Prosody Introduction

7/28/2019 Prosody Introduction

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Terms for DiscussingProsody



Basic Terms

Prosody: The metrical pronunciation of a song orpoem.

Rhythm: A combination of vocal speeds, rises,and falls; in poetry, heavy and light stress.Patterns are called "feet."

Scansion (scan). The process of marking beatsin a poem to establish the prevailing metricalpattern.



Naming Numbers of Feet

1. One foot: monometer

2. Two feet: dimeter

3. Three feet: trimeter

4. Four feet: tetrameter

5. Five feet: pentameter

6. Six feet: hexameter7. Seven feet: heptameter or the septenary

8. Eight feet: octameter



Kinds of Feet: Spondaic and Pyrrhic Spondee stressed stressed

Pyrrhic unstressed unstressed



Kinds of Feet: Iambic

1. Iamb/ iambic unstressed stressed

The most natural and common kind in English, this meterelevates speech to poetry (iambic pentameter)

Example:

The curfew tolls the knell of parting day,

The lowing herd wind slowly o'er the lea,

The plowman homeward plods his weary way,

And leaves the world to darkness, and to me.

When you say this aloud, what syllables are stressed?Mark them with a “strong” mark („) above the syllable.



Sounding out the Rhythm

The CURfew TOLLS the KNELL of PARTingDAY,

The LOWing HERD wind SLOWly O‟ER theLEA,

The PLOWman HOMEward PLODS his

WEARy WAY,

And LEAVES the WORLD to DARKness, ANDto ME.



Kinds of Feet: Trochaic

2. Trochaic/trochee stressed unstressed

Example:

Tyger, tyger, burning brightIn the forest of the night

What immortal hand or eye

Could frame thy fearful symmetry?Say this quatrain aloud and mark the accented

syllables. Where are the strong syllables?




TYger, TYger, BURNing BRIGHT

IN the FORest OF the NIGHT

WHAT imMORtal HAND or EYE

COULD FRAME thy FEARful SYMmetRY?



Kinds of feet: Dactylic

3. Dactyl/dactylic

stressed unstressed unstressed

Example:This is the forest primeval. The murmuring pines and the

hemlocks,

Bearded with moss, and in garments green, indistinct inthe twilight,

Stand like Druids of eld, with voices sad and prophetic.

Say the first line aloud and mark the stressedsyllables.




THIS is the FORest primEVal. TheMURmuring PINES and the HEMlocks,



Kinds of Feet: Anapestic

4. Anapest/ anapestic unstressed unstressedstressed

'Twas the night before Christmas and all throughthe house,

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.

The stockings were hung by the chimney withcare,

In hopes that Saint Nicholas soon would be there.

Say this aloud and mark the stressed syllables.




'Twas the NIGHT before CHRISTmas and ALL through the HOUSE,

Not a CREAture was STIRring, not EVen aMOUSE.

The stockings were hung by the chimney

with care,

In hopes that Saint Nicholas soon would bethere



Examples

Try to figure out the meter for eachselection, and then we‟ll go on to the next

slide, where the answer will be given.



Example 1

1. Go, and catch a falling star,

Get with child a mandrake root

Tell me where all past years are,

Or who cleft the Devil's foot . . .

--John Donne, “Song”



Answer to Example 1

Trochaic tetrameter. Notice the words thatare emphasized:

Line 1: Go, catch, fall, star

Line 2: Get, child, man, root



Example 2

Macavity's a Mystery Cat: he's called theHidden Paw--

For he's the master criminal who can defythe law.

He's the bafflement of Scotland Yard, the

Flying Squad's despair:

For when they reach the scene of the crime-Macavity's not there!



Answer to Example 2

Iambic heptameter (or the septenary).Note the stresses: MaCAViTY‟s the

MYStery CAT: he‟s CALLED the HIDdenPAW. “Mystery” is pronounced like

“mystry” here.

This type of seven-stress line is often usedin children‟s poems or humorous poems.



Example 3

'Tis the voice of the Lobster: I heard himdeclare

"You have baked me too brown, I mustsugar my hair."

As a duck with its eyelids, so he with his

noseTrims his belt and buttons, and turns out his

toes.



Answer to Example 3

Anapestic tetrameter. „Tis the VOICE of the LOBster: I HEARD him deCLARE.

If you listen to the rhythm, it sounds justlike “‟Twas the Night Before Christmas,”

which is written in the same meter.



Example 4

By the shores of Gitche-Gumee,

By the shining Big-Sea-Water

Stood the wigwam of Nokomis,

Daughter of the Moon, Nokomis.

Dark behind it rose the forest,Rose the black and gloomy pine-trees

Rose the firs with cones upon them.



Answer to Example 4

Trochaic tetrameter. BY the SHORES of GITCHe-GUmee / BY the SHINing BIG-sea-Water

This is trochaic tetrameter with the last syllableadded. You‟ll recall that Blake‟s “The Tyger” hadthe last syllable of the line omitted (“Tyger!Tyger! Burning bright”). The example here is a

much more sing-song rhythm as a result of having that final syllable.



Example 5

How say that by law we may torture andchase

A woman whose crime is the hue of herface?-

With her step on the ice and her arm on her

child,The danger was fearful, the pathway was

wild. . . .



Answer to Example 5

Anapestic tetrameter, although this meter variessomewhat. How SAY that by LAW we may

TORture and CHASE / A WOman whose CRIMEis the HUE of her FACE?

This serious poem makes use of galloping meterbecause it deals with a mother escaping from

slavery. She is pursued as she crosses the riverinto freedom. The meter gives the rhythm of thepoem a sense of urgency.

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Prosody Introduction