Recently I have been reading some good poetry on poet’s blogs.  I have been following unbolt, aspiringwriter22, A Scribe to Describe, Annette Rochelle Aben, A Little Me, Apparently, and several others.  This has brought me to thoughts and musings about poetry in general, the rhythm of poetry, specifically.

Rhythm is what makes poetry catchy.  It is the entire movement, flow, the recurring stressed and unstressed pattern of syllables.  The rhythm of poetry reflects the rhythm in all of life–the pull of the moon on the tides, the pulse and beat of circulation, the change and sequence of the seasons.  Rhythm involves stress, timing, pace, pitch, tone, diction, and the total meaning of the poem.  However, rhythm in poetry does not solely come from the physical elements employed.  Poetry is infused with appeals to the unconscious, the connotative shadings that affect and are affected by rhythm.  The nervousness, tension, and energy in a poem come from its rhythm.

Our expertise in the spoken English language is basically iambic, but much of our memorable speech depends on strong stresses, irregularity of rhythms or “sprung rhythms.”  Some cherished poetry has heavily pronounced, strongly stressed rhythms.  It is written to be sung or danced.

I am just beginning to feel the rhythms of classical music this morning and think I will go through my folder of “Poems to Be Shared” as I listen.  Maybe I will think more about poetry and its rhythms later today as I go about my housework and schoolwork.

And that is what I’m musing on this Monday morning.