The poem is a literary composition written in verses, where through rhyme and other language tools, the author expresses his emotions and impressions of the world. For this a figurative language and words written in verse or prose are used, in general the poems are usually lyrical, dramatic and epic, manifesting about hope, happiness, infidelity, disappointment, dreams, honor, among others emissions and basic concerns of people.
What is a poem
Table of Contents
They are literary works generally written in verses and divided into stanzas, mainly they are didactic and narrative. Formerly all literary compositions were considered poems since this word is derived from the verb "poesin", which in Greek means "to do", therefore, the poem was any writing born of literature.
In the poems a series of elements are present, such as the feelings and experiences of the author expressed in his themes, in this way the reader knows what he feels. It is important to highlight that many of these works are short poems, whose meaning is expressed through small verses, in order to specify their rhythms and phonic recurrences, with a semantic or syntactic structure.
The repetition of sounds is used as a resource to get the rhythm at the end of each verse and thus manage to compose poems that rhyme. In general, the poems are written in the present or past tense, unlike the future, which is very little used.
What are the parts of a Poem
The poem is a literary text that due to its characteristics is considered part of the genre of poetry. The main parts of a poem are:
Stanza
It is a set of verses, with the same characteristics that are repeated throughout a poem. There are stanzas that are defined according to the rhyme, the meter and the type and number of verses by which they are composed, that is, if the verses are made up of the same number of syllables they are called isometric or isosyllabic stanzas, in addition to this, the types of stanzas by number of verses are:
- Of 2 verses: couplet.
- Of 3 verses: triplet.
- Of 4 verses: serventesio, quartet, round, quatrain, cuaderna via, sapphic stanza and monorphic tetrastrophe.
- Of 5 verses: lyre, quintet and limerick.
- Of 6 verses: sextet-lyre, sixth rhyme, sestina and sextilla.
- Of 7 verses: composed sequence and seventh.
- Of 8 verses: couplet of major art, couplet of Juan Mena, eighth rhyme or eighth real, leaflet and Italian octave.
- Of 9 verses: there is not.
- Of 10 verses: tenth or spinel, royal cup and ovillejo.
Verses
It is a set of words that are subjected to measures, rhyme and rhythms, this produces rhythmic effects in the form of a poem. The verses are made up of a group of short sentences, written one per line. These are classified according to the number of syllables, they can be:
Minor art
They are formed by eight syllables or less:
- 2 syllables, bisyllables
- 3 syllables, trisyllables
- 4 syllables, tetrasyllables
- 5 syllable, pentasyllable
- 6 syllables, hexasyllables
- 7 syllables, heptasyllables
- 8 syllables, octasyllables
Of major art
They are formed by nine syllables or more. In this case, when a verse is made up of eleven syllables or more, it is considered composed, that is, of two simple verses separated by a censor and each of these is called a hemistich. An example of a compound verse is Pablo Neruda's poem:
Original text
I don't love her anymore, it's true,
but maybe I love her.
Love is so short
and oblivion is so long.
The poems of major art are:
- 9 syllables, eneasyllables
- 10 syllables, decasyllables
- 11 syllables, hendecasyllables
- 12 syllables, twelve syllables
- 13 syllables, tridecasyllables
- Of 14 syllables, alejandrinos
Rhythm
Represents the musicality of the verse. When a verse is simple, it is accented on the penultimate syllable and compounds are also accented on the penultimate syllables, but of each hemistich. This type of accent is called stanza. The importance of the accent on rhythm is that the author uses it to make the word stand out and in this way attract the reader's attention.
The rhyme
It is a technique that is used in poetry, which consists of the repetition of sounds that usually end in verse starting from the last stressed vowel. There are two types of rhymes.
Rhyme
It occurs when after the last stressed vowel all sounds are repeated exactly, both vowels and consonants.
Sounding Rhyme
In this case, only the vowel sounds are repeated and not the consonants.
Measure
It is the number of syllables that make up each of the verses and the scheme of the stanzas, it is considered the first formal element of a poem. To carry out this measure, certain parameters must be taken into account, such as the law of the final accent, the synalefa and the poetic licenses.
Final Accent Law
It refers to the determination of the symmetry of the verse according to the accentuation of the last word, that is, all the simple verses are accented in the penultimate syllable, unlike the compound verses that are accentuated in the same way but in each hemistich, the types of accent according to this law are:
1. The stanzas: They are always accentuated in the penultimate syllable of each verse.
2. The rhythmic accents: They are the ones that coincide in each verse with the odd or even signs of the verse accent.
3. The extrarhythmic accents: They are the accents located inside the verse, for this reason they are not considered rhythmic positions.
4. Antiarrhythmic accents: They occur in cases where another accented syllable appears next to a syllable that has a rhythmic accent, it is generally used by poets to highlight the word on which they want to draw attention
The Sinalefa
This important poetic figure, serves to determine and make adjustments to the metric of a verse, is based primarily on counting as a single syllable, the last ending in a vowel and the first vowel of the initial syllable of the next word. Its rules are similar to diphthong and tripthong, in other words, vowels are pronounced in a single stroke of voice, for this reason it counts as a single syllable, the same happens when the word begins with “h” since this letter does not have phoneme.
Poetic Licenses
These licenses are used by the poet as a resource to adjust the verses to a rhyme and a certain measure. They are of utmost importance for the author, since it allows him to give characteristics of his own styles and characteristics, giving poetic beauty to the text.
Types of Poems
The poem is a way of expressing feelings using ink or charcoal as an element on a paper or other surface. In this sense, there are several types of poems, among them we have:
Sonnet
It has 14 hendecasyllable verses structured in a classical way, generally divided into 4 stanzas, 2 of four verses and 2 of three verses. An example of a sonnet is the love poem “Noche del amor insomne” by Federico García Lorca.
Third
It is a stanza consisting of three lines of verses, whose rhyme is between the first and third. They are usually 11 syllables each. When several triplets are used to form longer poems, it is called a chained triplet, provided that the verse that is left free at the beginning is used to rhyme with the triplet that follows. Example of a triplet:
While you are there with tender zeal,
of gold, silk and purple covering
the veil of your vile earthly soul
Author: Francisco de Aldana.
Romance
This traditional poetic composition is made up of a set of eight-syllable verses with an assonance rhyme in the even verses, and the odd ones are loose.
Tenth
They are stanzas of consonant rhyme formed by 10 verses of 8 syllables each. These are of different modalities, according to their construction and combination of rhymes, there are Italian, spinel and French, being the spinel the most used by Latin American and Spanish literature.
Ode
It is a literary text that can rhyme in various ways such as consonant, assonance and free. Its main function is to express feelings through a lyric poem. It can be developed in different ways and tones, treat any type of subject and are usually divided into stanzas.
Acrostic
These verses are formed through the affiliation of a word, that is, beginning each verse with the first letter by which the word is formed, for example, El bachiller:
Silence shields and tends to cover
Lack of wit in clumsy tongues;
Blazon, who is contrary, publishes his ebb,
To the one who talks a lot without feeling much.
Like the ant that stops
roaming around on the ground with the supply,
Lactose with wings of its supply:
Carrying it high, it does not know where to go.
The air enjoying, alien and strange,
Prey is already made of birds that fly
Calligram
They are poems that in addition to expressing themselves in the form of prose and rhyme songs, seeks to penetrate the reader, creating images of poems, these are tricks used by the author where the typography and calligraphy represent the content of the text. These are frequently used as poems for children in the initiation of literary education, as they produce an admiration on their part, when observing that the words form an image of what they are reading.
Couplet
They are poetic works composed of four verses, they are generally eight syllables, the even lines have assonance rhyme and the odd ones without rhyme. Its stanza form has undergone modifications throughout its history, today there are verses of major art, Manriqueña verses, minor art verses, royal art verses, broken foot verses, among others.
Eclogue
This type of poem is sometimes related very similarly to a script for a play. The focuses of this type of poetry are towards shepherds and connections towards nature, although they can also be directed to love and feelings.
Epigram
Epigrams are short, satirical literary compositions. It emerged in Greece in the 11th century as dedications and throughout literary history it has undergone various transformations. The best known are those of Ernesto Cardenal, however, various authors continue to cultivate this type of poem. Epigrams, like short love poems, generally have a dark humorous tone. Its most important characteristic is a sarcastic, satirical and ironic style.
Epitaph
This literary work is what is used to honor the deceased in their graves, they are generally written on the tombstones. Many authors have written their last words in fabulous texts, such as:
Marquis de Sade:
"If I didn't live any longer, it was because I didn't have time"
William Shakespeare:
“Good friend, by Jesus, refrain
from digging the dust in here.
Blessed is the man who respects these stones
and cursed is he who removes my bones "
Anthem
It is a musical or poetic composition, where extraordinary characters, nations, things or events are praised. In some cases they are dedicated to celebrating a victory, expressing joy or enthusiasm. The hymns can also be read and are accompanied by music, which awakens emissions and feelings among those who listen. There are several types of hymns, among them we have:
- National anthems.
- Religious hymns.
- Hymns of war.
- Sports anthems.
- School hymns.
- Political hymns.
Haiku
It is a type of short Japanese poetry inspired by the emotions of the moment, amazement, feelings and connection with nature. They are made up of verses of 5 and 7 syllables. For the Japanese this poetry is a tradition with the power to bare the soul, coupling with courage, resistance and bravery. It produces a liberating and cathartic effect on readers, serving as a very useful psychological tool.
Poetic prose
It is a lyrical work that differs from the poem by being written in prose. It differs from the story and stories because it does not narrate facts, but rather conveys feelings. Through this type of prose the author can express what he feels, since he has the basic elements of the poem such as lyrical attitude, lyrical speaker, object and theme, but does not have formal elements. Example the poems of Gabriela Mistral.
Greguerías
It is a poetic genre created by Ramón Gómez de la Serna. They are short texts with similarities to the aphorism, formed by a single line, where they are expressed in an original and sharp way: humor, philosophical, lyrical and pragmatic thoughts.
Saying
It is a short phrase or saying of popular culture, which conveys a teaching or advice on how to understand life. According to the writer Andrés Henestrosa, the saying serves to open the eyes in certain situations and is a summary of the wisdom accumulated over many years in human beings.
It is important to mention that Nahuatl represents a Uto - Aztec language spoken by 1.5 million people in Mexico, who live in the central region of the country. The poems in Nahuatl were called "flower and song" since it is a poem and characteristic songs between the world, the heart and the people.
Examples of Poems
There are different styles of short or long poems inspired by people and situations, among them are:
Friendship poems
"Friends I will always have
but friends like you
I will never forget."
Poems for mom
“Mother of the soul, dear mother, they
are your birthdays, I want to sing;
because my soul, full of love,
although very young, never forgets
what life it gave me. "
Love poems for my girlfriend
"How not to look for you, if I miss you.
How not to write to you, if I think about you.
How not to dream of you, if I want you here with me.
How not to fall you in love, I love you"
Romantic poems
“I will not belong to anyone,
only you.
Until my bones
turn to ashes and my heart
stops beating. "
