Writing in iambic pentameter is a fun challenge that will lead you to catchy, impactful, poems or songs. How do you do it?<\/p>\n
Iambic pentameter is among the most widely-used meters in English-language poetry. If you've never heard of it before, don't worry \u2014 a common-sense concept hides behind the fancy name. An \"iamb\" is simply an unstressed (and therefore short, when spoken) syllable followed by a free-flowing, long one.<\/p>\n
\"Meter\" refers to the melodic, and audible, pattern in poetry, and \"penta\" means \"five\". Therefore, poetry written in iambic pentameter consists of 10-syllable lines of iambs.<\/p>\n
Does that sound wholly unnatural and incredibly intimidating so far? It would \u2014 language described in abstract terms always does. The beauty of this kind of poetry, however, lies precisely in the fact that it closely resembles the most powerful organically-emerging speech patterns. That's to say, you could almost<\/em> just write whatever you wanted to and somehow end up with iambic pentameter.<\/p>\n Look, here's Shakespeare in Sonnet 18: Shall I compare thee to a summer\u2019s day?<\/em><\/p>\n Read that aloud, and you'll roughly get: shall I com-PARE thee TO a SUM-mer's DAY?<\/em><\/p>\n Here's another: well it was Gatlinburg in mid July \u2014 and I'd just hit town and my throat was dry<\/em><\/p>\n Or \u2014 well It was GAT-lin Burg in Mid Ju-LY - and I'D just HIT town AND my THROAT was DRY<\/p>\n (Yes, that one's much more modern, as it comes from Johnny Cash's A Boy Named Sue<\/em>!)<\/p>\n Once you get into its swing, you'll find iambic pentameter everywhere.<\/p>\n Poetry and music touch the human soul for many of the same reasons \u2014 and neither compares to words written on a page and read in your mind, as performing them aloud amplifies their power manifold. Iambic pentameter initially soared in popularity, and remains beloved to this very day, precisely because it so closely mimics natural speech \u2014 in the English language, at least \u2014 at its very finest.<\/p>\n Unstressed and stressed syllables almost take on the rhythm of a heartbeat. Iambic pentameter is the beating life force of the English language, expressed in its most powerful state. William Shakespeare, who sought to touch the common people and not only the educated elite, was fond of it for this reason. You can find your \"beat\" in iambic pentameter for the very same purpose.<\/p>\n Writing in iambic pentameter may sound daunting, but we promise that it is easier than taking on a Horatian ode. You can find your way to this unique, and simultaneously universal, form of poetry in a few easy steps. When we say \"easy\", we mean that you will find your creative flow quite naturally \u2014 because iambic pentameter has an organic rhythm. You will still need to put in hard work and invest a considerable amount of time, but if you love the process, it will be a lot of fun.<\/p>\n Lost? Fret not. Simply follow along on this journey.<\/p>\n 1. Read Poems That You Know to Be in Iambic Pentameter<\/strong><\/p>\n Yes, we'll dive into some handy examples in a little while, but pay attention to the \"how\". Once you find poems written in iambic pentameter, first read them silently, in the peace of your own mind. You will likely find nothing unremarkable about them, and once you discount the fact that many famous poems written in iambic pentameter were penned centuries ago and therefore contain their fair share of \"dated\" or \"flowery\" vocabulary (depending what side you fall on), they essentially appear as natural speech.<\/p>\n Now read those same lines aloud, in a theatrical voice, and watch the magic come to life. Impressive, right?<\/p>\n 2. Practice and Learn How to Hear the Rhythm<\/strong><\/p>\n Keep reading aloud. Head over to YouTube. Look up the rhythm of a human heart and pulse, and immerse yourself in the familiar, comforting, sound for a while. Hear the beat. Let it sink in. Return to your poems (or songs!) written in iambic pentameter, and read them aloud once more.<\/p>\n Do you hear the beat? baBOOM. baBOOM. BaBOOM. baBOOM. baBOOM. baBOOM!<\/p>\n There you have it. See how natural iambic pentameter is? Soon, you'll be able to identify the same pattern, should it occur, in your mother's whiny pleas to clean your room, the President's speech, or your favorite pop song.<\/p>\n 3. Create Your Own Iambic Pentameter<\/strong><\/p>\n Are we all natural-born poets, or is poetry an acquired taste and a skill? That's something human beings could argue about for a very long time, but one thing is clear to all \u2014 taking yourself from poetry novice to poetry pro takes time and practice.<\/p>\n That's why you will want to start off \"freewriting\", to check if you really have the rhythm down. As you prepare to create your very own iambic pentameter, try:<\/strong><\/p>\n You will mess up (more than) a few times. Expect failure. It's only normal. Keep going anyway. After a while, actually decent poems are bound to emerge.<\/p>\n Once you do, you could also try your hand at more advanced poems written in iambic pentameter:<\/strong><\/p>\n Before you get writing \u2014 or, of course, any time after you start your writing process \u2014 you may want to check out some novel examples of excellent and famous poems written in iambic pentameter. If you find a poem on this list that you have not seen yet, go check it out!<\/p>\n If you want to try writing in iambic pentameter for yourself, you are likely going to welcome all the help you can get. Although iambic pentameter often falls within the parameters of natural speech, after all, that is not always the case \u2014 and it is likely that you will find yourself in need of some extra tools.<\/p>\n Help yourself to any of these tips as you create poems in iambic pentameter:<\/strong><\/p>\n These are only tools. You'll still have to do the hard work yourself, but they'll make it easier for you.<\/p>\n Do we speak in iambic pentameter?<\/strong><\/p>\n We often follow the same rhythmic structure found in poems written in iambic pentameter, but speaking in 10-syllable lines is slightly harder and more intentional. Iambic pentameter is designed to give you the feel of normal speech, but on a grader scale.<\/p>\n How can you identify iambic pentameter?<\/strong><\/p>\n Listen out for that heartbeat sound \u2014 five baBOOMs. Once you do, you will start to hear iambic pentameter everywhere.<\/p>\n Is writing in iambic pentameter difficult?<\/strong><\/p>\n It depends on your personal writing style, but writing in iambic pentameter will certainly take some practice.<\/p>\n What is the easiest way to write in iambic pentameter?<\/strong><\/p>\n To make writing in iambic pentameter, get your speech in tune with your writing to find the rhythm.<\/p>\n Did Shakespeare always write in iambic pentameter?<\/strong><\/p>\n Even Shakespeare did not exclusively write in iambic pentameter, but he did make it famous.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Writing in iambic pentameter is a fun challenge that will lead you to catchy, impactful, poems or songs. How do you do it? Iambic Pentameter Basics Iambic pentameter is among the most widely-used meters in English-language poetry. If you've never heard of it before, don't worry \u2014 a common-sense concept hides behind the fancy name. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1822"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1822"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1822\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1839,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1822\/revisions\/1839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Why Is Iambic Pentameter Important?<\/h2>\n
How to Write in Iambic Pentameter<\/h2>\n
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Examples of Poems Written in Iambic Pentameter<\/h2>\n
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Tips for Creating Your Own Iambic Pentameter<\/h2>\n
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FAQs<\/h2>\n