Poetic Elements and Structure

 

Formal Poetic Elements are elements that arise from the physical nature of words. Here are some examples and their definitions:

Rhyme -- similarity of sound between words

Alliteration -- the repetition of consonant or vowel sounds at the beginning of words

Meter -- rhythmic pattern created by the regular alternation of stressed and unstressed syllables. Here are examples of metrical "feet" (* = unstressed syllable, and / = stressed syllable):

Iamb = * /
Trochee = / *
Dactyl = / * *
Anapest = * * /

Thematic Poetic Elements are elements that arise from the conventional or symbolic nature of words. Here are some examples and their definitions:

Syntax -- the arrangement of words in a sentence

Tone -- the attitude of the speaker toward the subject; or the mood of the work

Reference -- that to which words refer; under "reference" one may include the following:

Image -- a concrete expression of something perceived by the senses, using simile, metaphor, and figurative language.

Symbol -- something that represents something else, the way a flag represents a country-implying not only another physical thing but an associated meaning

Metaphor -- an implicit comparison of an object or feeling with another unlike it

Simile -- a comparison of two things using the word "like" or "as"

Pun -- a form of word play that relies on the double meaning of words or sounds for its effect

Personification -- giving non-human things human characteristics or attitudes

Poetic Structure may be defined as the principles by which the poem is generated or according to which one element follows another.

Formal Structure is the systematic repetition or patterning of formal elements.

Thematic Structure is the patterning or repetition of thematic elements.

 

(From How Poems End by Barbara Herrnstein Smith)