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TJMF Publishing - Open Mike Cafe Editor's Desk Staff Editor Patty Zion |
Movement in Poetry, Part Four
One and-a Two and-a
By Patty Zion, Staff Editor
Tempo. Music needs it to exist, yet we never give it much thought while listening to a lyric or dancing to a song. Poetry also requires a tempo in order to exist, but we want the reader to glide on through without devoting any conscious thought to the exact tempo the poet has placed in the lines. Tempo should be seamless to the reader, despite the skill and time devoted to making it just right.
In much the same way as music, poetry’s tempo should primarily depend on the subject and tone of the poem. A happy, joyful, or light verse poem wants an upbeat, lively tempo. A serious, sad, or thoughtful poem needs a slower, more studied tempo. Whether read aloud or silently, a light poem should be read more quickly; we need to give it the gas the whole way through. A heavier poem should coast along at a slower rate; we need to stop the reader here and there to give time to the thoughts.
Other poetic circumstances which might require a fast tempo include the heady feeling of being in love, a frightening theme, and an athletic subject.
Likewise, we might desire a slower tempo for a poem about enjoying nature or a tale of an elderly person.
How to achieve the desired tempo? That’s where skill comes into play.
Line length is one of the easiest ways to speed up or slow down the read. A shorter line usually makes for a faster read, whereas a longer line feels slower. Lines of only a few words allow the reader to digest things with speed, thereby increasing the rate at which the poem advances. And longer lines of seven or more words make us read at a slower pace.
However, a short line can put on the brakes, especially when it ends with a period or a stanza break.
Like this.
So punctuation can also help to control the speed of our poetry. A period is sometimes known as a full stop, for a very good reason. When we see a period, our eyes and ears take a short break. A semicolon causes a slightly shorter pause, and a comma brings a very brief pause. Likewise, a dash causes a pause. For most readers, a dash will cause a long, thoughtful pause.
Stanza length, yet another weapon in the poet’s speed-control arsenal, can also be an indicator of how fast the reader should proceed. A quatrain (four lines) takes a while to read and understand; therefore, it moves more slowly. A couplet (two lines) goes faster. And once again, there are exceptions. When a poem written entirely in couplets also has many periods and commas, it causes the reader to stop here and there.
Writing a poem all in one block, without stanzas (which are also called strophes in free verse) often makes the reader feel forced to continue the whole way through with little pause. Although the tempo is probably somewhat slow, it often feels to the reader as though there is no end in sight. This can be very uncomfortable for many readers, so the poet should think twice before running a long poem all together without stanza breaks.
Meter has its own rhythm and speed. A simple iambic or trochaic meter moves along fairly quickly, and is therefore appropriate for light verse. A trisyllabic meter, on the other hand, tends to move with more consideration and less speed.
Free verse allows the writer plenty of elbow room for controlling speed. We can determine the exact line length and stanza length we need for each section of the poem, and we have total freedom to include enjambment in the places where it will carry the reader forward quickly.
Exercise:
Step one: Read through this poem, i carry your heart with me, by e.e. cummings. Identify the methods he has used to control the movement and tempo. Click on this link to read the poem:
http://www.americanpoems.com/poets/eecummings/11913
Step two: Study a poem you have already written to determine the tempo, movement, and pauses. Add the necessary elements to control the movement in your poem.
As you become more adept at creating your own style of movement in your work, readers will relate more easily to your thoughts and emotions. You’ll soon have them dancing in the line breaks!
Staff Editor Patty Zion welcomes your editing questions and comments. You may reach her by e-mail at