AP Notes, Outlines, Study Guides, Vocabulary, Practice Exams and more!

AP Literature Types of Poetry Flashcards

Terms : Hide Images
3005776262Closed FormWhen the poet keeps to a recognized form (number of lines, rhyme sequence and/or meter)0
3005787746Open formNo actual form is required hence it is open (free)1
3005799149SonnetA fourteen line poem that is either Petrarchan or Shakespearean2
3005807904Petrarchan SonnetSonnet organized into two groups of eight and six (an octave and sestet).3
3005818838Shakespearean SonnetSonnet organized into three groups of four lines (quatrains) and one couplet at the end.4
3005850622CoupletTwo line stanza with an end rhyme5
3005854233Heroic CoupletCouplet with an iambic pentameter6
3005864247AlexandrineA 12 syllable iambic line (created by Alexander Pope)7
3005877856Mock HeroicA poetic satire of an epic8
3005881738Epica long narrative poem with some-sort of a meter or repetition (due to oral telling nature)9
3005909549BalladA popular narrative song passed orally10
3005913053Ballad Stanza4 lines of abcb with lines 1 and 3 having 8 syllables ,and 2 and 4 having 611
3005922000Literary BalladA more elaborate and organized ballad12
3005929110LyricA short poem expressing personal feelings; originally made for instrumental accompaniment.13
3005938311ElegyMelancholic poem lamenting the dead14
3005941476OdeA formal ceremonious lyric poem that celebrates or elevates a particular subject/aspect.15
3005950185VillanelleFive three-line stanzas (tercets) and a final quatrain with the first and third lines of the first stanza repeating alternatively in each stanza.16
3005961837Sestinapoem composed of six six-line stanzas and a three-line conclusion called an envoi. Each line ends with one of six key words. The alternation of these six words in different positions - but always at the ends of lines - the poems six stanzas creates a rhythmic verbal pattern that unifies the poem.17
3005972546EpigramA short, abrupt, witty poem18
3005983930DoggerelA rhyming poem that becomes distorted to fit the rhyme sequence (a really bad poem)19
3005997189Limericka kind of humorous verse of five lines, in which the first, second, and fifth lines rhyme with each other, and the third and fourth lines.20
3006012115AubadeA love poem or song written about the dawn after a romantic lovers night.21
3006050279Blank VerseA poem written in an unrhymed iambic pentameter22

Need Help?

We hope your visit has been a productive one. If you're having any problems, or would like to give some feedback, we'd love to hear from you.

For general help, questions, and suggestions, try our dedicated support forums.

If you need to contact the Course-Notes.Org web experience team, please use our contact form.

Need Notes?

While we strive to provide the most comprehensive notes for as many high school textbooks as possible, there are certainly going to be some that we miss. Drop us a note and let us know which textbooks you need. Be sure to include which edition of the textbook you are using! If we see enough demand, we'll do whatever we can to get those notes up on the site for you!