Understanding Types of Poems I. Epic poemsA. Definition; —a narrative concentr

Understanding Types of Poems
    Good morning, everyone. Welcome to my lecture. Today’s topic is about the types of poems. We all know a poem is a created work that uses language to express ideas that ate meaningful and memorable. Several broad types of poems that have been used throughout history include the epic poems, lyrical poems, dramatic poems, and the various familiar fixed forms such as ballads and sonnets. So, today, we’d like to talk about different types of poems, a special kind of literature.
    The first type we will talk about is the epic poems, the oldest poetic form. Sometimes we call it the heroic poem. (1) An epic poem is a long narrative that concentrates on heroic deeds and events that are significant to a particular culture. Mythology is often expressed in the form of an epic poem. Many epics existed in oral form only and have not survived.
    Examples of epic poems that have survived in written form include (2) Gilgamesh, which was recorded about 2000 B. C. on clay tablets. Much of Greek mythology was recorded as epic poems by numerous authors, including Homer’s Iliad and his Odyssey. Virgil’s Aeneid and Ovid’s Metamorphoses are famous epics which cover Roman mythology. Written during the medieval period, Beowulf relates numerous Anglo-Saxon legends. More recent examples of popular epic poems include Dante’s The Divine Comedy, John Milton’s Paradise Lost and so on.
    Characteristics of an epic poem include (3) an imposing, significant hero; a vast setting; courageous, even superhuman actions; supernatural forces, such as demons or gods; and an objective point of view surveying the whole story.
    The second type is the lyrical poems. Lyric poetry originally referred to the Greek practice of delivering verse to the accompaniment of the music. A lyric poem generally is a short poem, often expressing personal deep feelings, (4) having a musical quality that might be set to music and performed to an audience.
    Some familiar lyric poets include the Greeks, Sappho and Pindar, and the Romans, Catullus and Horace. During the middle ages the Persian Omar Khayyam wrote memorable lyric verses. During later centuries John Donne and Ben Jonson were famous for their lyric poems. The 19th and 20th centuries were filled with lyric poets. Some of the most familiar include Wordsworth, Keats, Byron and Shelley.
    Lyric poems typically depend on rhythm and rhyme. Rhythm is often called meter and is composed of several feet or beats. Two syllable feet and three syllable feet are the most common, and a lyric verse normally has a small number of lines, each divided into a recognizable pattern of feet. A verse may contain a definite rhyme pattern or may be left without rhyme and called blank verse.
    The third type is the dramatic poems. Dramatic poetry is meant to be spoken or sung to an audience. It derives from theatrical drama and is generally written in the form of a dialogue or a monologue.
    Examples of dramatic poetry can be found in Greek tragedies, Indian drama, Chinese opera, and Japanese Noh theatre.
    The last type would be summarized as the various familiar fixed forms of poetry. There are many popular fixed forms of it, such as sonnets, ballads, odes, epigrams and so on. Each form follows a definite model.
    The most famous sonnets are those of Shakespeare’s, also called English sonnets. English sonnets are 14 lines in length and consist of 3 verses, which consist of four lines, and a couplet, which consists of two lines. The rhyme pattern is generally characterized by abab, cdcd, efef, gg. Shakespeare’s lines employ a five two-syllable feet rhythm.
    Another popular sonnet form is the Petrarchan or Italian sonnet, named after Francesco Petrarch. This form also has 14 lines broken into an 8 line with a rhyme pattern of abbaabba and a 6 line with a rhyme pattern of xyzxyz.
    Sonnets are often written about love and affection and employ skillful imagery. Their length allows the poet to create complications in the body of the sonnet and then to resolve the conflicts in the closing lines.
    A ballad is a form of verse meant to be sung or recited and usually presents a dramatic or exciting episode from real life.
    The traditional ballad form includes four lines per stanza and, often, a refrain. The four lines in each ballad verse consist of four two-syllable feet in the first and third lines and three two-syllable feet in the second and fourth lines. The rhyme pattern is often abab.
    An ode is generally a lengthy lyric poem with a serious subject matter, and elevated style, and an elaborate structure. One form is modeled after the Roman poet, Horatio, and uses uniform stanzas and a regular rhythm pattern. (9) The stanzas are often divided into three sections. The first section describes the scene or situation. The second section presents the problem, and the third section presents an insight, a vision, a decision, or a revelation.
    Epigrams are usually short poems ending with a twist or a clever, witty point. (10) In the Greek tradition they were inscribed on statues or sanctuaries. In the Roman tradition the epigram became a witty gift given to entertain a patron or a loved one, and not something to be inscribed. In the English tradition the epigram became a witty rhymed couplet with Coleridge, Pope, and even Benjamin Franklin becoming its master.
    Of course, there are a few other identifiable poetic forms in addition to the ones mentioned above. And certainly, there will be additional forms invented by insightful poets in the future. Above all, understanding and appreciating the many different forms of poetry will help you more greatly appreciate the creative works of the poets. So read some poems after class and I am sure you will have some new findings through doing so. See you next time.