Imagery
Poets use figures of speech to
make their poetry more interesting
and to create imagery.
An image is a mental picture that is
created by words. The poet tries to
paint a picture in our minds by his
choice of words.
For example, if a poet writes, “as
thin as a pin", we immediately
imagine, in our minds this picture, or
something like this.
The Piercing Chill I Feel
- - Taniguchi Buson
The piercing chill I feel:
My dead wife’s comb, in our bedroom,
Under my heel---
The poem shows the perception
of something cold.
She Walks in Beauty
-- George Gordon Byron
She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies
And all that’s best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes - - -
One shade the more, one ray the less - - -
And on that cheek, and o’ver that brow
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent.
The poem shows the elegant
appearance of a beauty.
Simile
Similes are comparisons using "like" or
"as".
The poet compares two things that
have something in common.
For example, "That boy is as brave
as a lion." In the same way that a lion
is fierce, and strong, and brave, so too
is the boy.
•All my love is like a red, red rose.
•My love is redder than a rose.
•She walks in beauty, like the night.
•One may be as happy in a
cottage as in a mansion.
Metaphor
A metaphor is similar to a simile, but it
is an indirect comparison, not using
like or as.
For example, if a poet says "the boy is
lionhearted", he is comparing the boy
to a lion because he is brave and
courageous.
* My love is a red, red rose.
* A mighty fortress is our God.
* Oh, my love has red petals and
sharp thrones.
William Wordsworth
I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed--and gazed--but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed - and gazed - but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.