English Metres (Classic Reprint)

Excerpt from English Metres The word verse will be used in the following pages in the meaning of rhythmically organized language, the kind Of language in which poetry is written. To avoid confusion, the word will not be used in the meaning of line or of stanza. The study of verse is essentially the study Of the sound Of poetry, not in utter disregard Of the sense, but at least a study radically different from the study of the ideas or the imagery or the diction. The study Of the sound of verse 'cannot, of course, wholly disregard the sense, because the sound and the sense are inseparably connected. In verse, as in prose, the position Of the pauses between words, the' relative emphasis of different syllables, the speed or slowness with which a passage is read, though allowing of a certain amount Of variation, are all determined or influenced by the sense. In verse, far more than in prose, the choice of words, and consequently the shade Of meaning con veyed, is in part determined by considerations of sound. Further, as will be explained and illustrated later, in verse we often find correspondences of another kind between sense and sound: lines and groups Of lines which correspond to each other in a metrical pattern are Often paralleled or contrasted in sense. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.