|
Couplet (other)
In poetry, a couplet ( ) or distich ( ) is a pair of successive lines that rhyme and have the same metre. A couplet may be formal (closed) or run-on (open). In a formal (closed) couplet, each of the two lines is end-stopped, implying that there is a grammatical pause at the end of a line of verse. In a run-on (open) couplet, the meaning of the first line continues to the second. Background The word "couplet" comes from the French word meaning "two pieces of iron riveted or hinged together". The term "couplet" was first used to describe successive lines of verse in Sir P. Sidney's ''Arcadia ''in 1590: "In singing some short coplets, whereto the one halfe beginning, the other halfe should answere." While couplets traditionally rhyme, not all do. Poems may use white space to mark out couplets if they do not rhyme. Couplets in iambic pentameter are called ''heroic couplets''. John Dryden in the 17th century and Alexander Pope in the 18th century were both well known for their writ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Line (poetry)
A line is a unit of writing into which a poem or play is divided: literally, a single row of text. The use of a line operates on principles which are distinct from and not necessarily coincident with grammatical structures, such as the sentence or single clauses in sentences. Although the word for a single poetic line is '' verse'', that term now tends to be used to signify poetic form more generally. A line break is the termination of the line of a poem and the beginning of a new line. The process of arranging words using lines and line breaks is known as ''lineation'', and is one of the defining features of poetry. A distinct numbered group of lines in verse is normally called a '' stanza''. A title, in certain poems, is considered a line. General conventions in Western poetry Conventions that determine what might constitute line in poetry depend upon different constraints, aural characteristics or scripting conventions for any given language. On the whole, where relevant, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
