what differentiates poetry from other kind of literature?

Answer 1

Good question. On one level, very simple; on another level, very difficult, in fact impossible, to answer.

Simply speaking, poetry is written in lines. Drama is written as dialogue, in either prose or poetry; fiction and other prose forms are written in sentences and paragraphs (not broken into lines). You might see my response to jset1989's question, What is the difference between prose and poem?

Writers who choose to write poetry (that is, in lines) usually put more emphasis on the language itself--sound, figures of speech, images, paradox and ambiguity, and the like, calling attention to the form of the work, not just its meaning. Hence, it's usually less easy to translate as well as summarize or restate poetry. It's more important to hear and/or see poetry on the page than fiction and essays. (It's more important to hear drama and/or see it enacted than to read it on the page, and of course drama can be written in poetry as well as prose; for example, Shakespeare's.)

On the other hand, some prose writers produce very poetic language, and some poems (for example, those of Charles Bukowski) sound very much like ordinary prose. Some poets these days also produce what they call prose poems.

Curiously both the words--poem and fiction--are derived from words meaning "to make," or "to create."

poem, from Latin poema, from Greek poima, from poiein, to create

fiction, from Latin ficti, fictin-, from fictus, past participle of fingere, to form, related to facere, to make.

So all writers of literature are makers, creating something new and original rather than reporting information or ideas that might just as well be expressed in other language.

Typically, poetry is more likely to focus on making images and eliciting insights, fiction on making up a story, essays on making up new ways to express one's experience or ideas. But again the distinction is not clear-cut, for long narrative poems (such as Robert Browning's The Ring and the Book, or Tennyson's Idylls of the King) are narrative first, image and insight second, and novels often involve "epiphanies," or moments of insight, and many modern novels (beginning with James Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, Ulysses, and Finnegan's Wake) emphasize images, moments of insight, and attention of linguistic form.

So there is no absolute line one can draw between poetry and other literature. In the long run, it's better to think of poetry (usually) as written in lines and fiction or other literature as not broken into lines.

You can't define it very well, but you know poetry when you see it: it's all in the lines!

Answer 2

It is best to differentiate poetry from other kinds of literature from the way it is used. There are two forms.
One way to define it is a piece with fixed rhyme or rhythm. It non-literate society, it is often the best way of passing on information.
The other use of poetry is to describe with word what can't be expressed in words only. Although it may use different rhyme and metre, it is not necessary.
There is of course a mixture of the two, or poetry pretending to be poetry or the other way around. But I hope this a good starting point.

Answer 3

Rhythm and Rhyme scheme. Also it isn't always written in sentences and paragraphs. It is in Lines and Stanzas. The easiest way to differentiate prose and poetry is basically the form. Prose will be the entire page left to right while poetry will typically be centered or only take up a portion of the page.

Answer 4

poetry is a magnitude of responses in a limited number of lines, words, etc (generally)

poetry is generally shorter, and a writer does not have to follow the same rules as other writers do. for instance poets don't need punctuation of any sort. if they choose to omit it, this is not an error.

poetry also may be written in meter (i know a no brainer).

poetry is (for most people) very hard to understand because depending on when the writer wrote it, it is hard to understand what they truly meant. you have to dissect a poem before you truly understand the true meaning. the writer puts specific words in the poem so you can make connections to what they want you to know.

poetry is very diverse in writing but poetry is often a mystery in itself...

Answer 5

Good question. I am no expert. There are so many forms of poetry and it is a type of literature I would assume. But to give you a good definition, would be easier to look in the dictionary. That would be what I would do.

Answer 6

The Advanced class will be easy. Have three students read the sonnet aloud, each one taking four lines. You read the final couplet. Ask the class: How do you feel about what you just heard? If there are no volunteers, ask the readers. Other questions: What is the drumbeat? If this were your favorite song, could there be a drum as background? Then, ask them questions about imagery, language, and other poetic devices. This will probably work with the less-advanced class, but you will first need to print out the vocabulary words they won't understand and hand them out. Lacking a printer, you can write them on the board. (And do not turn your back on them)!

Answer 7

It's written in poetic form, as opposed to the conventional forms, of say, a novel or an essay. It typically (at least used to) has features like it's being written in verse with elements of rhyming, or being written in a form that follows a certain metered pattern.

Answer 8

Poetry is not prose but prose can be poetry.