Prose

Prose is language that is natural, normal, or expected in structure: following the spontaneous flow of conversational speech, without any perfectly regular rhythm; containing ordinary grammar patterns; or, in writing, aligning to typical conventions and formatting. It thus can range in its exact medium from informal everyday speaking to formal academic writing. Prose differs most notably from poetry, which follows some type of contrived intentional rhythm or other artistic structure or pattern. vary dramatically by language; in English poetry, for instance, language is often organized by a rhythmic metre or rhyme scheme.

The day-to-day informal language of a region or community, and many other forms and styles of language usage, fall under prose, a label that can describe both speech and writing. In writing, poetry is traditionally written in a special format called verse: a series of lines stacked on top of one another on a page. This parallels how a person might read the poem aloud; for example, poetry may end with a rhyme at the end of each line, making the entire work more melodious or memorable. Prose uses writing conventions and formatting that may highlight meaning—for instance, the use of a new paragraph for a new speaker in a novel—but does not follow any special rhythmic or other artistic structure.

The word "prose" first appeared in English in the 14th century. It is derived from the Old Frenchprose, which in turn originates in the Latin expression prosa oratio (literally, straightforward or direct speech). In highly-literate cultures where spoken rhetoric is considered relatively unimportant, definitions of prose may be narrower, including only written language (but including written speech or dialogue). In written languages, spoken and written prose usually differ sharply. Sometimes, these differences are transparent to those using the languages; linguists studying extremely literal transcripts for conversation analysis see them, but ordinary language-users are unaware of them.

Academic writing (works of philosophy, history, economics, etc.), journalism, and fiction are usually written in prose (excepting verse novels etc.). Developments in twentieth century literature, including free verse, concrete poetry, and prose poetry, have led to the idea of poetry and prose as two ends on a spectrum rather than firmly distinct from each other. The British poet T. S. Eliot noted, whereas "the distinction between verse and prose is clear, the distinction between poetry and prose is obscure."