01-14-2013, 05:22 AM
Aaargh! The eternal dilemma!
Part of the confusion comes from a basic misunderstanding about what free verse actually is. Many people believe that free verse MAY NOT RHYME, as if rhyme is anathema to liberty or something. Many more simply look at a free verse poem and, not having any knowledge of the skills involved and therefore being unable to identify techniques, say "that's just words thrown about anywhere, I could do that".
On the contrary: free verse is as much a form as the sonnet, really. It must contain some elements of poetic form -- the very basic unit being the poetic line. This is not just a random collection of words broken arbitrarily into bits. It is a way to utilise the page so that certain words are privileged and the reader's mind is led in a particular direction. Free verse -- in the main -- still requires use of sonic devices (alliteration, assonance, consonance and yes, even rhyme!). It is simply a departure from the constrictions of regular meter -- but to depart from something, you have to have a basic understanding of that something first.
Free verse is essentially form that comes without assembly instructions, so its final shape is up to the poet.
Part of the confusion comes from a basic misunderstanding about what free verse actually is. Many people believe that free verse MAY NOT RHYME, as if rhyme is anathema to liberty or something. Many more simply look at a free verse poem and, not having any knowledge of the skills involved and therefore being unable to identify techniques, say "that's just words thrown about anywhere, I could do that".
On the contrary: free verse is as much a form as the sonnet, really. It must contain some elements of poetic form -- the very basic unit being the poetic line. This is not just a random collection of words broken arbitrarily into bits. It is a way to utilise the page so that certain words are privileged and the reader's mind is led in a particular direction. Free verse -- in the main -- still requires use of sonic devices (alliteration, assonance, consonance and yes, even rhyme!). It is simply a departure from the constrictions of regular meter -- but to depart from something, you have to have a basic understanding of that something first.
Free verse is essentially form that comes without assembly instructions, so its final shape is up to the poet.
It could be worse