How to determine the rhythm of a poem

Rhythm is exactly what distinguishes a poem from prose. It is based on the alternation of syllables - stressed and unstressed. The rhythm of the verse is set by the cyclical nature of this alternation.

Instruction manual

one

The smallest units of a poem that make up its rhythm are syllables. They are shock and unstressed. A group of unstressed syllables, which are united by one stressed, forms a foot. It is the structure and alternation of the feet that creates the rhythmic pattern, or the size of the verse, which, as a rule, continues throughout the entire work. To determine the poetic size, it suffices to single out one stanza (the largest alternating unit is a couplet, three-part, quatrain, etc.). In the poem A.S. Pushkin's "Winter Evening" the stanza will be a quatrain: A storm covers the sky in darkness, Twirling snow whirls, As she conquers a beast, She weeps like a child.

2

Select syllables in a stanza. Schematically depict the structure of the verse as follows: mark the strong, stressed syllable with the “/” sign, unstressed - “-”. Now this same quatrain will look like this: / - / - / - / - / - / - / - // - / - / - / - / - / - / - / It can be seen that each stressed syllable has one unstressed one. This is the foot, in this case two-fold. In the poem N.A. Nekrasov’s “Shyness” of the foot is already three-fold - it consists of two unstressed syllables and one stressed one: Feet like iron weights, Head poured like lead, Strange hands stick out useless, Words freeze on lips. - - / - - / - - / - - - - / - - / - - / - - - / - - / - - / - - / - - / - - / - -Thus you could determine the two- and three-step size of the poem.

3

In the classic versification, two types of the double-footed size and three - three-footed are distinguished. Double-footed - these are trochees and iambic. In chorea, the first syllable in the foot is stressed. That is, the poem "Winter Evening" considered by us was written by a chorea. In iamba, respectively, the emphasis is on the second syllable: My uncle has the most honest rules.. (A.S. Pushkin, "Eugene Onegin") - / - / - / - / - Three-complex sizes are divided into dactyl, amphibrach and anapaest. Dactyl - size with emphasis on the first syllable: Clouds of heaven, eternal wanderers.. (M.Yu. Lermontov, "Clouds") / - - / - - / - - / - -Amphibrachium - three-syllable size with emphasis on the second syllable: Which foggy summer (S.Ya. Marshak, “Lioness”) - / - - / - - / - / - - / - - / Anapest is a three-syllable size with an emphasis on the third syllable, as in the considered Shyness poem by Nekrasov.

note

Authors do not always adhere strictly to one rhythmic pattern. But the alternation of feet is still, as a rule, gravitates to one or another poetic size, two-syllable or three-syllable.

the rhythm of the verse