![]() ![]() (I suppose we have to give the word “amazing” a limited definition in this context.) But I have found since then that when I read metrical writing, I scan things in my head, and if I were to be a stickler, I’d say that there are an awful lot of poems out there that, in terms of scansion, aren’t true sonnets. It was surprisingly difficult, mainly because it’s amazing how often we try to force words to scan the way we think they ought to, instead of using words that fit naturally within the flow. It was a pass/fail assignment - it either was 14 lines of iambic pentameter or it wasn’t. ![]() Like many good English majors, I had to study forms of poetic meter in school, and the most telling exercise (I still think about it) was having to write a perfect Elizabethan sonnet. (What can I say? It was a nice break from the usual posting about truly important things like underwear and cramps.) I don’t claim to be an expert on this subject by any stretch of the imagination, even though many long years ago, I wrote an article for LitKicks about villanelles, sonnets and meter, (appropriately titled “Villanelles, Sonnets and Meter”) but it is something that fascinates me. ![]() A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post on my blog about metrical poetry, specifically, the line in Romeo and Juliet, “O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” and how the scansion of the line could support the meaning of the words. ![]()
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