Does Poetry have to follow certain grammatical rules?

Question

Does poetry have to adhere to certain grammar and punctuation rules? Or are the rules very relaxed? For example when writing a stanza, I sometimes think if I'm putting commas, colons and full stops in the wrong places.

Maybe I'm not cut out for poetry
Maybe it's not for me
I'll take up cooking perhaps
or find another activity.

Please help with my question
and give me good answer

Answer 1

Okay, here's the thing...

It all depends on what you're doing. There are many, many different poetic forms -- and you probably could think up a few of your own, if you tried. And if I wanted to write a poem in a certain form, and say it was that certain form, it would follow certain rules which define that form.

However, that's only if you want to use that form, or any form. The Poetry Police will not knock down your door if you don't follow rules.

The best thing you can do is read it, and note where you pause, for effect or to breathe so you can keep speaking.
A good grammar book will outline uses of the comma, semi-colon, and colon.

Next to that, the best thing you can do is read poetry out loud and try to imagine why a certain mark of punctuation is where it is, or why a poem is written the way it is. The goal is not so much to get a right answer, but good questions and ideas about how you do your own poetry.

Hope this helps.

Answer 2

A little of both. If you are going to use punctuation, it really needs to be (for the most part) completely grammatically correct. Or you can just drop the punctuation altogether. The grammar is a little more iffy. I would try to keep it completely grammatically correct until you are sure of why you want it to be incorrect. If you write with grammar, you won't have to question it at all. Just be correct and you won't have to worry. But line breaks (full stops as you said) can be placed ANYWHERE that you might want someone to put a breath. I suggest you don't place them anywhere that you wouldn't want someone to breathe though. Like:
The dog
Pawed
The ground.
That's good. But the same 5 words with different line breaks is wrong. Like this:
The
Dog pawed
The
Ground.
That's terrible. Because if you read it aloud, you should put a short breath after each line and that just sounds wrong. Good luck!

Answer 3

It's really up to the poet. Personally, I use a lot of punctuation in my poetry to help enunciate how I want the poem to be read. If you think you are punctuating in the wrong places, trying reading it out loud and see where you need to put commas and such. As for grammar, a poem is more likely to be taken seriously if it is grammatically correct, moreso than one that is not. Keep on keeping on. :-)

Answer 4

There are those who would say "yes". After all, punctuation, grammar, proper spelling, etc are all supposedly designed to increase "readability" and, hence, understanding.
If you consider art, however, to be the communication of emotion (that is a very incomplete definition, but it will suffice for this purpose), when was the last time you had a strong emotion that followed "the rules"? In fact, the very breaking of the rules can, and often does, heighten the experience----so long as you don't fall into poetic/verbal anarchy.
So, my answer is ----"NO"!

Answer 5

Read some poetry. I wrote one in it's entirety and it was published and put on cd. I do whatever I feel is right a dash, a comma, an exclamation point, semi colon would be used just as in writing a sentence. Read Rober Frost's The Road Not Taken. It is a mind blowing poem about right of passage plus an example of few punctuation marks.

Answer 6

coleridge - who probably knew what he was talking about - said that poetry is: 'the best words in the best order'.

normally when we are speaking to other people (in a poem you always are) we use clear grammar and punctuation because it makes it easier for them to understand us. good grammar and punctuation are a matter of clarity and courtesy, so normally they are a good idea.

sometimes though a poet will need to break the normal rules, since that will be the most effective way he can convey his meaning. arthur rimbaud famously wrote 'je est un autre' ['i is someone else'].

if you want to say what you mean as clearly and as effectively as possible then grammar and punctuation will normally help you with that. when you need to break the rules you will have a good reason for doing so.

if you don't care whether what you are saying is clear or effective then you are no poet.

Answer 7

No a free rhyme you can write without any form. Some poems are written in certain forms. For example: Ballads or Hiku. Some people say in poetry, the comma should go where a pause is when reading it.

Answer 8

It depends on who you are writing the poem for. If you are writing for a personal journal, no adherence to grammatical rules are necessary. If for a teacher, pay attention to grammar. If for a publication, unless you are a well know poet like e.e. cummings, it's best to stick to good grammar and punctuation.

Answer 9

Poetry doesn't have to have grammar at all to be honest, it all depends on the artist/poet who is constructing the poem. Some poems feel awkward with added punctuation, others need it for emphasis.

Answer 10

To be elementary, you do not ought to adhere to regulations. yet you are able to recognize them. numerous the perfect poetry I unquestionably have study is loose verse or prose poetry. Ben Lerner, a fabulous modern poet, has a significantly acclaimed e book of in simple terms prose poems. He breaks each of the regulations. With poetry, you in simple terms could be nicely versed contained in the regulations, so that you'll ruin them authentic. what's or isn't a poem is carefully the alternative of the author. no individual else receives to make your innovations up what "style" a piece is. have interesting once you write, do not enable your self to be restricted by technique of regulations.