Free Verse

Versus

Rhyme

Rhyme Poetry

Always has a rhyme patternSome patterns are aabbcc, abab, abbaUsually has a rhythm pattern to further establish the rhyme patternThese patterns are strictly adhered to

An example of Rhyme:

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever: Its loveliness increases; it will never Pass into nothingness; but still will keep A bower quiet for us, and a sleep Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet

breathing. John Keats

The Rules of the Poem:

It follows a rhyme scheme; AABB, where the words “ever, never and keep, sleep rhymeIts rhythm is eleven syllables per line

Is it a Rhyme Poem?

Does it have a rhyme pattern?YES!Does it have a rhythm pattern?YES! Then it is a rhyme poem.

Free Verse

Encyclopedia Wikipedia describes free verse poetry as one type of poetry that does not use strict meter or rhyme; however, it still looks like poetry because there are complex patterns. Free verse poetry has a long history and was used in the Bible.

So What Makes it POETRY?

"Free verse offers a writer an amazing palette: metaphor, simile, dramatic verbs, assonance, consonance, even perhaps a touch of rhyme slipped into the lines,"

-Kristine O'Connell George, award winning poet and author.

To Be Free Verse:

The piece must be written artistically, using one or more forms of literary device/s throughout the piece.It must have a cohesive message stated creatively.

Consider These Poems:

Song of Myself by Walt Whitman

I celebrate myself, and sing myself,And what I assume you shall assume,For every atom belonging to me as

good belongs to you.I loaf and invite my soul,I lean and loaf at my ease observing a

spear of summer grass.

I Dream'd in a Dream by Walt Whitman

I DREAM'D in a dream I saw a city invincible to the attacks of the

whole of the rest of the earth,I dream'd that was the new city of Friends,Nothing was greater there than the quality of

robust love, it led the rest,It was seen every hour in the actions of the

men of that city, And in all their looks and words.

Fogby Carl Sandburg

The fog comeson little cat feet.

It sits lookingover harbor and cityon silent haunchesand then moves on.

Five steps to free verse

1.Choose your subject and write about it. Get it all out. Stay deep and true to the rhythm of the poetic movement rolling through you, but get everything about the subject down on paper.

5 Steps Continued

2. Check your rough poem to see if anything is missing. If you need to add a line, or even a stanza, do so. If you’re missing a metaphor, simile, or turn of phrase, add it.

5 Steps Continued

3. Read the rough poem aloud. Free verse is a rhythmic dance with voice and words, so check the sequence of lines and make sure that one flows into the other.

5 Steps Continued

4. Move through your poem with an editor’s pen and make sure you’ve selected the words that give proper accent and cadence to the overall poem.

5 Steps Continued

5. Read the poem aloud until it flows like honey and you feel it inside. That’s a sure sign of a well-completed piece of free verse.

5 Steps Together1. Choose your subject and write about it. Get it all out.

Stay deep and true to the rhythm of the poetic movement rolling through you, but get everything about the subject down on paper.

2. Check your rough poem to see if anything is missing. If you need to add a line, or even a stanza, do so. If you’re missing a metaphor, simile, or turn of phrase, add it.

3. Read the rough poem aloud. Free verse is a rhythmic dance with voice and words, so check the sequence of lines and make sure that one flows into the other.

4. Move through your poem with an editor’s pen and make sure you’ve selected the words that give proper accent and cadence to the overall poem.

5. Read the poem aloud until it flows like honey and you feel it inside. That’s a sure sign of a well-completed piece of free verse.

Assignment:

Write an original free verse poem and illustrate it.Use the handout on free verse poems.I will allow this time for you to start a rough draft of the free verse poem in class.Write a final copy of the free verse poem for homework and be sure to illustrate it too.