About Verse
Verse is measured language, formal language in the sense that it has a shape. Patterned. Some alternation of a phonetic element with another different element. Sound and silence too. Something recurs phonetically. In English it is stress (stress-unstress-stress . . ) In French stress is not the essential formal element; syllable count and rhyme are key. German is like English. That's not surprising given the histories of the two languages. In Latin and in Greek is it the length of syllables. I don't know anything about Chinese, but I would guess it might be pitch. There is a theory that verse was invented because there was a need for something memorable. Just for a minute, tell me how many days there are in December. See? Verse was used as a preservative, a way to remember the names of ancestors, heroes (the catalogues in The Iliad, for instance) in pre-literate societies. In that way it was something like salt, which started as a preservative and became a condiment. Homer’s epics were in verse partly because verse made it possible for the singers to memorize the poems. But Virgil, who used the same verse form as Homer (not by accident) lived in a highly literate society. Verse was no longer a necessity; it had become a source and vehicle for beauty.
Verse is measured language, formal language in the sense that it has a shape. Patterned. Some alternation of a phonetic element with another different element. Sound and silence too. Something recurs phonetically. In English it is stress (stress-unstress-stress . . ) In French stress is not the essential formal element; syllable count and rhyme are key. German is like English. That's not surprising given the histories of the two languages. In Latin and in Greek is it the length of syllables. I don't know anything about Chinese, but I would guess it might be pitch. There is a theory that verse was invented because there was a need for something memorable. Just for a minute, tell me how many days there are in December. See? Verse was used as a preservative, a way to remember the names of ancestors, heroes (the catalogues in The Iliad, for instance) in pre-literate societies. In that way it was something like salt, which started as a preservative and became a condiment. Homer’s epics were in verse partly because verse made it possible for the singers to memorize the poems. But Virgil, who used the same verse form as Homer (not by accident) lived in a highly literate society. Verse was no longer a necessity; it had become a source and vehicle for beauty.
Free verse, which has been around in English for a while and has become dominant in the last hundred years, can be very good in the hands of very talented people. But it is not verse. It is an imposter. "Free verse" is an oxymoron.
Free verse, which has been around in English for a while and has become dominant in the last hundred years, can be very good in the hands of very talented people. But it is not verse. It is an imposter. "Free verse" is an oxymoron.
There are essential qualities of verse and then there are the more ornamental phonetic qualities, assonance, consonance, and rhyme (in English). Ornaments can be very beautiful. I keep trying to memorize poems I love so that they can become mine, known by heart, intimately beloved, a source of comfort and delight. I knew a great scholar, Edward Kenney, who served at sea during WWII. He had a fabulous memory, and on long monotonous voyages he managed to memorize Paradise Lost.
There are essential qualities of verse and then there are the more ornamental phonetic qualities, assonance, consonance, and rhyme (in English). Ornaments can be very beautiful. I keep trying to memorize poems I love so that they can become mine, known by heart, intimately beloved, a source of comfort and delight. I knew a great scholar, Edward Kenney, who served at sea during WWII. He had a fabulous memory, and on long monotonous voyages he managed to memorize Paradise Lost.
If you have never tried getting a poem by heart, give it a shot. I’ve probably bored (and maybe irritated) anyone who has read all of this. I will not apologize. I have a lot more to say on this subject.
If you have never tried getting a poem by heart, give it a shot. I’ve probably bored (and maybe irritated) anyone who has read all of this. I will not apologize. I have a lot more to say on this subject.