Whatever happened to rhyming poetry?

[Quietus]

Just seems like people are beginning to think that partial sentances assembled in lines is poetry.

Poetry needs to have a flow, a form to it, something to make it roll off the tongue:

Example:

Instead of

I feel so sad
my dog is dead
I'm going to go cry.

Try

I feel so sad
for the loss of my canine friend
Only release is through the tears I shed.

Just has a much nicer flow. People forget that poetry should be read aloud, and while I"m sure I'll get some flack for "stifling creativity" and the like, just remember that the choice of words is often more important that the meaning itself. In the example, the strong 'd' sound at the end of the line reinforces the finality of it, each line hammering it in a little more.

When in doubt, read it aloud.

Just my two cents,
Quietus

[Grimwatch]

Rhyming poetry isn't dead
this silly ditty shall prove instead
that in your most well-thought out thread
your rhyming fears are inside your head

if you've never read my work
by some odd and silly quirk
sanity i tend to shirk
laughter's my purpose in my work

my posts do range from large to small
and I do not rhyme in one and all
but when the parodying urge doth call
while making jokes, i have a ball

I've brought laughter on forums old and new
and while mentioned my posts are few
all my jokes have been on cue
so rhymings alive, i swear to you!

(yes, i know this could have been done better, but on the fly works better for me )

[Shyknight]

Grimwatch, you have just demonstrated how a poem can rhyme perfectly and still suck.

Rhyme or lack of rhyme does not make a poem. Phonetic flowing and rhythm is important, as is imagery, metaphor, and simile. It's important not to write a poem as if you are just talking to someone on the street. You can't just take a rant, break it into lines, and call that a poem.

[StruckingFuggle]

Hmmm.
Rhyming poetry, in part, became rap. And by and large began to suck.

As for poetry being meant to be read aloud, what about e.e. cummings? (who I don't like, just making a point)

[Quietus]

sorry it took so long to reply, I was at a LAN party.

What I meant my the title of this topic is that people are neglecting the rhyming form of poetry as well as many other forms. People go "poetry doesn't have to rhyme" and then neglect all possible rhythm and timing.

Honestly, Grimwatch, you seem to adhere to a rhythm fairly well, and I respect that. I was not seeking out individuals with my statement, just pointing out my observations, expecially those i see as an editor of a local literary magazine. Maybe there are no good Chicago poets anymore.

Oh, and as to e.e. cummings, I could just as easily point out many famous poets and styles (dadaism, anyone?) that don't adhere to traditional poetic form. exceptions are a great thing as long as they don't become rule.

[CutieCorey]

I got into this debate with one of my old English teachers when I was in high school. He said that a poetry porfolio of a writer with nothing but rhyming poetry is the portfolio of an inexperienced writer. I beg to differ. One name, Shakespeare.
Quietus, you have a great point. Rhyming is not bad itself if you apply it in the correct manner.

Shyknight wrote:
Rhyme or lack of rhyme does not make a poem. Phonetic flowing and rhythm is important, as is imagery, metaphor, and simile.

True, very true. I couldn't have said it better myself.

[Sola]

I have sort of a problem with ryhyming in poetry... I never know when it sounds cheesy and when it doesn't. Kind of discourages me from trying to write it.

[sneaky ninja]

Meh...what does it matter, really? Poetry is a form of expression, you shouldn't really worry about whether it sounds cheesy or not. Just write. Then the more practice you get, the less cheesy it will sound

[Shyknight]

If you find yourself using weird words and using phrases nobody ever uses... chances are you are trying to rhyme too hard, and thus being cheesy. Mmm, cheese.

[Jamie Bond]

Thank you Sneaky!
I was going to say that.

Rhyming is just one form. NON rhyming can actually be read outloud just as easily and create effects that cannot be done by rhymes.

Structure of a peom can play a huge part in its meaning.



Sometimes it NEEDS to be akward and hard to read. That can be a vital part of the expression. Broken lines and certain sounds can imply crying or laughter or waves crashing or whatever if done really well.

[Il Palazzo Sama]

Also there is more to ryhming than just the last word of a line I try to write with vowel ryhming and sylbalic ryhming.. but thats just me

[Beware of the Leopard]

In my opinion, rhyming is the most difficult thing to do well. It's easy enough to do, but amatuer poets usually can't do it well and come off as sort of sing-songy. If you rhyme, you have to rhyme for a reason, not just because you want it to sound like a typical peom. Take Edgar Allen Poe. His poems would rhyme but they would rhyme with sounds that helped add a dark mood to the poem.

Now, if you don't rhyme, you're still not off the hook. Poetry must have something about it to make it more than just a narrative. word choice, syntax, rhythm, even the shape of the poem itself must in some way contribute to the poem. (Unless of course, the complete absence of any of that contributes to the meaning, the deliberate absence of something is still something).

Thats my opinion on the matter. It's certainly not the only one possible. In the end, it just comes down to what you personally enjoy, and that's your definition.

[Jamie Bond]

I agree totally with Leopard

Rhyme should be added to emphises and link words together to add further meaning, not to make it sound pretty.

[CutieCorey]

I think a poem needs to sound pretty, that is to have a good flow to it so that the reader can get a rhythmic feeling to the poem as they read it. It adds a lot.

[Jamie Bond]

I dunno i dont think it should sound pretty or roll off the tounge at all in some situations.

What if you are trying to write about an agonizing frustration... an unbearable angst. If its akward and hard to read it adds emphises to the context. If that poem were pleasent and easy to read, it would deter from the essence of it's actual message.