Construing Poetic Diction and Syntax - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Construing Poetic Diction and SyntaxSlide2

Say

, Father Thames! ––for thou hast

seen

Full

many a sprightly race,

Disporting

on thy margent green

,

The

paths of pleasure

trace

;

Who

foremost now delight to

cleave

With

pliant arm thy glassy wave?

The

captive linnet which

enthrall?

What

idle progeny succeed

To

chase the rolling circle's

speed,

Or

urge the flying ball

?Slide3

Say, Father Thames, for thou hast seen full many a sprightly race trace the paths of pleasure (while) disporting on thy margent green, ...Slide4

poetic diction:

the word choice, sentence structures, and figures of speech used in poetry insofar as they deviate from ordinary speechSlide5

principles for working with poetic diction, with caveats:

See

the sentences comprised by the lines.

Caveat

:

in 20th C poetry especially, sometimes the lines don't add up to

sentences.

2) Figure

out literal meaning before jumping to a metaphorical one.

Caveat

: in 20th C

(and later) poetry

especially,

the combination

of words

won't necessarily make

literal

sense

3) Read

slowly, and several times. Slide6

ode:

a long lyric poem, with a serious subject and formal, elevated language.

encomiastic:

written to praise someone

or somethingSlide7

O Wind

, thou..

.

Thou

, from whose...

O

Thou

,

Who

..

.

Wild

Spirit..

.

hear

, O hear!Slide8

If I were..

.

If

I were..

.

If

even..

.

I

were..

.

I

would ne'er have striven..

.

Oh

! lift me..

.

I

fall..

.

A

heavy weight...