Types of Stanzas

There are many different types of stanzas. Some of which are:

• Couplets (stanza with two rhyming lines)
• Tercets (stanzas with three lines that may or may not rhyme)
• Quatrains (stanzas with four lines that may or may not rhyme)
• Cinquains (stanzas with five lines)
• Sestet (stanzas with 6 lines)

Remember that in poetry you can identify a stanza by the number of lines that it has and its rhyme scheme or pattern.

A rhyme scheme is a regular pattern of rhyme, one that is consistent throughout the extent of the poem.  Poems that rhyme without any regular pattern can be called rhyming poems, but  only those poems with an unvarying pattern to their rhymes can be said to have a rhyme scheme.

Rhyme schemes are labeled according to their rhyme sounds.  Every rhyme sound is given its own letter of the alphabet to distinguish it from the other rhyme sounds that may appear in the poem.  For example, the first rhyme sound of a poem is designated as a.  Every time that rhyme sound appears in the poem, no matter where it is found, it is called a.  The second rhyme sound to appear in the poem is designated b.  Every other time that rhyme sound appears in the poem, no matter where it is found, it is called b.  The third rhyme sound to appear would be c, the fourth d, and so on, for as many rhyme sounds as appear in the poem.

The following short poem illustrates the labeling of a rhyme scheme.

                  There once was a big brown cat      a
                  That liked to eat a lot of mice.         b
                  He got all round and fat                   a
                  Because they tasted so nice.            b

Stanzas in Poetry

Here are the first stanzas of some poems that are recognized and widely respected:

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

The Daisy Follows Soft the Sun by Emily Dickenson

The daisy follows soft the sun,
And when his golden walk is done,
Sits shyly at his feet.
He, waking, finds the flower near.
"Wherefore, marauder, art thou here?"
"Because, sir, love is sweet!"

I Had a Guinea Golden by Emily Dickenson

I had a guinea golden;
I lost it in the sand,
And though the sum was simple,
And pounds were in the land,
Still had it such a value
Unto my frugal eye,
That when I could not find it
I sat me down to sigh.

Do Not Go Gentle Into that Good Night by Dylan Thomas

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light

As time progresses you will be able to see how easy it is to identify a stanza in both poetry and song. In due time, you will become a master at writing poetry and identifying stanzas.