Caesura in Poetry
Caesura Literary Term is a
grammatical pause or
break in a line of poetry
(like a question mark),
usually near the middle of
the line.
A caesura is usually dictated by
sense or natural speech
rhythm
rhythm
rather than by metrics. In poetry
scansion, a caesura is usually
indicated by the symbol
//
. The
caesura can also be used for
rhetorical effect, as in
"To err is human;
||
to forgive,
divine."
by Alexander Pope
Here are the same lines in modern English from Burton
Raffel’s translation:
Out from the marsh
Out from the marsh
,
,
from the foot of misty Hills
from the foot of misty Hills
and bogs
and bogs
,
,
bearing God’s hatred
bearing God’s hatred
,
,
Grendel came
Grendel came
,
,
hoping to kill Anyone he could trap on this trip to
hoping to kill Anyone he could trap on this trip to
high Herot.
high Herot.
Punctuation reproduces pause effect of the caesura.
Punctuation reproduces pause effect of the caesura.
Latin
Cynthia prima fuit;
||
Cynthia finis erit.
("Cynthia wasthe first
;
Cynthia will be the last" —
Propertius
)
Bible
(for all the gods of the Pagans are nothing
,
but the
Lord
made heaven)
Old English
Hwæt! we Gar-Dena
||
on geardagum
("Lo! we Spear-Danes
,
in days of yore. . .")
So, if we were to lineate
Sing a Song of Six-Pence
as
Beowulf’s author might have, it might look like
this (caesuras marked):
Sing a song of sixpence,
Sing a song of sixpence,
||
||
a pocket full of rye.
a pocket full of rye.
Four and twenty blackbirds,
Four and twenty blackbirds,
||
||
baked in a pie.
baked in a pie.
When the pie was opened,
When the pie was opened,
||
||
the birds began to sing;
the birds began to sing;
Wasn’t that a dainty dish,
Wasn’t that a dainty dish,
||
||
to set before the king?
to set before the king?
The king was in his counting house,
The king was in his counting house,
||
||
counting out his money;
counting out his money;
The queen was in the parlour,
The queen was in the parlour,
||
||
eating bread and honey.
eating bread and honey.
The maid was in the garden,
The maid was in the garden,
||
||
hanging out the clothes;
hanging out the clothes;
When down came a blackbird
When down came a blackbird
||
||
and pecked off her nose.
and pecked off her nose.
Once upon a midnight dreary, || while I pondered weak and
Once upon a midnight dreary, || while I pondered weak and
weary,
weary,
Over many a quaint and curious
Over many a quaint and curious
||
||
volume of forgotten lore,
volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping,
While I nodded, nearly napping,
||
||
suddenly there came a
suddenly there came a
tapping,
tapping,
As of someone gently rapping,
As of someone gently rapping,
||
||
rapping at my chamber door.
rapping at my chamber door.
`’Tis some visitor,’
`’Tis some visitor,’
||
||
I muttered,
I muttered,
||
||
`tapping at my chamber door -
`tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more.’
Only this, and nothing more.’
Ah, distinctly I remember
Ah, distinctly I remember
||
||
it was in the bleak December,
it was in the bleak December,
And each separate dying ember
And each separate dying ember
||
||
wrought its ghost upon the
wrought its ghost upon the
floor.
floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow; –
Eagerly I wished the morrow; –
||
||
vainly I had sought to borrow
vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow –
From my books surcease of sorrow –
||
||
sorrow for the lost Lenore
sorrow for the lost Lenore
-
-
For the rare and radiant maiden
For the rare and radiant maiden
||
||
whom the angels named
whom the angels named
Lenore -
Lenore -
Nameless here for evermore.
Nameless here for evermore.
Caesura, a literary term, refers to a pause or break in a line of poetry usually near the middle of the line. It is dictated by sense or speech rhythm and is indicated by the symbol //. Caesura can be used for rhetorical effect and is exemplified in works like Beowulf and Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven." The concept is explored through examples and explanations from various poems, showcasing its significance in poetic structure and meaning.
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Presentation Transcript
CAESURA Caesura Literary Term is a grammatical pause or break in a line of poetry (like a question mark), usually near the middle of the line.
A caesura is usually dictated by sense or natural speech rhythm rather than by metrics. In poetry scansion, a caesura is usually indicated by the symbol //. The caesura can also be used for rhetorical effect, as in "To err is human; || to forgive, divine." by Alexander Pope
Beowulf: The Poetry of Beowulf Here are the same lines in modern English from Burton Raffel s translation: Out from the marsh,from the foot of misty Hills and bogs,bearing God s hatred,Grendel came, hoping to kill Anyone he could trap on this trip to high Herot. Punctuation reproduces pause effect of the caesura.
Latin Cynthia prima fuit; || Cynthia finis erit. ("Cynthia was the first; Cynthia will be the last" Propertius) Bible (for all the gods of the Pagans are nothing, but the Lord made heaven) Old English Hw t! we Gar-Dena || on geardagum ("Lo! we Spear- Danes, in days of yore. . .")
Sing a Song of Six-Pence So, if we were to lineate Sing a Song of Six-Pence as Beowulf s author might have, it might look like this (caesuras marked): Sing a song of sixpence, ||a pocket full of rye. Four and twenty blackbirds, || baked in a pie. When the pie was opened, || the birds began to sing; Wasn t that a dainty dish, ||to set before the king? The king was in his counting house, ||counting out his money; The queen was in the parlour, ||eating bread and honey. The maid was in the garden, ||hanging out the clothes; When down came a blackbird ||and pecked off her nose.
Edgar Allen Poes The Raven. Once upon a midnight dreary, || while I pondered weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious || volume of forgotten lore, While I nodded, nearly napping, || suddenly there came a tapping, As of someone gently rapping, || rapping at my chamber door. ` Tis some visitor, || I muttered, || `tapping at my chamber door - Only this, and nothing more. Ah, distinctly I remember || it was in the bleak December, And each separate dying ember|| wrought its ghost upon the floor. Eagerly I wished the morrow; || vainly I had sought to borrow From my books surcease of sorrow || sorrow for the lost Lenore - For the rare and radiant maiden || whom the angels named Lenore - Nameless here for evermore.
