LESSON I. What Is A Poem?

A Lesson by Richard🖌

The Seven (7) Basics Of Poetry

I. What Is A Poem?

Introduction

Some will say poetry is the music of the written word. I would agree and add that like music, poetry has many rhythm forms. In fact, the highly respected James Knapp, English Professor at the University of Pittsburg, explains it like this:

"A poem is a composition written for performance by human voice. What your eye sees on the page is the composer's verbal score, waiting for your voice to bring it alive as you read it aloud or hear it in your mind's ear.

The more one understands about musical notation and the principles of musical composition, the more they will understand and appreciate the composer's score. Similarly, the more one understands of versification (principles and practice of writing verse), the more one is able to appreciate poetry and, in particular, the intimate relationship between it's form and it's content. What a poem says or means is the result of how it is voiced, a fact that poets are often at pains to emphasize."

"All my life," said W. H. Auden, "I have been more interested in technique than anything else."

T. S. Eliot claimed that, "The conscious problems that one is concerned with in the actual writing of poetry are more those of a quasi-musical nature in the arrangement of metrics and patterns, than that of a conscious exposition of ideas."

It is my personal contention that one does not have to chose technique over ideas, but that the truly accomplished poet becomes skilled enough that they can utilize both to compose amazingly effective poetry, and in fact, this is the pinnacle of what masterful poetry writing is all about.

Though, there are many schools of thought about this and on what a poem is, I'll keep it as basic as possible by saying, "Generally speaking, 'without form and definition', a poem is that which the writer and reader discerns and agrees a poem to be!" And, this can be broken down into an amazingly ineffective, almost endless, array of ambiguous definitions, ideas, opinions, philosophies, etc.

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Basically, there are seven (7) widely-recognized and used forms or styles of poetry:

1) Poetic Prose: unrhymed, unmetered, highly expressive, image-laden, deeply meaningful words of imagery, emotion, and metaphor, utilizing highly impressive word arrangements, in normal paragraph, indentions, capitalization, punctuation, etc; this is not Prose (normal talking).

2) Free Verse: unrhymed, highly expressive, image-laden, deeply meaningful words of imagery, emotion, and metaphor, utilizing highly impressive word expression, arranged in unmetered lines and verses, with well-timed line-breaks, grammatically capitalized and punctuated (but, in contemporary writing, this seems to be at the author's sole discretion).

3) Freestyle: intermittently rhymed, highly expressive, image-laden, deeply meaningful words of imagery, emotion, and metaphor, utilizing highly impressive word expression, arranged in unmetered lines and verses, with well-timed line-breaks, grammatically capitalized and punctuated (but, in contemporary writing, this seems to be at the author's sole discretion).

4) Unmetered Rhymed Verse: two (2) or more lines with end rhymes, without a set syllable count or meter, including Rhyming Couplets (2-line verses), Quatrains (4-line verses), Sestets (6-line verses), etc.

5) Metered Rhymed Verse: at least two (2) or more lines with end rhymes, and with a set syllable count/meter, including Rhyming Couplets (2-line verses), Quatrains (4-line verses), Sestets (6-line verses), etc.

6) Metered Unrhymed Verse: one (1) or more unrhymed lines, with a set syllable count/meter, including Blank Verse, Unrhymed Couplets (2-line verses), Quatrains (4-line verses), Sestets (6-line verses), etc.

7) Japanese Poetry: structured, metered, and unrhymed, including the Chōka, Tanka, Renga, Haikai, Renku, Hokku, Senryu, and Haiku, etc.

The novice, without benefit of lessons, understanding, and practiced skills in poetic voice, syntax, diction, metaphor, rhythm, flow, line-breaks, imagery, etc; all of the necessary, intricate refinements that magically turn common language into poetry, believes all she or he has to do to compose effective poetry is pick up a pencil and pad and scribble, or sit at the keyboard and type their thoughts, feelings, ideas, emotions … whatever they wish to say, in whatever way they want, or arrange it into some sort of poetic-looking physical format and it's a poem.

Most beginners are, by far and large, "innocently" ignorant that poetry is a true art form, and that like any other art form, it is based on and built upon a foundation of principles, rules, disciplines, and skills that define it as poetry, rather than merely fancy and/or appealing talking that many may simply relate to in one way or another.

Poetry is portraying the obvious, as-well-as the miraculous, in a completely un-obvious, miraculous way that swoons the mind, romances the heart, sweeps the senses, removes the world, and transports readers to the universe, into the past, the future, or on a journey through their own consciousness in a manner nothing else can … it is painting verbal masterpieces onto the canvas of the mind and into imagination … moving, steering, luring, captivating, enchanting, amazing, etc; the mind's-eye as nothing else ever has, will, or can.

This level of power does not happen by accident; nor, is it possible for the unenlightened, uneducated, or misinformed to accomplish … at least, not on the level and to the extent a proficient, practiced, accomplished, and truly skilled poetess or poet can.

In addition, many (perhaps, most) novice poets have little or no idea that the soul of poetry is poetic forms, or that poetry even has formats that make poetry poetry.

If you're a beginner, seek lessons from a skilled teacher before you develop poor writing habits that will be extremely hard to break, and if you are an experienced writer who lacks in certain skills you need to compose in the way(s) you want to, seek lessons from a skilled teacher … you can never go wrong when you do.

So, here we are, prepared for your next new lesson toward being that accomplished poet you always wanted to be: next, "What Is Meter & Why Is It Important?"

Be sure to ask any questions you might have, comment on anything you wish,

and/or anything you disagree with … discussion is the heart of learning.

And, by all means, leave feedback on what you think, feel, etc.

Please, share your thoughts and leave feedback, as this is

the only way I know if I've done poorly or well, and

I need your input to learn and grow from.

Thank you for reading my lessons.

(Don't forget to check out

my Blogs on poetry.)

Anything else you'd

like lessons on?

Let me know.

Comments

Richard🖌

Posted 1 Month Ago

Hi, Tumi,

First, thank you for loving my lesson here; this means so very much to a teacher.
I suppose "better" is subjective. One person may enjoy the idea of "writing" poetry, while another feels that "composing" poetry is a more refined and/or deeper way of looking at defining how/what they are creating with pen, pencil, or while sitting at a keyboard.
Considering another aspect of what you've mentioned, "writing" could be seen as what a more unrefined poet does when beginning to learn the art of poetry, while "composing" is viewed as how a more well-versed, educated individual does it after becoming more familiar with poetry's complexities, if I understand you correctly.
Certainly, you've come a considerable way in learning.

Thank you, Tumi, for again sharing your thoughts on this lesson, and poetry in general! ⁓ Richard🖌

Tumi	Posted 1 Month Ago Sir I love your lesson on what's poetry and what makes it a poem or not, the forms, mass beliefs definition. But sir is it better to write a poem or compose a poem? I hope you understand my point sir, with my little knowledge poetry now looks more complicated than expected

Richard🖌

Posted 5 Months Ago

Hi, Aura 🌺🐝

Long time no see, my fine, dedicated student.
Sincerely, I apologize for 2-years spent missing your comments to this valuable lesson. And, as usual for You, what beautifully intelligent commentary you've left for me.
In my defense: All too often the site decides to skip notifications, leaving an author unaware of comments, messages, reviews, etc; only to discover them by chance.
Well, what a nice surprise to finally find this little treasure trove of yours.

In response … how rewarding it is to know you've grasped the value of blending techniques and ideas, to create stronger, more masterfully enjoyable, satisfying, and rewarding works of poetical art.
That you've gained in awareness of poetic structures and variables in form and style is especially inspiring to an olde teacher, too. : )

Concerning Japanese poetic forms:
Aura, there are many forms of Japanese poetry (some you’ll recognize), the most popular written and read in Japan, include:
• Haiku: A well-known form that juxtaposes nature in three lines
• Tanka: A five-line form that's the modern name for “Waka”
• Chōka: A form of Waka
• Sedōka: A two-stanza question and response form
• Gogyōhka: A variation of the Tanka
• Haibun: A combination of prose and Haiku
• Katauta: A three-line question form
• Mondō: A question-response-nature poem
• Senryu: A form that some poets write when they think they're writing Haiku
• Somonka: A love letter Tanka
Other forms include Renga, Haikai, and Renku.
Japanese poetry has a rich history that goes back over a thousand years. The oldest collection of Japanese Waka is the great Man'yōshū (trans: 10,000 Leaves), which was compiled after AD 759. Aura, you may find it interesting to Google “Man'yōshū” and, perhaps, read its translated version in English.
Today, Japanese poetry includes both experimental and traditional forms. Some poets specialize in a particular form, while others collaborate with poets in other genres. A new poetic form called Hainka has also been created by fusing Haiku and Tanka.

Thank you most sincerely, Dear Aura, for sharing this enlightening lesson on the amazing variety of poetic forms! ⁓ Richard🖌

Richard🖌

Posted 5 Months Ago

Hi again, Syr Tumi,
Sincerely, I thank you most humbly for partaking this all important lesson, befitting novice and master alike.
We can never learn it all, and this is one of many facets that makes our magical art exciting and interesting enough to read, study, learn, compose, and fully enjoy with our minds, hearts, spirits, and emotions for a lifetime of personal, passionate challenge.

How exciting it is, Tumi, knowing my humble sharings are serving you well.
Happy writing to you, Syr! ⁓ Richard🖌

PS: Please, remove one of your repeated reviews. : )

Tumi

Posted 5 Months Ago

Thankfully we have your lovely lessons, to make our minds not go astray, wow, really a lot to learn still.
Its through your teachings, i have honestly stopped my mead rush for strict meter and form, and embrace the ideas, just the way they come. more to learn sir, thanks alot for sharing such rare lessons.

Aura

Posted 2 Years Ago

I am guilty of putting importance of technique over ideas when it comes to writing poetry. But as you clearly stated, the more skilled poet eventually doesn't need to sacrifice one for the other but can use both technique and their ideas together for excellent results.

There are also different forms of poetry that i didn't even think of such as poetic prose which s unrhymed, written in paragraphs, rich in imagery, and punctuated. I also never heard about metered unrhymed verses which you explained were one or more lines that were in meter or had a set syllable count but wasn't rhymed which can include unrhymed couplets, quatrains etc.
While I am familiar with the haiku, senryu, renga and choka forms of Japanese poetry, I never heard about the Haikai, renku, or Hokku before. Could it be that these forms aren't as well known as the Haiku or senryu forms or that with time, they just weren't written as much as before? An informative first course about the different forms of poetry and what distinguishes each one,

Richard🖌

Posted 2 Years Ago

Bill,
Since you're uncertain, I'd say the definition of "highly impressive" depends on the individual observing and determining what it means, beyond the normal, accepted meaning applied to anything outstanding in a unique, and/or impactful way.

William Michael Reeves

Posted 2 Years Ago

In normal paragraph. I'll use that as a structure. Highly impressive sounds subjective. Could you clarify the definition of that please?

Richard🖌

Posted 2 Years Ago

Thank you, Memoi,

For stopping by to read this inclusive lesson, and for recognizing my poetic nature.

You're welcome, too!
Anytime you might need a helping hand, just tap my shoulder! ⁓ Richard🖌

Memoi