There are many different types of poetry which poets use to express their feeling and tell their stories. In this creative writing lesson, we will discuss 7 different types of poetry with examples.
What is Poetry?
Poetry is the representation of one’s idea in the attractive form of language. A poetry is a rhythmic and easily deliverable gist of thoughts of a poet to the readers.
In other terms, poetry is the literature which creates an imaginative effect on the mind of the reader in a rhythmic way.
In human civilization, poetry has a long history. It dates back to nearly prehistoric times. Poetry is to describe our emotions with words. One of the most famous poets of English Robert Frost also defined poetry. He said poetry is when emotions find thoughts and thoughts find words.
Humans have always been fond of poetry and that’s why many of the emperor’s appointed special poets in their court to entertain themselves. The Sanskrit epic Rigveda and the western Asian epic poetry, the Epic of Gilgamesh are some of the earliest traces of poetry.
In poetry, a poet uses different poetic devices to make it more effective and entertaining.Also, Poetry always fascinated the people. It is the reason behind that fact , that now, after thousands of years, poetry is still a famous source of entertainment for people.
Classification of Poetry
To determine the difference between good and bad poetry, ancient thinkers started the study of aesthetics . The study of aesthetics is called “poetics”. One of the classical poets “Aristotle’s ” poetics described the three genres of poetry. These three genres were epic, comic and tragic. These classification provided an advantage to the thinkers to divide a specific poem into good or bad poetry. However, later aestheticians classified them into three major genres.
These genres were epic poetry, lyrical poetry and dramatic poetry. They classified tragic and comedy as the subgenres of dramatic Poetry.
5 Essential things to write a poem
When you are writing poetry you have to take care of some ingredients of poetry. Without these essential ingredients, literature can never be poetry. These ingredients are as follows :
Message
Your poetry should give a message to the readers. A poetry is not only a collection of words. It is a clear message to the whole of the society. It directly affects the minds of readers. So, always decide first what message you want to send to your readers. Remember that message should be conveyed to the readers. Otherwise , the motive of the poem will not be fulfilled. Do not try to deliver many messages by a single stanza or a single poetry.
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Selection of Words
This is one of the most essential ingredients after the message. As without it , it will be difficult for poems to convey the message to the readers. Select the words which best describe your emotions. However, do not try to add more lengthy and difficult words. Otherwise, it will be difficult for readers to understand it. Always use words that fit into your poetry’s message.
As words have direct connection with the emotions. So if you are writing comic poetry , don’t use serious words and vice versa. Remember, words have power to make your poetry magical and words can also make your poetry a simple collection of words.
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Grammar
Grammar also can be an essential component in poetry. However, you can also ignore grammar in poetry in some places. Also, take care that the message is conveying to the readers. Use of grammar makes it easy for readers to understand the message. If it is making your stanza so wordy and lengthy then ignore it.
To Use commas is necessary, so that readers can understand the tone of the poem.Also punctuation plays an important role in the poem. Use proper prepositions . It is very important in poetry. It specifies the clear relations between two objects.
Poetic Device
Poetic devices are the one which decorates poetry . Use of various poetic devices will make your poem more effective. These can be called as the tools of a poet by which he makes his poetry more beautiful. Poetic devices create a rhythm in the poetry. They also intensify and enhance the real message of poetry. Some of the examples of the poetic devices are Anaphora , conceit and metaphor. So before finally publishing your poem , check how many poetic devices your poem has. If it has only a few , add some more.
Rhythm
Rhythm is the flow of words in a beautiful manner. However, it is totally different from rhyme. Rhyming is the repetition of words after one or two lines. It is not important in poetry to use rhyming. At present , most of the famous poems are without rhyming. However, you can add rhythm without rhyming also. For example you can have two words of the same tone in a single line etc.
The places are same however life contains pain
Here two words are making this line rhythmic.
Who is a poet?
Anyone can simply define a poet as one who writes poems . But wait ,it is not so simple to describe a poet. A poet is the one who puts his emotions in the poetry. He always tries to convey his message to the readers. A poet is the one who can afford the sword of words. There have been many poets in history, who got huge fame all over the world.
However, if you are a beginner in this field, do not take stress from these words. Follow the characteristics of a poet and soon you will also be able to establish a relationship between words and emotions. A poet always sees the world with a new vision. He tries to find creativity in his atmosphere. Although ,many of the poet’s like to live alone. As it gives them more time to interact with language and words. A poet does not put only rhyming schemes in a stanza to make it a good poem. But he also takes care of the main ingredient of the poem which is the message of the poem. Remember that emotions have a direct relation with words. Use words precisely and do not make your poem so lengthy. Also, use different poetic devices in the poem to make it attractive.
What are Poetic Devices?
Poetic devices are tools of a writer by which he puts rhythm in the poem and enhances its beauty. Poetic devices also intensify the theme of the poem.
They can make sound more beautiful , add essential rhythm or can also intensify the meaning of words. We can divide these into three main categories .
Poetic Device of Sound
Poetic devices of sound are those which increase the quality of sound of some specific words of poetry. These sounds evokes the thoughts of the reader on certain topics and create a direct effect on his mind. Some of the Poetic Devices of sound are :
Alliteration
Alliteration is produced when words starting with the same sounds of consonants come together in a Poetry. Between these continuous alliterations, no one word or other sound intervenes.
Consonance
When words with repeated ending consonants are put together in a particular stanza of a poem , then it increases the quality of poetry. This repetition is Consonance poetic Device.
Euphony
When a particular sound is repeated at the end of some of the adjacent lines of the poetry. It creates a pleasant sound in the poetry.This poetic Device is euphony. Euphony is commonly used in poetries.
Cacophony
It is the unpleasant sound used in poetry to create disorder. This can be increased by the use of complex phrases .
Poetic Device of Rhythm
Poetic devices of rhythm are there when a set of words produces a rhythmic effect in the poetry.
Here are examples of poetic devices of rhythm.
Repetition
Repetition is when in a set of words in the poetry, there is repetition of certain words.
Rhyme
It creates a rhythmic effect in the poetry. Rhyme uses repeated pattern of words to produce a rhythm in the poetry.
Poetic Devices of Meaning
Poetic Device of Meaning creates figures and imaginations in the mind of readers. Its main function is to help the reader in analyzing the situation which the writer is supposed to imagine.
It can also be of different types. Like :
Allusion
Brief reference to any person or any of the historical and mythological event. It creates a mysterious image in the mind of readers.
Paradox
Paradox is the sense of describing by which we are describing something with the help of contradiction. A poet takes the help of a contradiction to reveal a truth.
Personification
Personification is the use of human characters to describe any of the non living objects. A poet uses personification to describe the non living objects as living. It fills a sense of feeling for the non living things in the readers.
Greatest Poets of All time
When we discuss some of the greatest poets of all of the world, then we are not discussing English literature. There were many poets born in this world, who evoked emotions of readers by their poetries. However it is not possible to discuss these millions of poets from different languages and backgrounds in a single article.
So here we are only discussing poets of English literature.
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare born on 26 April 1564. He was an English playwright and a great poet. He is regarded as one of the most famous writers of English.
Many of his novels have been translated into different languages and still are famous.
Edgar Allen Poe
He is one of the most famous poets of the United States. He became so famous because of his poem Ravan.
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore is one of those famous writers who was born in india. He was born in west Bengal, India on may 7, 1861. His contribution towards literature and philosophy was uncountable. He is also referred to as the “Bard of Bengal”. He was awarded with the nobel prize in 1913. Gitanjali was one of the most famous book of Rabindranath Tagore.
Sylvia Path
She was a famous poet from the United States. Sylvia Path is regarded as one of the most famous postwar poets.
William Wordsworth
He was one of the most famous poets of romanticism. The Prelude and the daffodils are some of his most famous poetries.
William Blake
He is famous for his contributions in romanticism. He was one of the most famous poets of English literature. The lamb and London are some of the most famous poetries of William Blake.
WB Yeats
He was one of the most influential poets in the history of English literature. He was one of the most famous poets of Ireland. His poetries were influenced by modernization. He wrote his poems on various themes. He also won a Nobel Prize in literature. Lake Isle of Innisfree and the second coming are some of the most famous poetries of WB Yeats.
John Keats
John Keats was one of those poets who wrote mainly on the glorification of the past. Although, he passed away at the age of 25 due to tuberculosis. But he always remained one of the most famous poets of English literature history. “When I have” and “Ode to a” are some of the most famous poetries of John Keats.
Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling was a famous poet born in 1865. He got his inspiration to write poetries in India. He won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1907. “The men who would be King” and “Mother O’Mine” are some of the most famous poems of Rudyard Kipling.
so it was all about the poetry. From the ancient times , poetry has touched a millions of hearts. I hope after reading this article , you have much more knowledge about poetry.
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