Forms of poetry

• What is the definition of form in poetry?

  Form refers to the rules poets follow when writing poetry.
• Why do poets choose to write in regular or irregular forms?

  Poets choose forms to create different sounds and effects.
• What are the characteristics of the poem "Exposure"?

  • Regular rhythm with eight lines
  • Each line has four long lines and a half-line at the end
  • Regular ABAB rhyme scheme
  • Half-lines reinforce monotony and lack of hope
• How does the structure of "Exposure" contribute to its themes?

  The half-lines and regular form highlight monotony and lack of action or hope.
• What are the characteristics of the poem "War Photographer"?

  • Consists of four stanzas
  • Lines of similar length
  • Regular ABCD rhyme scheme
  • Regularity reflects the photographer's routine
• What duality is highlighted in "War Photographer"?

  The poem satirizes war and death while presenting the photographer's dangerous work in an ordered way.
• What are the characteristics of "The Charge of the Light Brigade"?

  • Irregular form with six unique stanzas
  • Each stanza has between five and twelve lines
  • Different rhyme schemes used
  • Rhyme drives the poem forward like galloping cavalry
• How does Tennyson use rhyme in "The Charge of the Light Brigade"?

  Rhyme creates momentum, which is broken by unrhymed lines to mirror the horses' stumbling.
• What are the characteristics of "Checking Out Me History"?

  • Uses different stanza forms
  • British stanzas are quatrains reflecting restrictive education
  • Caribbean stanzas are in free verse with short lines
  • Italics used for Caribbean stanzas to emphasize pace
• How do the stanza forms in "Checking Out Me History" reflect the speaker's education?

  The quatrains mirror the speaker's restrictive education, contrasting with the free verse of Caribbean stanzas.
• What is the significance of the short lines in the Caribbean stanzas of "Checking Out Me History"?

  Short lines force the reader to pay attention to the stories described.
• What is a choral verse form?

  • A verse form that does not use a traditional structure
  • Features a single speaker