A Modest Proposal (Meter Discussion)

[milo]

But Milo, and Billy, and Erthona: isn't Common Meter defined not simply as 4-3-4-3, but rather 4 iambs, 3 iambs, 4 iambs, 3 iambs?

That's what it says in the first four dictionaries I looked in. In fact Common Meter is often defined as Iambic Tetrameter / Iambic Trimeter.

So, by definition, Common Meter is 8.6 8.6.

Which would mean Amazing Grace, the Lucy Poems, et al are not, strictly speaking, "perfect common meter"?

You seem to have some confusions on what defines iambic tetrameter/trimeter, what makes it go wrong and what is simply normal substitution.  Rather than try to compress a level 300 English course into a paragraph, why don't you call out the lines in "Amazing grace" that you feel are not common meter and i can then go through them.