a three-syUable bar. See quotation from "Break, Break, Break!" We must never forget that the basic principle of all .-hythm is Time. So many writers on the subject of versification have gone out of their way to prove that there is no quantity in the English syllable, no long and no short. It is quite true that there is not a fixed quan- tity for each syllable. Sometimes a syllable may be long, and sometimes in verse the same syUable may be short. On the other hand, it is manifestly incorrect to say that there is no quantity. In: Break, | Break, | Break, On thy cold | gray stones, | O sea! it is by a perfectly natural phonic law that the one syUable in one case occupies a whole bar, while in another case there are two syUables, and in a third, three. We cannot without some vocal exaggeration prolong the sounds, on, thy, or kindred words such as: Ike, a, of, but, in, etc.; nor can we in any natural manner shorten to the same quantity as on, the words break, sea, gray, stones. A vowel sound phonetically long may be con- sidered in versification as equivalent to two vowel sounds phoneticaUy short. It is only by a proper appreciation of the principle of quantity that one can tell to what extent it is allowable to vary from the rhythmical foundation of a stanza. Here are a few stanzas from a poem whose rhythmic unit is a two- syllable measure. Study carefully the variations from this standard bar unit: 64 POINTS ABOUT POETRY 1 stoo'd I on the brid'ge | at mi'dnight, _ As the doc'lu | were stri'k- 1 ing the hou r, And the mo'on | rose o'er | the ci'ty, Behin'd | the dar'k | church-tow'er. 1 saw' I her brig'ht 1 reflection In the wa't- 1 ers un'd- 1 er m'e, Like a go'ld- 1 en go'b- 1 let fa'lling And sin'k- 1 ing in' - 1 to the s'ea. And fa'r | in the ha'i- 1 y di'stance Of that lo've- 1 ly nig'ht | in Ju'ne The bUz'e 1 of the flam- 1 ing fur'nace Gleamed re'd- 1 der than' | the moo'n. _^ — I/)NOWLLOW. "The Bridge. This extract also illustrates very plainly what has been said about the relation between thought and form. It would, perhaps, be a very difficult matter to analyas the form of this poem to show just how the tone of med- itative melancholy persUts even from the beginning, although in the three stanzas quoted there is no hmt of anything beyond mere scenic description. The form of a poem is never an accident— it is a resuK. Suggestions for Study and Practice 1. Review "The Music of Poetry." 2. Review "The Simple Laws of Rhythm." 3. Read Edgar Man Poe's account of how he com- posed " The RaveT " 4. Draw up rhythmical dummies of all the dif- ferent stanza forms you can find. Study the moveissnt of each. THE MECHANISM OF VERSE 65 5. Review the chapters dealing with vene-fomu, subject-matter, and rhyme. 6. Write a short humorous poem. Choose a lively rhythm. 7. Write a short narrative poem, (a) Use iambic pentameter (blank verse). (6) Rewrite, using rhymed couplets; make your chief pauses within the lines. 8. Write a short description of a lake, river or land- scape, etc. (a) In prose, (b) Turn it into verse. 9. Select a theme for a poem. Jot down a number of ideas; then choose a suitable rhythm from some well-known poem. Make a dummy and follow it closely in writing your poem. 10. Select ten examples of faulty rhythm and make corrections. (For examples, look through newspapers and magazines.) CHAPTER X THE PSYCHOLOGY OF POETRY 1 r: ^T^HE mind is the man. So, in the last analysis I of almost every subject, we face the question, "What are the mental processes involved and how do they operate?" Already, in this series of essays, we have observed the two chief attitudes of mind, the intellectual and the emotional. The intellect is concerned with generalities, abstractions, scientific facts — with the problem of two and two make four, with the dissection of a flower into sepals, petals, stamens and pistils. The emotions are affected primarily through the senses by concrete objects and conditions — by the beauty of color and form in the flower and the spiritual truth symbolized thereby. The emotional attitude is essentially poetic. To influence the emotions with the written or spoken word, the poet must in some way reproduce concrete conditions, scenes and objects. Doing this involves on his part the exercise of the faculty of Imagination, and the same faculty must be employed by the reader or hearer in order to realize the objects presented. Compare these two illustrations: (i) A plain statement of facts: "The King of Persia at the batde of Salamis opposed the Greeks with a ea THE PSYCHOLOGY OF POETRY 67 large navy and a mighty force of men. He was com- pletely routed after a single day's fighting." (a) The imaginative and poetic presentation: A king aate on the rocky brow Which looks o'er sea-bom Salamls; And ships in thousands lay below, And men in nations; all were his! He counted them at break of day— And when the sun set, where were they? — Bybon: "The Isles of Greece." The first is general and abstract, the second specific and concrete. It is in this power to see clearly and to picture vividly in the concrete that the poet differs from the ordinary man — he has a more fully develoj^ed imaginative faculty and a more fluent manner of expression. But most ordinary mortals have sufficient of the imaginative power to realize what the ix)et presents; if not, they cannot appreciate poetry. They may have seen dimly: they may have felt vaguely— but "hen the poet presents a picture they can say,"I, too, have seen this";when he voices an emotion they can say, "I, too, have felt this." A.S Emerson says, "We need an interpreter. . . . We cannot report the conversation we have had with Nature. . . Too feebly fall the im- pressions of Nature on us to make us artists." The imagination acts, to a great extent, subconsciousl> All the sights, sounds, impressions and experiences pass to the inner recesses of the mind to reappear in some mysterious manner as, (i) Memories, exact re- productions coming without any exercise of will; (a) 68 POINTS ABOUT POETRY RecoUectiona, also exact reproductions, but called up as a result of mental effort; (3) Images, recreated objects or conditions, not identical in all details with what has been observed through the senses, but formed by the selecting and recombining of the material acquired from past sense experiences. It is in his power of imagining that the poet excels. And in this imagining, or process of imagination, he does not reproduce all the details of past sense-impres- sions. Nor does he select many details. He rather chooses the most striking features as they appear to him from a certain view-point. Examine carefully this poem: The frost that stings like fire upon my cheek, The loneliness of this forsaken ground. The long white drift upon whose powdered peak I sit in the great silence as one bound; The rippled sheet of snow where the wind blew Across the open fields for miles ahead; The far-off city towered and roofed in blue A tender line upon the western red; The stars that singly, then in flocks appear, Like jets of silver from the violet dome, So wonderful, so many, and so near. And then the golden moon to light me home — The crunching snowshoes and the stinging air, And silence, frost and beauty everywhere. — Lampman : ' ' Winter Uplands." This sonnet gives a clear-cut picture which includes the snowdrifts, the wide fields, the city, the sunset, the stars, the moon, snowshoeing — all in a few lines. It would seem impossible to get anything more into the THE PSYCHOLOGY OF POETRY 69 pictuie, and yet there is no sense of overcrowding, because in reproducing the scene the poe» ) their monotonous, lifeless white covering create a feeling of loneliness. Tht climatic L.onditions liarmonize with the mental mood. Certain concrete conditions, wiicthi r real and actual or presented imaginatively, almost ir.ar'aijlv give rise to certain emotions. This explains wli.it is called the atmosphere or setting of a poem. For instance: The day is cold and dark and dreary, It rains and the wind is never weary; The vine still clings to the mouldering wall. And at every gust the dead leaves fall. — LoNGTELLOW: "The Rainy Day." The mental picture of the cold, wet day, the moulder- ing wall, the dead leaves, serves to heighten the emotional effect which is certainly far from cheerful. These are the reproduced sight-impressions, but there are sound-impressions also; these are (i) imaginative, in the reproduction of the sounds made by the wind, (3) real and actual, in the employment of rhyming words which of themselves produce a drawn-out, sorrowful wail— dreary, weary, mMtfail. 70 POINTS ABOUT POETRY SimSarly notice the atmosphere of: The meUncholy days are come, the saddest days of the year, Of wailing wind and naked wood, and meadows brown and sere. — Bryaiii: "The Desth of the Flowers." In the "Lady of Shalott," when Tennyson shows how the brightness of the outside world forces itself upon the mysterious and secluded lady, he surrounds us, in imagination, with an almost overwhelming brilliancy: "The sun came dazzling thro' the leaves And flamed upon the brazen greaves Of bold Sir Lancelot. • * ♦ ♦ * The gemmy bridle glittered free Like to some branch of stars -ve se» Hung in the golden Galaxy. ***** All in the blue, unclouded weather Thick-jewelled shone the saddle-leather. ***** He flashed into the crystal mirror 'Tirra, lina,' by the river Sang Sir Lancelot." But when the curse falls, nature no longer shows a smiling face: "In the stormy east wind straining The pale yellow woods were waning, The broad stream in its banks complaining Heavily the low sky raining Over towered Camelot." THE PSYCHOLOGY OF POETRY 71 Shakespeare's plays a£Ford numerous examples .of the harmony of the descriptive setting with the psy- chological mood. As Duncan approaches Macbeth's castle, delighted with the prospect of doing honor to his brave general, everything pleases him. He says: "The castle hath a pleasant seat; the air Nimbly and sweetly recommends itself Unto our gentle senses." And the faithful Banquo feels, too, the benign influence and replies: "The guest of summer The temple-haunting martlet does approve By his loved mansionry, that the heaven's breath Smells wooingly here. . . . . . I have observed The air is delicate." But evil and darkness go hand in hand. Before the murder of Banquo, Macbeth says: "Come seeling night. Scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day; . . . Light thickens; and the crow Makes wing to the rooky wood." Black is blackest on a white background, and so we find emotional effects frequently heightened by the use of Contrast. This is the explanation of the psychological value of: (a) Contrasted ideas: "Dawned with haU of hale, the scorn of scorn, the lave of love." "Who, God-like, grasps the triple forks. And, King4ike, wears the crown." 72 POINTS ABOUT POETRY (b) Color-contrast: "Leading a jet-black goat, while-horned, white-hooved." "Dork faces pale against that rosy flame." (c) Contrasted moods: Compare the different sections of the Lady of Shalott. (d) Contrasted movement: Compare the rela- tion of movement to thought in: "The long day wanes: the slow moon climbs: the deep Moans round with many voices," wkh a few lines farther on in " Ulysses " : "Push off, and sitting well in order smite The sounding furrows." In the process of reproduction the Imagination acts in two ways. The first may be considered a visible mental process of the comparison of objects, ideas and their correlated emotions. This Associative Imagi- nation is fully exemplified in most of the extracts already quoted. In the second mode— the Interpretative Imagi- nation — the poet bridges over the intermediate mental steps and gives at once the spiritual value of the sensa- tional experience: Sweet flower! For by that name at last, When all my reveries are past, I call thee, and to that hold fast. Sweet, silent creature. That breathest with me in sun and air Do thou, as thou art wont, repair My heart with gladness and a share Of thy meek nature. —Wordsworth: "To a Daisy." ive^sstfjfmmsiiMi THE PSYCHOLOGY OF POETRY 73 Here the poet renders at once the spiritual character of the flower. There is no conscious application of the process of association or comparison. The law governing the reconstructive am' selective process of Imagination is that pictures and conditions must be produced which are consistent with knowledge and experience. When such pictures are not created, but improbable, irrational and arbitrary combinations are formed, we have the exercise of the faculty of Fancy. That arbiter of the intellr't, reason, should always be in the background keeping watch over the play of Imagination if proper results are to be attained. Suggestions ior Study and Practice 1. Select examines of poetry which appeal chiefly to the intellect. Refer to Pope, Dryden. 2. Compare the employment of Fancy in Shakespeare's "Midsummer Night's Dream" with the imagination as seen in " As You Like It." 3. Compare the vividness of imaginative powers of Tennyson and Browning. 4. Study the employment of Interpretative Imag-!- nation in Bums, "To a Mountain Daisy"; Wordswort'', "Stanzas on Peele Castle"; SheUey, "The Cloud." 5. Select examples of different phases of poetic atmosphere. 6. Select examples of different uses of the principle of contrast. 7. Write several stanzas on some subject, usinj; the principle of Associative Imagination. 74 POINTS ABOUT POETRY 8. Condense the above poem by rendering it by the use of Interpretative Imagination. 9. Write a short poem employing simply the re- creative processes of Imagination. 10. Write a companion poem to "The Rainy Day." Call it "A Day of Sunshine" and create an appropriate atmosphere. mi^i.:simfMnmssm J CHAPTER XI A STUDY IN EMOTIONAL EFFECTS NO very definite dassification of the emotions has been attempted by writers or critics. There are certain emotions which are elemental and which were as much a part of the mental experience of the primitive man as they are to-day of the most highly cmljzed and most cultured specimen of the human race-the emotions of love and hate, of envy, of hope and despair. For this reason the poetry of Homer appeals to us to-day as it did to the ancients. ) If some skilled psychologist were to trace out the laws and degrees of emotional effect in poetry, he would probably arrange a scale of emotions just as there is a scale of sound in music-a scale running from that spirit of Caliban, the earthy and gross, to that of Ariel, the spiritual and divine. The simplest emotion is purely sensuous; beauty of color and grace of form delight the eye; harmony and sweetness of sound charm the ear; poetry which stops short at this point-and much modem nature verse does-accomplishes little or nothing toward the mental or spiritual culture of the reader. Keats probably remains as yet the master in the appeal to the imagi- native eye, while Swinburne is the leader of the school of musician-poets. 7i 'i^m*m:m. 76 POINTS ABOUT POETRY This phase of poetic emotion is very frequently found in the work of the Canadian poets, as in: Miles and miles of crimson glories, Autumn's wondrous fires ablaze: Miles of shoreland red and golden, Drifting into dream and haze. —V'. W. Cahfbell: "Lake Huron." There are found critics of authority who claim th»t such work as this and such melodic chimes as, "The Bells," and "Annabel Lee," by Poe, are in the front rank of poetry. If, however, poetry is expected to be anything but the mere music of words; if it is to accomplish anything beyond the mere presentation of pictures and the re- production of sweet sound, the emotional effect must reach to something higher, something moral or spiritual in its application. Poetry which touches the moral or spiritual emotions is of higher rank than the purely sensuous because it can affect the will and influence the conduct of life. The moral suggestion in the purely esthetic presenta- tion of beauty is so fleeting and so intangible that it rarely accomplishes any definite results. Tennyson's "Lady of Shalott," is a poem which combines brilliancy of color, with delicious music, but the final effect contains no elements of strength; any definite application cannot be obtained without reading into the poem, as many interpreters of it do, something that the writer had no thought of putting there. On the other hand, "Ulysses," by Tennyson, is simple, even rugged in style, lacking many of the musical devices A STUDY IN EMOTIONAL EFFECTS 77 of the other poem, and yet how pregnant with moral suggestion and spiritual meaning! Unity of emotional effect in poetry is as imperative or even more so than unity of subject. The laws of music require that the musical composition must be all in tlie same key. Monotony is avoided by varia- tions of pitch. So, too, emotional effects must belong to the same emotional mood. Almost anyone can recognize the jar which comes at the last line of each stanza in: One said: Thy life is thine to make or mar, To Sicker feebly or to soar a star; It lies with thee— the choice is thine, is thine, To hit the ties or drive thy auto-car. It's all decreed: the mighty earthquake crash: The countless constellations wheel and flash: The rise and fall of empires, war's red tide. The composition of your dinner hash. — R. W. Service: "Quatrains." The individuality of any poet's work lies largely in the range of his emotional effects; back of that, no doubt, lie his own emotional experiences, real or imaginative. In Shakespeare we have as yet the greatest creative power and widest emotional range. The vividness of presentation of emotional effects is a most important factor in the poet's work. If we could all write what we feel, even the humblest of us would be poets of no mean order. Clearness of expres- sion is not the only requisite for vividness. Very often the most wearisome story-teller is the one who tries to pictiut clearly every little detail. Skill in seizing on mm 78 POINTS ABOUT POETRY the most suggestive features and arranging them in their proper perspective is necessary in securing force. The work of so great a poet as Browning is often obscured by this lack of perspective— the author failing to place his reader at the same view-point as himself. Such poems as "The Duchess," and "Epistle to Karshish," require a guide-book for their interpretation. The basis of tic emotional effect must be genuine. It is quite natu J that a little girl should cry over the mishaps of her dolly, but what about a grown-up who would do so ? ( Much of Byron's work, though forcible and at a time very popular, had its basis n the overwrought emotions of his disordered mind! ' The result is that, as the personal interest in him declined, his works dropped out of recognition of the reading public.) Wordsworth's work shows some incogruous emotional combinations. Take, for instance, "Strange Fits of Passion." 'Strange fits of passion have I known And I will dare to tell But in the lover's ear alone What once to me befell." This opening would not lead one to look for a partic- ularly lofty, impassioned love tale, but unless one lacks, as the poet did, the saving sense of humor, the climax is little short of the ludicrous. "My horse moved on; hoof after hoot He raised and never stopped; When down behind the cottage roof. At once, the bright moon dropped A STUDY IN EMOTIONAL EFFECTS 79 What fond and wayward thoughti will alide Into a lover's head I — 'Mercy,' to myaelf I cried, 'If Lucy should be dead.' " Contrast with this the e£Fect of a shorter poem by the same author: 'She dwelt among the untrodden ways Beside the springs of Dove: A maid whom there were none to praise, And very few to love. A violet by a mossy stone Half hidden from the eye! Fair as a star when only one Is shining in the sky. She lived unknown and few could know When Lucy ceased to be; But she is in her grave, and, oh. The difference to me." The quality of emotion is largely a matter of the temperament of the writer, the range is the result of his experience of life; but the unity of effect, the [;; vcr of picturing and the appropriate selection of the theme at the basis of the emotion are matters to be cultivated by assiduous study of the laws of emotional effect. Suggested Illustrative Readings 1. Variety of emotion: Shakespeare's "Hamlet," "Midsummer Night's Dream," "Macbeth," "Mer- chant of Venice," "As You Like It," "Henry IV." 2. Quality of emotion: Compare Shelley, Keats, Tennyson, Browning, Pope. 80 POINTS ABOUT POETRY 3. Unity of emotion: Trace through any of Shake- apeare's plays, especially his tragedies; Wordsworth's "Excursion" (defective). 4. Appropriateness of emotion: Byron's "Childe Harold," Dickens' "Death of little Nell." 5. Vividness of emotion: Shakespeare's plays, Cole- ridge's ' ' Ancient Mariner." 6. Select several examples of magazine verse to illus- trate the points of this chapter. ( - P' ^-vV ^- /. I ^ APPENDIX A RECOGNIZED TERMS IN VERSIFICATION F I WE terms used in most works on versification JL are borrowed from the metrical systems ol Greek and Latin, and as no accepted system of nomenclature has yet replaceu ibis, we give here the explanation of these terms: A syllable-group is called a Foot or Measure. An Iambic Measure or Foot is a standard syllable- group consisting of two syllables, the latter being ac- cented: The way | was long | the wind | was cold, The min \ strel was { in-firm | and old. This foot may, as shown in the chapters on rhythm and verse-mechanism, replace a two-syllable group with a single accented syllable: or three syllables may occasionally take the place of the two, the accent falling on the last. The reverse of the Iambic is the Trochee, or Trochaic foot — a two-syllable group with uccent on the first syllable: Art is I long and | time is | fieeting. MKROCOPY RBOIUTION TfST CHART (ANSI and (SO TEST CHART No. 2) i^n^ ^ /APPLIED IN/MGE Inc ^^- 1653 East Main Street — — RochMttf, Now Yorti U609 USA 'JSS (71o) 482 - 0300 - Phons ^= (716) 288 - 5989 - Fax 82 POINTS ABOUT POETRY There are three possible arrangements of the three- syllable group: I. The Dactylic Foot, having the accent on the first syllable: / / / / Hail to the | chief who in | triumph ad | vances. 3. The Amphibrachic, accent on the middle syllable: So this is I your cradle | why surely | my Jenny. 3. Anapaestic, accent on the last syllable: '^Tis the last | rose of sum | mer left bloom | ing alone. Some writers use the term Spondee to apply to two- syllable groups in which the length of the syllables is equal, but this in English versification is a meaningless classification. It must be borne in mind that the Latin and Greek system measured feet by their syllabic length, and in adopting the above system it must be clearly understood that time and accent are the governing principles. We cannot have in the same measure two syllables having equal stress. A line or verse of poetry is a combination of feet. Very rarely we find a line of one foot, occasionally, two feet; but an ordinary line in English poetry does not contain less than three or more than more than six feet. Sometimes lines are found containing seven or eight feet. The lines are named as follows: 1. Monometer, containing one foot. 2. Dimeter, two feet. RECOGNIZED TERMS IN VERSIFICATION 83 3. Trimeter, three feet. 4. Tetrameter, four feet 5. Pentameter, five feet. 6. Hexameter, six feet. 7. Heptameter, seven feet. (Examples of the various kinds of lines should be collected from works of standard poets). In giving the metrical form of a line, the kind of foot is named first; then the number of measures in the line, thus: Iambic Tetrameter, Trochaic Trimeter, etc. A Caesura is a pause in a line, required by the mean- ing. Sometimes it corresponds to the group divisions, but often divides the foot. And loved | him || with | that love | which was | her doom, II marks the caesura. A number of terms are used to indicate the omission or addition of a syllable under certain conditions. Nothing is to be gained by their use; all these varia- tions are but special cases of the general rule that the time of utterance for the groups must be the same. APPENDIX B BOOKS TO READ FOR those who wish to pursue the subject further, the following list of books may be found helpful: I. Winchester's Principles of Literary Criticism: a series of eight excellent lectures on Literature; spe- cially valuable for the discussion' of the emotional element, the imagination, the intellectual element, the formal element, and poetry generally. Gives a good appendix of illustrative references. 3. Hart's Composition and Rhetoric: a fairly good discussion of general terms in meter, and !i chapter on classification of subject-matter. 3. Preludes, by Dr. J. D. Logan, Toronto: contains two valuable essays, "An Epistle in Crit'cism" which will add much to the imderstanding of the psychology of poetry, and "The Rhythmical Dummy," which presents in brief the fundamentals of verse-mechanism. 4. The Musical Basis of Verse, by Josephine P. Dabney: leans a little too far in the direction of music and wastes time on an historical introduction, but is well worth study for its examples of movement in rhythm, tone-coloring, etc. 5. Genung's Practical Rhetoric: especially with ref- erence to the language of poetry and the use of figures of speech. 84 BOOKS TO READ 85 6. Barrett Wendell's Composition: read this for its explanation of the uses of words. 7. Sherman's Analytics of Literature: particularly good for the study of the art of the poets, and the man- ner in which the effects are produced, atmosphere in poetry, etc. 8. Gimimere's Poetics: rather heavy, but useful to get a general view of versification and poetic qualities. 9. The Poetic Principle: a study in verse construc- tion by Edgar Allan Poe. 10. The Science of English Verse, by Sidney Lanier. This is the most exhaustive study of rhythm from the standpoint of its relation to music. ,♦ ■41^' -