POETRY CORNELL NOTES

The genre’s of poetry for study in unit 2:

Only copy the words in red

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

What are the major forms of

poetry for study in Unit 2?

BALLAD

A ballad is a poem that tells a

fairly simple story (narrative). It

usually has an easily identified,

powerful metre and strong

rhymes in an ABAB or AABB

pattern.

EXAMPLE OF BALLAD

“See how I'll leave, with every piece of you (A)

Don't underestimate the things that I will do (A)

There's a fire starting in my heart (B)

Reaching a fever pitch and it's bring me out the

dark” (B)

COUPLET

A couplet [CUP-let] is the

simplest form of poetry. A couplet

is a poem made of two lines of

rhyming poetry that usually have

the same meter. There are no

rules about length or

rhythm. Every two lines rhyme.

EXAMPLE OF A COUPLET

Humpty dumpty sat on a wall (A)

Humpty dumpty had a great fall (A)

All the kings horses and all the kings men (B)

Couldn’t put humpty together again (B)

EPIC

Epic Poems are long, serious

poems that tell the story of a heroic

figure. This genre of poetry is a type

of narrative literature that narrates

stories of mythological heroes.

LYRIC

A short poem with one speaker (not

necessarily the poet) who expresses

thought and feeling. Though it is sometimes

used only for a brief poem about feeling (like the sonnet), it is

more often applied to a poem expressing the complex evolution

of thoughts and feeling, such as the elegy, the dramatic

monologue, and the ode. 

ELEGY

In literature, an elegy is a

mournful, melancholic or

plaintive poem, especially

a funeral song or a lament for

the dead. In short, this poem is meant to be

sad and/or dark.

SONNET

A sonnet is simply a poem written in a certain format. You can identify a sonnet if

the poem has the following characteristics:

14 lines. All sonnets have 14 lines which can be broken down into four sections

called quatrains.

A strict rhyme scheme. The rhyme scheme of a Shakespearean sonnet is

ABAB / CDCD / EFEF / GG (note the four distinct sections in the rhyme scheme).

The ryhme scheme of an Italian Sonnet is ABBA / ABBA / CDE / CDE

ODE

An ode is a poem that is written

for an occasion or on a particular

subject. They are usually dignified

and more serious as a form than

other forms of poetry.

CONCRETE

A poem that visually resembles something found in

the physical world. A poem about a wormy apple

written so that the words form the shape of an apple

is an example.

One of the most common is the Diamond poem.

CONCRETE DIAMOND POEM

Night

Dark Empty

Vast Space Devoid Cold

Silence Death Decay Frigid Unsure

Faith Warmth Growth Life Music

Peace Joyful Bursting Potential

Bright Full

Day

Please come to the board and highlight what Night symbolizes in

this poem. What about death?

HAIKU

A Japanese poem composed of

three unrhymed lines of five,

seven, and five syllables. Haiku

poetry originated in the sixteenth

century and reflects on some

aspect of nature and creates

images.

EXAMPLE OF HAIKU

Torrent winds blow wild

Being stopped by nothing else

Like the love I mask

Please come to the board and highlight the word that

lets us know that there is a simile in this poem.