Fundamentals of Lyric Poetry: Structure, Meter, and Genres

Core Characteristics of Lyrical Expression

Lyric poetry is defined by several key features:

• The author conveys a particular mood, expressing emotion immediately and directly.
• It requires an effort of interpretation from the reader.
• It often involves the accumulation of large value items with symbolic images.
• It is characterized by its brevity, highest concentration, and density.
• It provides the direct expression of the poet's sentiment to the reader.
• Poems typically conform to formal standards.

Key Elements of Lyric Poetry

The Verse: Definition and Classification

A verse is a set of words subject to rhythm and cadence in relation to other verses. Verses are classified according to the number of syllables:

• Minor Art (Arte Menor): Eight or fewer syllables.
• Major Art (Arte Mayor): Nine or more syllables.

Measuring the Verse

When measuring the syllable count of a verse, the following rules apply based on the final word:

1. If the verse ends in a paroxytonic (plain) word, the syllable count does not change.
2. If the verse ends in an oxytonic (acute) word, add 1 syllable.
3. If the verse ends in a proparoxytonic (esdrújula) word, subtract 1 syllable.

The use of Sinalefa (merging vowels between words) must also be taken into account.

Rhythm and Cadence

Rhythm is a phenomenon repeated regularly to produce a unitary and consistent effect. The rhythm is determined by the interplay of:

• Meter (measures)
• Rhyme
• Accents
• Pauses (breaks)

Rhyme Types

Rhyme is the repetition of sounds that close each of the verses that make up a poem. The two principal types are:

• Assonance Rhyme
• Consonant Rhyme

Literary Devices (Figures of Speech)

These devices are used to enhance the literary beauty and impact of the text:

Alliteration, Onomatopoeia, Paronomasia, Epithet, Pleonasm, Ellipsis, Parallelism, Hyperbaton, Polysyndeton, Asyndeton, Anaphora, Anadiplosis, Metonymy, Antithesis, Calambur, Paradox, Simile, Metaphor, Personification, Hyperbole, and Irony.

Principal Poetic Forms and Genres

Ode

A composition used by the author to express any lyrical emotion.

Elegy

A poem written in honor and remembrance of a deceased person.

Eclogue (Égloga)

A love poem where the actors are shepherds situated in an idyllic setting.

Satire

A brief burlesque composition in which the author censors individual and collective vices.

Epithalamium

A poem celebrating a wedding ceremony and the love of the newlyweds.

Letrilla

A short, witty (gracioso) poem of burlesque, amatory, or religious content.

Epistolary Verse

A letter in verse form which the poet addresses a friend.

Sonnet

A composition used to express different issues, especially themes of love.

Pastorela

A composition where a knight converses with a shepherdess, often involving themes of love and laughter.

Carol (Villancico)

A popular theme in profane and religious poetry.

Ballad (Romance)

An infinite series of octosyllabic lines with assonance rhyme in the even lines, leaving the odd lines free.