Structured poems

Structures

Structured poems follow a consistent framework based on features such as line length, syllable count, rhyme pattern, rhythm, metre or a combination of these.

A poem’s structure (particularly rhythm and rhyme) generally influences the way it sounds when read aloud and helps to make it memorable. Poems with a clear, simple structure are often used as models or writing frames for children’s own writing.

The structure of a poem sometimes helps to organise the content. For example, a longer narrative poem (such as a ballad) may be organised chronologically into verses or parts. An important line may be repeated as a chorus or refrain.

The range of poetry structures presented as ICT texts is even wider and includes multimodal and/or interactive poems that contain hypertext, live links, moving images and sounds.

A table showing core elements and aspects of adventure writing to support teaching and learningGeneric structure Language features Knowledge for the writerThere are many forms of structured poetry. Some are culturally specific. Some of the most common forms are:

 

Double-check that any deliberate patterns of rhyme or rhythm work all the way through.

Remove clichés and change any rhymes that sound forced.

Avoid choosing words just because they fit the pattern or rhyme – only use words that really work.

Re-read aloud as you write, to check how the structure sounds, especially to hear rhyme and metre.

When you have few words to use (e.g. haiku, couplets) make sure that every word works hard for meaning and effect.

cinquain

A generic name for a five-line poem. One of the most commonly used forms follows a syllable pattern for each line: 2, 4, 6, 8, 2. There are many different types of cinquains providing a wide range of opportunities for children to experiment with rhyme or syllabification. For example, reverse cinquains where the line pattern works backward, quintiles where cinquains are grouped in multiples to create a longer poem and English quintains that have a rhyme pattern (ABABB) but no specific line length.

quatrain Quatrain is a generic term for a four-line stanza or poem of any kind.

couplets(see example below)

Two successive lines, usually part of a poem longer than two lines and typically at the end of a verse or stanza. Couplets have two lines, each with the same metre and often share the same rhyme (rhyming couplets).

A table showing core elements and aspects of adventure writing to support teaching and learningGeneric structure Language features Knowledge for the writer

Don’t let the poem’s structure take over and make all the choices for you – you are the writer so you decide what works and what doesn’t.

rap

Rap is an example that straddles the boundaries between poetry, talk and song. It is one of the central elements of hip hop culture and uses strong musical rhythm and repeated rhyme patterns. The content is often focused on social commentary.

limerick

A traditional five-line rhyming form, usually with humorous subject matter. Popularised in the nineteenth century by Edward Lear’s Book of Nonsense. The rhyme pattern is usually AABBA. The first line of a limerick is typically: There once was a xx from xxx,

kennings

Derived from Old English and Norse poetry, kennings use compound nouns to refer to a person or thing without using the actual name. Anglo-Saxons often used kennings to name their swords. A kenning is a type of list poem. Although kennings follow a list structure, they could be described as free verse in other respects because they rarely rhyme.

 

Haiku, tanka and renga all derive from Japanese poetry forms and are all based on syllabic line patterns. In their original form they were based on Japanese sound units which do not translate exactly to ‘syllables’ in English. There are no hard and fast rules for the structure of these forms written in English but the following conventions are widely applied:

haiku(see example below)

Three lines: syllable pattern 5, 7, 5. A personal but universal comment on nature and/or humankind’s place in the world. The poet aims to capture a single moment or thought and also aims to leave half the work for the reader to do.

tanka Five lines: syllable pattern 5, 7, 5, 7, 7. Typically a haiku with two additional lines. The first three lines may describe a state or situation and the last two provide more detail, or the poet’s comment.

renga Haiku-like verses linked together can be described as renga and are often written by

A table showing core elements and aspects of adventure writing to support teaching and learningGeneric structure Language features Knowledge for the writer

more than one poet. Each is linked by two additional lines, each of seven syllables. The line/syllable pattern is: 5, 7, 57, 75, 7, 57, 7 and so on.

ballads

Ballads are narrative poems, usually of some length. Rhyme and musical rhythm patterns make them memorable for oral retelling. They often recount heroic deeds or legends. Ballads typically include a chorus between each verse or a refrain that repeats key lines.

question and answer poems(see example below)

Question and answer poems may not rhyme or maintain the same metre but they are often tightly structured as a series of questions, each followed by an answer.

Example poemsrhyming couplet question and answer poem haiku

I wonder why the sky is dark at night…Perhaps the moon and stars put out the light.

Puppy in the House

Who broke the window?It wasn’t me. Wag, wag!

Who chewed the rug?It wasn’t me. Lick, lick!

Who made a puddle?It wasn’t me. Woof, woof!

Who‘s the best puppy in the world?That would be ME! (Wag, lick, woof!)

Light shines through a glassBut not through me, and that’s whyI HAVE A SHADOW

Poetry

Poetry is the expression of a thought, an idea, a concept or a story in a structured form which has a flow and a music created by the sounds and syllables in it.

All types of poetry are often written in several styles. These styles are defined by the number of lines in each stanza, the syllables used in each line or the structures of rhyme used and so on. Here is a list of the main types of poetry commonly used by poets all over the world.

Ballad: This is an old style of writing poetry, which was used to tell stories. A ballad usually has stanzas made up of either seven or eight or ten lines, and ends with a short four or five line stanza. Each stanza ends with the same line, which is called ‘a refrain’.

Couplet: Perhaps the most popular type of poetry used, the couplet has stanzas made up of two lines which rhyme with each other.

Quatrain: This kind of poem has four lines in a stanza, of which the second and fourth lines rhyme with each other and have a similar syllable structure.

Cinquain: This is another unique type of poetry style. As the name suggests, it is made up of five lines. The first line is just one word, which is often the title of the poem. The second line has two words which describe the first line. The third line has three words, and is mostly the action part of the poem. The fourth line is four words describing the feelings. And the fifth line, again, has just one word which is the title of the poem.

Iambic Pentameter: This is a very complicated style of writing poetry, but was often used by classical poets. This style uses the syllable stresses to create the musical sound. There is one short sounding syllable followed by one long sounding syllable, at the end of each of the five stanzas in a row.

Sonnet: This type of poem contains fourteen lines and follows conventional structures of rhyme.

Haiku: This is again a very structured method of writing poetry. This has its origins in Japan. This method does not use rhyme. There are three lines of five, seven and five syllables each. The poem must essentially talk about some aspect of Nature.

Free Verse: This is a method of writing poetry, which does not essentially follow any structure or style. There is no fixed meter and no structure regarding rhyme and lines in each stanza. This kind of poetry is quite popular with modern poets.

Epic: This poem is usually a long and descriptive one which tells a story. Epics usually are longer than most poems and may even take up a book. Example: Homer’s ‘Iliad’.

Limerick: This is a very witty and often vulgar kind of a poem, which is quite short. This poem has five lines in a stanza. The first, second and fifth line have the same metrical structure and they rhyme with each other. They contain seven to ten syllables each. The second and fourth lines have the same metrical structure and rhyme with each other. These contain five to seven syllables.

These are by no means, all types of poetry forms used. But these are the basics. Most poets use these forms and structures while writing their poems. The form and structure of the poem, ideally should not

limit the thought or the idea conveyed by the poet. However, these styles of writing help make the poem more musical in its flow.

Forms

Specific poetic forms have been developed by many cultures. In more developed, closed or "received" poetic forms, the rhyming scheme, meter and other elements of a poem are based on sets of rules, ranging from the relatively loose rules that govern the construction of an elegy to the highly formalized structure of the ghazal or villanelle. Described below are some common forms of poetry widely used across a number of languages. Additional forms of poetry may be found in the discussions of poetry of particular cultures or periods and in the glossary.

[edit] Sonnet

ShakespeareMain article: Sonnet

Among the most common forms of poetry through the ages is the sonnet, which by the 13th century was a poem of fourteen lines following a set rhyme scheme and logical structure. A sonnet's first four lines typically introduce the topic. A sonnet usually follows an a-b-a-b rhyme pattern. The sonnet's conventions have changed over its history, and so there are several different sonnet forms. Traditionally, in sonnets English poets use iambic pentameter, the Spenserian and Shakespearean sonnets being especially notable. In the Romance languages, the hendecasyllable and Alexandrine are the most widely used meters, though the Petrarchan sonnet has been used in Italy since the 14th century. Sonnets are particularly associated with love poetry, and often use a poetic diction heavily based on vivid imagery, but the twists and turns associated with the move from octave to sestet and to final couplet make them a useful and dynamic form for many subjects. Shakespeare's sonnets are among the most famous in English poetry, with 20 being included in the Oxford Book of English Verse.[66] The relative prominence of a poet or set of works is often measured by reference to inclusion in the Oxford Book of English Verse or the Norton Anthology of Poetry.

[edit] Jintishi

Du FuMain article: Jintishi

The jintishi (近體詩) is a Chinese poetic form based on a series of set tonal patterns using the four tones of Middle Chinese in each couplet: the level, rising, departing and entering tones. The basic form of the jintishi has eight lines in four couplets, with parallelism between the lines in the second and third couplets. The couplets with parallel lines contain contrasting content but an identical grammatical relationship between words. Jintishi often have a rich poetic diction, full of allusion, and can have a wide range of subject, including history and politics. One of the masters of the form was Du Fu, who wrote during the Tang Dynasty (8th century). There are several variations on the basic form of the jintishi.

[edit] Sestina

Main article: Sestina

The sestina has six stanzas, each comprising six unrhymed lines, in which the words at the end of the first stanza’s lines reappear in a rolling pattern in the other stanzas. The poem then ends with a three-line stanza in which the words again appear, two on each line.

[edit] Villanelle

W. H. AudenMain article: Villanelle

The Villanelle is a nineteen-line poem made up of five triplets with a closing quatrain; the poem is characterized by having two refrains, initially used in the first and third lines of the first stanza, and then alternately used at the close of each subsequent stanza until the final quatrain, which is concluded by the two refrains. The remaining lines of the poem have an a-b alternating rhyme. The villanelle has been used regularly in the English language since the late 19th century by such poets as Dylan Thomas,[67] W. H. Auden,[68] and Elizabeth Bishop.[69] It is a form that has gained increased use at a time when the use of received forms of poetry has generally been declining.[citation needed]

[edit] Pantoum

Main article: Pantoum

The pantoum is a rare form of poetry similar to a villanelle. It is composed of a series of quatrains; the second and fourth lines of each stanza are repeated as the first and third lines of the next.

[edit] Rondeau

Main article: Rondeau (poetry)

The rondeau was originally a French form, written on two rhymes with fifteen lines, using the first part of the first line as a refrain.

[edit] Roundel

Main article: Roundel (poetry)

The roundel form, said to have been devised by Swinburne, consists of nine lines plus a refrain after the third line and after the last line, the refrain being identical with the beginning of the first line.

[edit] Tanka

Kakinomoto no HitomaroMain article: Waka (poetry)#Tanka

Tanka is a form of unrhymed Japanese poetry, with five sections totalling 31 onji (phonological units identical to morae), structured in a 5-7-5 7-7 pattern. There is generally a shift in tone and subject matter between the upper 5-7-5 phrase and the lower 7-7 phrase. Tanka were written as early as the Nara period by such poets as Kakinomoto no Hitomaro, at a time when Japan was emerging from a period where much of its poetry followed Chinese form. Tanka was originally the shorter form of Japanese formal poetry, and was used more heavily to explore personal rather than public themes. It thus had a more informal poetic diction. By the 13th century, tanka had become the dominant form of Japanese poetry, and it is still widely written today. The 31-mora rule is generally ignored by poets writing literary tanka in languages other than Japanese.

[edit] Haiku

Main article: Haiku

Haiku is a popular form of unrhymed Japanese poetry, which evolved in the 17th century from the hokku, or opening verse of a renku. Generally written in a single vertical line, the haiku contains three sections totalling 17 onji (see above, at Tanka), structured in a 5-7-5 pattern. Traditionally, haiku contain (1) a kireji, or cutting word, usually placed at the end of one of the poem's three sections; and (2) a kigo, or season-word. The most famous exponent of the haiku was Matsuo Bashō (1644–1694). An example of his writing:[70]

富士の風や扇にのせて江戸土産 fuji no kaze ya oogi ni nosete Edo miyage the wind of Mt. Fuji I've brought on my fan!

a gift from Edo

[edit] Ruba'i

Omar KhayyamMain article: Ruba'i

Ruba'i is a four-line verse (quatrain) practiced by Arabian, Persian, Urdu, Azerbaijani (Azeri) poets. Famous for his rubaiyat (collection of quatrains) is the Persian poet Omar Khayyam. The most celebrated English renderings of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam were produced by Edward Fitzgerald; an example is given below:

They say the Lion and the Lizard keep The Courts where Jamshyd gloried and drank deep: And Bahram, that great Hunter—the Wild Ass Stamps o'er his Head, and he lies fast asleep.

[edit] Sijo

Main article: Sijo

Sijo is a short musical lyric practiced by Korean poets. It is usually written as three lines, each averaging 14-16 syllables, for a total of 44-46 syllables. There is a pause in the middle of each line and so, in English, a sijo is sometimes printed in six lines rather than three. An example is given below:

You ask how many friends I have? Water and stone, bamboo and pine. The moon rising over the eastern hill is a joyful comrade. Besides these five companions, what other pleasure should I ask?

[edit] Ode

HoraceMain article: Ode

Odes were first developed by poets writing in ancient Greek, such as Pindar,[71] and Latin, such as Horace. Forms of odes appear in many of the cultures that were influenced by the Greeks and Latins.[72] The ode generally has three parts: a strophe, an antistrophe, and an epode. The antistrophes of the ode possess similar metrical structures and, depending on the tradition, similar rhyme structures. In contrast, the epode is written with a different scheme and structure. Odes have a formal poetic diction, and generally deal with a serious subject. The strophe and antistrophe look at the subject from different, often conflicting, perspectives, with the epode moving to a higher level to either view or resolve the underlying issues. Odes are often intended to be recited or sung by two choruses (or individuals), with the first reciting the strophe, the

second the antistrophe, and both together the epode. Over time, differing forms for odes have developed with considerable variations in form and structure, but generally showing the original influence of the Pindaric or Horatian ode. One non-Western form which resembles the ode is the qasida in Persian poetry.

[edit] Ghazal

Punjabi ghazal poet Anwar MasoodMain article: Ghazal

The ghazal (Arabic: ghazal, Persian: ghazel, Turkish/Azerbaijani: gazel, Urdu: gazal, Bengali/Sylheti: gozol) is a form of poetry common in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Urdu and Bengali poetry. In classic form, the ghazal has from five to fifteen rhyming couplets that share a refrain at the end of the second line. This refrain may be of one or several syllables, and is preceded by a rhyme. Each line has an identical meter. Each couplet forms a complete thought and stands alone, and the overall ghazal often reflects on a theme of unattainable love or divinity. The last couplet generally includes the signature of the author.

As with other forms with a long history in many languages, many variations have been developed, including forms with a quasi-musical poetic diction in Urdu. Ghazals have a classical affinity with Sufism, and a number of major Sufi religious works are written in ghazal form. The relatively steady meter and the use of the refrain produce an incantatory effect, which complements Sufi mystical themes well. Among the masters of the form is Rumi, a 13th-century Persian poet who lived in Konya, in present-day Turkey.

[edit] Acrostic

Main article: Acrostic

An acrostic (from the late Greek akróstichon, from ákros, "top", and stíchos, "verse") is a poem or other form of writing in an alphabetic script, in which the first letter, syllable or word of each line, paragraph or other recurring feature in the text spells out another message. A form of constrained writing, an acrostic can be used as a mnemonic device to aid memory retrieval.

A famous acrostic comes from the acclamation, "Jesus Christ, God's son, savior," which in Greek is: "Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, Θεοῦ ͑Υιός, Σωτήρ", Iēsous Christos, Theou Huios, Sōtēr. The initial letters of each word spell ichthys, the Greek word for fish; hence the frequent use of the fish as a symbol for Jesus Christ.

The Jewish devotional prayer Ashrei has lines beginning with each of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet in turn, implying that Jews ought to praise God with each letter of the alphabet. Likewise, the prayer Ashamnu, recited on Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement), lists sins beginning with each letter of the alphabet, emphasizing the breadth and universality of wrongdoing.

[edit] Canzone

Main article: Canzone

Literally "song" in Italian, a canzone (plural: canzoni) (cognate with English to chant) is an Italian or Provençal song or ballad. It is also used to describe a type of lyric which resembles a madrigal. Sometimes a composition which is simple and songlike is designated as a canzone, especially if it is by a non-Italian; a good example is the aria "Voi che sapete" from Mozart's Marriage of Figaro.

[edit] Cinquain

Main article: Cinquain

While "quintain" is the general term applied to poetic forms using a 5-line pattern, there are specific forms within that category that are defined by specific rules and guidelines. The term "CINQUAIN" (pronounced SING-cane, the plural is "cinquains") as applied by modern poets most correctly refers to a form invented by the American poet Adelaide Crapsey. The first examples of these were published in 1915 in The Complete Poems, roughly a year after her death. Her cinquain form was inspired by Japanese haiku and Tanka (a form of Waka).

Narrative poetry

Geoffrey ChaucerMain article: Narrative poetry

Narrative poetry is a genre of poetry that tells a story. Broadly it subsumes epic poetry, but the term "narrative poetry" is often reserved for smaller works, generally with more appeal to human interest.

Narrative poetry may be the oldest type of poetry. Many scholars of Homer have concluded that his Iliad and Odyssey were composed from compilations of shorter narrative poems that related individual episodes and were more suitable for an evening's entertainment. Much narrative poetry—such as Scots and English ballads, and Baltic and Slavic heroic poems—is performance poetry with roots in a preliterate oral tradition. It has been speculated that some features that distinguish poetry from prose, such as meter, alliteration and kennings, once served as memory aids for bards who recited traditional tales.

Notable narrative poets have included Ovid, Dante, Juan Ruiz, Chaucer, William Langland, Luís de Camões, Shakespeare, Alexander Pope, Robert Burns, Fernando de Rojas, Adam Mickiewicz, Alexander Pushkin, Edgar Allan Poe and Alfred Tennyson.

[edit] Epic poetry

ValmikiMain article: Epic poetry

Epic poetry is a genre of poetry, and a major form of narrative literature. It recounts, in a continuous narrative, the life and works of a heroic or mythological person or group of persons. Examples of epic poems are Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, Virgil's Aeneid, the Nibelungenlied, Luís de Camões' Os Lusíadas, the Cantar de Mio Cid, the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Mahabharata, Valmiki's Ramayana, Ferdowsi's Shahnama, Nizami (or Nezami)'s Khamse (Five Books), and the Epic of King Gesar.

While the composition of epic poetry, and of long poems generally, became less common in the west after the early 20th century, some notable epics have continued to be written. Derek Walcott won a Nobel prize to a great extent on the basis of his epic, Omeros.[78]

[edit] Dramatic poetry

GoetheMain articles: Verse drama and dramatic verse, Theatre of ancient Greece, Sanskrit drama, Chinese Opera, and Noh

Dramatic poetry is drama written in verse to be spoken or sung, and appears in varying, sometimes related forms in many cultures. Verse drama may have developed out of earlier oral epics, such as the Sanskrit and Greek epics.[79]

Greek tragedy in verse dates to the 6th century B.C., and may have been an influence on the development of Sanskrit drama,[80] just as Indian drama in turn appears to have influenced the development of the bianwen verse dramas in China, forerunners of Chinese Opera.[81] East Asian verse dramas also include Japanese Noh.

Examples of dramatic poetry in Persian literature include Nezami's two famous dramatic works, Layla and Majnun and Khosrow and Shirin,[82] Ferdowsi's tragedies such as Rostam and Sohrab, Rumi's Masnavi, Gorgani's tragedy of Vis and Ramin,[83] and Vahshi's tragedy of Farhad.

[edit] Satirical poetry

Bocage John Wilmot

Poetry can be a powerful vehicle for satire. The punch of an insult delivered in verse can be many times more powerful and memorable than that of the same insult, spoken or written in prose. The Romans had a strong tradition of satirical poetry, often written for political purposes. A notable example is the Roman poet Juvenal's satires, whose insults stung the entire spectrum of society.

The same is true of the English satirical tradition. Embroiled in the feverish politics of the time and stung by an attack on him by his former friend, Thomas Shadwell (a Whig), John Dryden (a Tory), the first Poet Laureate, produced in 1682 Mac Flecknoe, one of the greatest pieces of sustained invective in the English language, subtitled "A Satire on the True Blue Protestant Poet, T.S." In this, the late, notably mediocre poet, Richard Flecknoe, was imagined to be contemplating who should succeed him as ruler "of all the realms of Nonsense absolute" to "reign and wage immortal war on wit."

Another master of 17th-century English satirical poetry was John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester. He was known for ruthless satires such as "A Satyr Against Mankind" (1675) and a "A Satyr on Charles II."

Another exemplar of English satirical poetry was Alexander Pope, who famously chided critics in his Essay on Criticism (1709). Dryden and Pope were writers of epic poetry, and their satirical style was accordingly epic; but there is no prescribed form for satirical poetry.

The greatest satirical poets outside England include Poland's Ignacy Krasicki, Azerbaijan's Sabir and Portugal's Manuel Maria Barbosa du Bocage, commonly known as Bocage.

[edit] Lyric poetry

Christine de PizanMain article: Lyric poetry

Lyric poetry is a genre that, unlike epic poetry and dramatic poetry, does not attempt to tell a story but instead is of a more personal nature. Rather than depicting characters and actions, it portrays the poet's own feelings, states of mind, and perceptions. While the genre's name, derived from "lyre", implies that it is intended to be sung, much lyric poetry is meant purely for reading.

Though lyric poetry has long celebrated love, many courtly-love poets also wrote lyric poems about war and peace, nature and nostalgia, grief and loss. Notable among these are the 15th century French lyric poets, Christine de Pizan and Charles, Duke of Orléans. Spiritual and religious themes were addressed by such mystic lyric poets as St. John of the Cross and Teresa of Ávila. The tradition of lyric poetry based on spiritual experience was continued by later poets such as John Donne, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Antonio Machado and T. S. Eliot.

Though the most popular form for western lyric poetry to take may be the 14-line sonnet, as practiced by Petrarch and Shakespeare, lyric poetry shows a bewildering variety of forms, including increasingly, in the 20th century, unrhymed ones. Lyric poetry is the most common type of poetry, as it deals intricately with an author's own emotions and views.

[edit] Elegy

Thomas GrayMain article: Elegy

An elegy is a mournful, melancholy or plaintive poem, especially a lament for the dead or a funeral song. The term "elegy," which originally denoted a type of poetic meter (elegiac meter), commonly describes a poem of mourning. An elegy may also reflect something that seems to the author to be strange or mysterious. The elegy, as a reflection on a death, on a sorrow more generally, or on something mysterious, may be classified as a form of lyric poetry. In a related sense that harks back to ancient poetic traditions of sung poetry, the word "elegy" may also denote a type of musical work, usually of a sad or somber nature.

Elegiac poetry has been written since antiquity. Perhaps the first example of the form is II Samuel, Chapter 1, in which David laments the fall of King Saul and of Saul's son and heir

Jonathan. Notable practitioners have included Propertius (lived ca. 50 BCE – ca. 15 BCE), Jorge Manrique (1476), Jan Kochanowski (1580), Chidiock Tichborne (1586), Edmund Spenser (1595), Ben Jonson (1616), John Milton (1637), Thomas Gray (1750), Charlotte Turner Smith (1784), William Cullen Bryant (1817), Percy Bysshe Shelley (1821), Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1823), Evgeny Baratynsky (1837), Alfred Tennyson (1849), Walt Whitman (1865), Louis Gallet (lived 1835–98), Antonio Machado (1903), Juan Ramón Jiménez (1914), William Butler Yeats (1916), Rainer Maria Rilke (1922), Virginia Woolf (1927), Federico García Lorca (1935), Kamau Brathwaite (born 1930).

[edit] Verse fable

Ignacy KrasickiMain article: Fable

The fable is an ancient, near-ubiquitous literary genre, often (though not invariably) set in verse. It is a succinct story that features anthropomorphized animals, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that illustrate a moral lesson (a "moral"). Verse fables have used a variety of meter and rhyme patterns; Ignacy Krasicki, for example, in his Fables and Parables, used 13-syllable lines in rhyming couplets.

Notable verse fabulists have included Aesop (mid-6th century BCE), Vishnu Sarma (ca. 200 BCE), Phaedrus (15 BCE–50 CE), Marie de France (12th century), Robert Henryson (fl.1470-1500), Biernat of Lublin (1465?–after 1529), Jean de La Fontaine (1621–95), Ignacy Krasicki (1735–1801), Félix María de Samaniego (1745–1801), Tomás de Iriarte (1750–1791), Ivan Krylov (1769–1844) and Ambrose Bierce (1842–1914). All of Aesop's translators and successors owe a debt to that semi-legendary fabulist.

An example of a verse fable is Krasicki's "The Lamb and the Wolves":

Aggression ever finds cause if sufficiently pressed. Two wolves on the prowl had trapped a lamb in the forest And were about to pounce. Quoth the lamb: "What right have you?" "You're toothsome, weak, in the wood." — The wolves dined sans ado.

[edit] Prose poetry

Charles Baudelaire, by Gustave Courbet Michael Madhusudan DuttMain article: Prose poetry

Prose poetry is a hybrid genre that shows attributes of both prose and poetry. It may be indistinguishable from the micro-story (aka the "short short story", "flash fiction"). It qualifies as poetry because of its conciseness, use of metaphor, and special attention to language.[citation needed]

While some examples of earlier prose strike modern readers as poetic, prose poetry is commonly regarded as having originated in 19th-century France, where its practitioners included Aloysius Bertrand, Charles Baudelaire, Arthur Rimbaud and Stéphane Mallarmé.