poetry question???

Question

i have been assiged a poetry essay this weekend, one of the questions is...

" look at the form of the poem, what form is the poem and how is this significant"

im a bit unsure of what that is asking, what is the form of a poem??

examples would be helpfull :) thanks

Answer 1

It means you have to look at the poem from a technical perspective first, and then say how significant this is.
The form of the poem consists in: the number of lines, the structure (are there any stanzas, and if yes, how many, of how many lines), the rhythm pattern (how many syllables per line? is this throughout the poem?, how many stresses per line? short / long lines, etc.), the rhyme scheme. Then, does this correspond to any set poetic form, such as the sonnet? If so, name it. And then your next stage is to say why the poet chose such form. For instance, if it is a sonnet, then it is a short form in which meaning is concentrated and the poet has to say things in very few words. It will be different in a longer form.

Answer 2

A poem's "form" is the pattern that was used. Is it a haiku, a ballad, an Ode, a villanelle, a rondeau, etc. Here is a link to a list of different forms:

http://66.218.69.11/search/cache?ei=UTF-8&p=poetic+forms&fr=sfp&u=thewordshop.tripod.com/forms.html&w=poetic+forms+form&d=OJuGhOljPShl&icp=1&.intl=us

If it's a "sonnet", it tells you that it is probably about love or to a lover; if it's an "Ode", it is either in praise of a public figure or of something more personal, etc.

good luck

Answer 3

" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poetry#Poetic_forms " is the site to go if you want to know all about poetry and its forms.

"Among the most common form of poetry through the ages is the sonnet, which, by the thirteenth century, was a poem of fourteen lines following a set rhyme scheme and logical structure." - a form of poetry, a sonnet.