Page 13 - DENG405_BRITISH_POETRY

British Poetry

Notes The first documented use of blank verse in the English language was by Henry Howard, Earl of
Surrey in his translation of the Aenied. He was possibly inspired by the Latin original, as classical
Latin verse (as well as Greek verse) did not use rhyme; or he may have been inspired by the Italian
verse form of Versi Sciolti, which also contained no rhyme. The play, Arden of Faversham (circa
1590 by an unknown author) is a notable example of end-stopped blank verse.
Christopher Marlowe was the first English author to make full use of the potential of blank verse,
and also established it as the dominant verse form for English drama in the age of Elizabeth I and
James I. The major achievements in English blank verse were made by William Shakespeare, who
wrote much of the content of his plays in unrhymed iambic pentameter, and Milton, whose Paradise
Lost is written in blank verse. Miltonic blank verse was widely imitated in the 18th century by such
poets as James Thomson (in The Seasons) and William Cowper (in The Task). Romantic English
poets such as William Wordsworth, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and John Keats used blank verse as a
major form. Shortly afterwards, Alfred, Lord Tennyson became particularly devoted to blank verse,
using it for example in his long narrative poem “The Princess”, as well as for one of his most famous
poems: “Ulysses”. Among American poets, Hart Crane and Wallace Stevens are notable for using
blank verse in extended compositions at a time when many other poets were turning to free verse.
Blank Verse is any verse comprised of unrhymed lines all in the same meter, usually iambic pentameter.
It was developed in Italy and became widely used during the Renaissance because it resembled
classical, unrhymed poetry. Marlowe’s “mighty line,” which demonstrated blank verse’s range and
flexibility, made blank verse the standard for many English writers, including both Shakespeare
and Milton, and it remained a very practiced form up until the twentieth century when Modernism
rebelled and openly experimented with the tradition. Regardless, blank verse was embraced by
Yeats, Pound, Frost, and Stevens who skillfully brought the tradition through this century. While it
may not be as common as open form, it retains an important role in the world of poetry.
Blank verse can be composed in any meter and with any amount of feet per line (any line length),
though the iamb is generally the predominant foot. Along with the iamb are 3 other standard feet
and a number of variations that can be employed in a blank verse poem. It is difficult almost
impossible to write a blank verse poem consisting of all iambs and other types of feet get used more
often than one may think. These are:
1. Iamb-two syllables, unstressed-stressed, as in “today”.
2. Trochee-two syllables, stressed-unstressed, as in “standard”.
3. Anapest-three syllables, unstressed-unstressed-stressed, as in “disengage”.
4. Dactyl-three syllables, stressed-unstressed-unstressed, as in “probably”.
Variations include:
1. Headless Iamb or Tailess Trochee- one stressed syllable. Labeling the foot depends on
where it is located in the line.
2. Spondee- two stressed syllables, as in “hot dog”.
3. Amphibrach- three syllables, unstressed-stressed-unstressed, as in “forgetful”.
4. Double Iamb- four syllables, unstressed-unstressed-stressed-stressed, as in “will you eat
it?” A double iamb is counted as two feet.
Blank verse can be written with any combination of the above feet. The name of the dominant foot
coupled with the number of feet in the line provides the name of a poem’s meter. For example, the
dominant foot in Robert Frost’s “Mending Wall” is the iamb, and there are five feet per line. Thus,
the poem is written in iambic pentameter. However, that not each foot is an iamb, but Frost mixes
up the feet, as in the first few lines of the poem.

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