—Most readers will
have noticed that the line seems to be divided into a number of repeated units
combining the same number of accented and unaccented syllables. This unit is
known as a poetic foot; each
line of poetry therefore has a certain number of poetic feet. As the pattern of
one foot is repeated or varied in the next, a pattern for the entire line and
then for the poem is established. Feet containing different numbers of
syllables, accented and unaccented, have different names. The following are the
most common.
IAMBIC:
The iambic foot (an iamb) is
composed of one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable. The line
we have looked at, for example, has four iambic feet :
È / È /
È / È /
How vain ê ly men ê them selves ê a maze
This line has five iambic feet :
È / È /
È /
È /
È /
The God êdess with êa dis ê
con ten ê
ted air
TROCHAIC:
The trochaic foot (a trochee) is the reverse of an
iambic foot The trochaic foot, in other words, is made up of two syllables, the
first one stressed and the second one unstressed. The following line has four
trochaic feet:
/ È /
È /
È /
È
DACTYLYC:
Not all poetic feet have two syllables. The dactylic
foot (a dactyl), for example, is composed of one, stressed syllable followed by
two unstressed syllables. The following line has two
dactylic feet :
/ È È /
È È
Car ry her
ê care ful ly
Cast him ê out u ê pon the êwa ters.
ANAPESTiC:
The reverse of a dactylic foot is an anapestic foot (an anapest) in other words, it is composed
of two unstressed syllables followed by one that is stressed.
The following line has three
anapestic feet :
È È / È È /
È È /
There is no ê thing as Big ê as a
Man.
SPONDAIC:
The reverse of a dactylic foot is an anapestic foot (an anapest) in other words, it is composed
of two unstressed syllables followed by one that is stressed.
The following line has three
anapestic feet :
È È / È È /
È È /
There is no ê thing as Big ê as a
Man.
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