Get to know all about the finesses in poetry. From poetry terms to poetry types to decisive differences in poetry.
Poem Types
A villanelle poem is a poem of French origin, consisting of five three-line verses (tercets) and finally, one four-line stanza (quatrain). The villanelle poem type is a favored poetry form by many poets, especially during the late 16th century.
Metered poetry is simply any poem that is written with a meter. Metered or metrical poetry uses a regular rhythmic pattern of both stressed and unstressed syllables.
Lyric poetry is one of the oldest forms of literature. Aristotle originally categorized lyric poetry into three groups: dramatic, epic, and lyric. While lyric poems have an interesting overlap with song verses or lyrics, they are not necessarily meant to be sung.
Concrete poetry is a unique form of poetry in which the words on the page form some meaningful image or shape that complements the poem itself. Concrete poetry is also known as shape poetry.
Blank verse is a poem type that’s usually written with precise meter—usually iambic pentameter—but with unrhymed lines. Playwrights and dramatists from the 1550s developed the use of blank verse in English. That eventually started the wide use of the blank verse poem type in both epic and dramatic poetry.
Epics are long narrative poems that typically tell stories of the glorious deeds of legendary heroes. Epic poetry deals with different subjects, from myths to histories, to religious stories, legends, and even animal tales.
A sonnet is a fixed 14-line verse poem that originates from 13th century Italy. The Petrarchan (or Italian) sonnet and the Shakespearean (or English) sonnet are the two principal forms of sonnets.
Haikus are a short, unrhymed form of poetry that originates from ancient Japan. Although early haiku poem themes typically revolve around nature, it expanded its subject especially in the 19th century when writing haikus was revitalized.
A ballad is a poem that often tells a story. This narrative form of poetry typically consists of four stanzas and is at times set to music. Ballad poems have many variations, including lyrical ballads, folk ballads, and modern ballads among others.
Pastoral poems are known for romanticizing idyllic country life and exploring man’s relationship with nature. A pastoral poem expresses one’s desire or fantasy to enjoy a more peaceful life in the countryside.
An ode is a short version of lyric poetry. Odes were originally sung or chanted with a musical instrument, especially in ancient Greece. Odes are often performed to praise and glorify people, things, or events. Thus, they are typically formal or ceremonial in tone.
A limerick is a humorous (and often rather irreverent) short five-line poem that utilizes a simple rhyme scheme to punctuate the comedic nature of the poem. They were popularized by Edward Lear, though he did not specifically call his poems limericks.
Acrostic poems are a form of poetry that spell out a word or message in the first letter, word, or occasionally syllable of each line in the poem. Some acrostics spell out the alphabet instead, but the core principle of using the beginning of the line to spell something out remains the same.
A dichotomy in literature is essentially a representation of opposing forces or ideas. Whereas a juxtaposition involves ‘positioning’ two contrasting forces together. Discover more about the difference between dichotomy vs. juxtaposition here!
An idiom is an expression or a saying that has a figurative rather than a literal meaning. Whereas a euphemism is a type of idiom that softens an otherwise blunt, harsh, provocative, or sensitive topic.
A narrator is one who tells a story or narrative. A speaker, on the other hand, is the active “voice” or character behind a poem or story.