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.
