Module 2

Creative Nonfiction

Poetry

At the end of the module, I can:

*Identify the dominant literary conventions of poetry such as epic, sonnet, ambahan, tanaga, haiku, free verse, and
prose poem.
*Analyze and interpret the elements, themes, and techniques used in poetry.
*Write drafts of an ambahan, do peer-editing, and revise.
*Use clearly and coherently a chosen conventional element identified with a genre for a written output.
*Compare and contrast how the elements of poetry are used different genres.
*Create examples of literary elements based on my experiences.

On Poetry Writing
You have listened to, read, and written poems since you were in first grade. You have already learned that poems
consist of lines and stanzas. A stanza is a group of lines in a poem. The term stanza comes from the Italian word for a
room or a stopping place. The lines in a poem are called verses. The term verse from the Latin word versus. It means
furrow.
In poetry, the practice of breaking down a group of text into lines is called versification. But you should be reminded
that in the previous lesson, you have learned that literary works have gone beyond the strict restrictions of the
traditional rules od each literary genre. So, a poem can look like a prose; a personal essay can look like a short story.
So, if poems can look like prose, does a poem have that one unique characteristic that separates it from prose? A
possible answer comes from Polish poet fictionist Czeslaw Milosz, who points out that, “Prose is made to be written, a
poem is made to be read.”
In other words, Milosz says that a poem must have a pattern of musicality or rhythm, regardless if it has rhyme and
meter or is written in free verse. Considering that poetry stems from oral tradition, it can be deduced that poems
recited long, long, ago, were not actually recited: instead, they were sung.
One of the key elements of poetry is rhythm. According to the “Oxford English Dictionary, rhythm is “a strong,
regular repeated pattern of movement or sound.
Having rhythm does not mean that the lines in your poem should always rhyme (which happens at the end of lines and
stanzas). But each line has two music.
There are two rhythmic patterns in poetry: lyrical and breathing. A lyrical poem follows a metrical pattern derived
from the lyre, the musical instrument used for reciting or singing poems in ancient times. An example of this type is
John Donne’s “Song: Go and watch a falling star, “which reads as follows:
Go and catch a falling star,
Get with child a mandrake root, If thou be'st born to strange sights,
Tell me where all past years are, Things invisible to see, If thou find'st one, let me know,
Or who cleft the devil's foot, Ride ten thousand days and nights, Such a pilgrimage were sweet;
Teach me to hear mermaids singing, Till age snow white hairs on thee, Yet do not, I would not go,
Or to keep off envy's stinging, Thou, when thou return'st, wilt tell Though at next door we might
And find me, meet;
What wind All strange wonders that befell thee, Though she were true, when you
Serves to advance an honest mind. And swear, met her,
No where And last, till you write your letter,
Lives a woman true, and fair. Yet she
Will be
False, ere I come, to two, or three.

As for breathing pattern, National Artist Cirilo Bautista noted that “ the originators of free verse believed that the
language of the poem should be as close as possible to common speech – in rhythm, diction and tempo, “ He said
that even in verse, “the matter of how long or short a line should depend on the natural system of breathing.
Observe how the breathing works in poetry in Gertrude Stein’s poetry collection Tender Buttons. Read the example
from her book on the next page.
 A PIECE OF COFFEE.

More of double.

A place in no new table.

be
A single image is not splendor. Dirty is yellow. A sign of more in not mentioned. A piece of coffee is not a detainer. The
resemblance to yellow is dirtier and distincter. The clean mixture is whiter and not coal color, never more coal color than
altogether.

The sight of a reason, the same sight slighter, the sight of a simpler negative answer, the same sore sounder, the intention to
wishing, the same splendor, the same furniture.

The time to show a message is when too late and later there is no hanging in a blight.

A not torn rose-wood color. If it is not dangerous then a pleasure and more than any other if it is cheap is not cheaper. The
amusing side is that the sooner there are no fewer the more certain is the necessity dwindled. Supposing that the case contained
rose-wood and a color. Supposing that there was no reason for a distress and more likely for a number, supposing that there was
no astonishment, is it not necessary to mingle astonishment.

The settling of stationing cleaning is one way not to shatter scatter and scattering. The one way to use custom is to use soap and
silk for cleaning. The one way to see cotton is to have a design concentrating the illusion and the illustration. The perfect way is to
accustom the thing to have a lining and the shape of a ribbon and to be solid, quite solid in standing and to use heaviness in
morning. It is light enough in that. It has that shape nicely. Very nicely may not be exaggerating. Very strongly may be sincerely
fainting. May be strangely flattering. May not be strange in everything. May not be strange to.

Breathing pattern in poetry follows the beating of the heart. It sets the tone of the poem which, according to Poetry
foundation, is

The poet’s attitude toward the poem’s speaker, reader, and subject matter, as interpreted by the
reader. Often described as a “mood” that pervades the experience of reading the poem, it is created
by the poem’s vocabulary, metrical regularity or irregularity, syntax, use of Figurative language,
and rhyme.

Notice how lines were laid in a poem. When you are angry or agitated, your heartbeat is
fast. When you are melancholic or relaxed, your heartbeat is slow. You apply those patterns
in your poetry. For example, when the tone, theme, or message of your poem is defiant, your
mood, the way your poem is read or performed, should sustain the intense emotion as well.

Rhythm and insight are two essential elements of poetry. In Filipino, these are called ritmo/indayog and kislap-diwa,
respectively. Another basic element of poetry is the persona. In the previous lesson, you have learned that the
speaker in a work of fiction is called narrator. In poetry, it is called persona. Same as in fiction, the persona does
not have to be the main character or one of the characters in your poem. But your poem can mention who or
what the persona is. You can also imply it by giving out clues or descriptions. Also, you will notice that, as
in fiction writing, the POV of the persona is also important. As a poet, you have to make sure that the persona in
your poem is transparent. That means the reader of the poem that you wrote must be able to identify who or what is
speaking in your poem. In your end, anything that the persona says must be limited to his/her/its capacity or
knowledge. For example, if the persona is a two-year old, he or she will not be able to explain stuff about
quantum physics, unless the toddler is a savant in that field. Take this poem, for example

The Fly And drink and sing,

William Blake Till some blind hand
Little Fly, Shall brush my wing.
Thy summer’s play If thought is life
My thoughtless hand And strength and breath,
Has brushed away. And the want
Am not I Of thought is death,
A fly like thee? Then am I
Or art not thou A happy fly,
A man like me? If I live,
For I dance Or if I die.
The persona is clear. The “man” (not necessarily the author, William Blake) is talking to a fly.

Forms of Poetry

Poetic form, according to The Poetry Archive, can be understood as the physical structure of the
poem: the length of the lines, their rhythms, and their system of rhymes and repetition. There are
various forms of poetry that you can appreciate. One of them is the epic poem. An epic poem is a
long poem that narrates the journey of a hero or a nation. Epic poems such as the blind poet
Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey are at your disposal. So are Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Firdawsi’s Shahnameh,
and Dante Alighieri’s Divina Comedia. We have tons of epics in our country. It is expected that you
have already read snippets or retellings of a few such as Ibalon and Darangan. Folklorist Damiana
Eugenio had anthologized, in her thick volume Philippine Folk Literature: The Epics, 23 folk epics from 14
ethnolinguistic groups in the country. But as French scholar Dr. Nicole Revel’s decades-old study has
revealed, there are already 63 known epics, and that is only in Palawan. Your quest as a literary
enthusiast and creative writer is to know as much as you can about them.

Another popular poetic form is the sonnet. Read this poem by William Shakespeare:
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimmed,
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance, or nature's changing course untrimmed:
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st,
Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st,
   So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,
   So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

The poem shows the characteristics of a sonnet. It has 14 lines with 10 syllables each line and a
rhyme scheme. A rhyme scheme is the structure of a rhyming pattern. The pattern in this case is
abab/cdcd/efef/gg. Day is rhymed with May, temperate is rhymed with date, shines is rhymed
with declines, and so on and so forth. Remember that this scheme is only for Shakespearean sonnets—
those written by Shakespeare and those which followed his scheme. There are other sonnet
schemes such as the Petrarchan (abba/abba/cde/cde or abba abba cdc dcd) and the Spenserian (abab
bcbc cdcd ee).

Another poetic forms with a specific rhyme scheme include the ballad, limerick, sestina, pantoum, haiku
and villanelle.

Techniques in Poetry

Another technique in poems with

rhyme and meter is creating a
caesura. It is how you cut
each line equally. Take, for
example, this stanza from
Benigno Ramos’s “Panulat”:
 “Kung ikaw, Panulat, ay di
magagamit
kundi sa paghamak sa Bayang
may hapis,
manong mabakli ka’t ang taglay
mong tulis
ay bulagin ako’t sugatan ang
dibdib.”
In the above stanza, the caesura
works this way:
“Kung ikaw, Panulat, / ay di
magagamit
kundi sa paghamak / sa Bayang
may hapis,
manong mabakli ka’t / ang
taglay mong tulis
ay bulagin ako’t / sugatan ang
dibdib.”
If you notice, each line is cut
equally by two groups of six
syllables. You may replicate the
same process by making three
groups of four syllables if you have
twelve syllables per line, like
the poem above. Now you are
ready to learn some things about
vers libre
One of the techniques in poems with rhyme and meter is creating a caesura. It is how you cut
each line equally. Take, for example, this stanza from Benigno Ramos’s “Panulat”:
“Kung ikaw, Panulat, ay di magagamit
kundi sa paghamak sa Bayang may hapis,
manong mabakli ka’t ang taglay mong tulis
ay bulagin ako’t sugatan ang dibdib.”
In the above stanza, the caesura works this way:
“Kung ikaw, Panulat, / ay di magagamit
kundi sa paghamak / sa Bayang may hapis,
manong mabakli ka’t / ang taglay mong tulis
ay bulagin ako’t / sugatan ang dibdib.”

If you notice, each line is cut equally by two groups of six syllables. You may replicate the
same process by making three groups of four syllables if you have twelve syllables per line, like
the poem above. Now you are ready to learn some things about vers libre.

Free Verse
You should take note that vers
libre, also known as free verse,
has its own rules as well.
Bautista quipped that there is really
nothing “free” about free verse.
“Though it rejects specific
stanzaic measures, rhymes, and
poetic techniques associated with
traditional verse, it must
observe a body of rules that
dictates its shape and sound. To
write free verse is not simply a
matter of chopping sentences into
random linear fragments. The
matter of how long or short
a line should depend on the
natural system of breathing.”
Free verse originated in Paris where
the poetic form
Alexandrine, a rhyme-and-meter
poem with 12 syllables
each line, was practiced. The
Romanticists grew tired
of the traditional form. They
wanted to free it, to let it
find its own shape. They made the
caesura inconsistent
and employed enjambment. Ezra
Pound said that poetry
could be divided according to three
essential elements:
phanopoeia, melopoeia, and
logopoeia—the play of
image, music, and meaning,
respectively.
By tradition, whole lines form a
phrase or have a complete thought.
You cut the line where
the comma or period ends it. With
enjambment, you cut the line for
effect. Though the cutting
seems abrupt, you give emphasis on
either the last word or the first word
of the next line. Take
this stanza, for example:
High in September’s frontier
winds, white
brocade feathers, the Mongol
falcon flies
alone, a flake of snow, a
hundred miles
some fleeting speck of autumn in
its eyes
r popular poetic form is the
sonnet. Read this poem by
William Shakespeare:
The poem shows the
characteristics of a sonnet. It has
14 lines with 10 syllables each
line
and a rhyme scheme. A rhyme
scheme is the structure of a
rhyming pattern. The pattern
in this case is abab/cdcd/efef/gg.
Day is rhymed with May,
temperate is rhymed with date,
shines is rhymed with declines, and
so on and so forth. Remember that
this scheme is only for
Shakespearean sonnets—those
written by Shakespeare and those
which followed his scheme.
There are other sonnet schemes such
as the Petrarchan (abba/abba/cde/cde
or abba abba cdc
dcd) and the Spenserian (abab
bcbc cdcd ee)
Free Verse

You should take note that vers libre, also known as free verse, has its own rules as well. Bautista
quipped that there is really nothing “free” about free verse. “Though it rejects specific stanzaic
measures, rhymes, and poetic techniques associated with traditional verse, it must observe a
body of rules that dictates its shape and sound. To write free verse is not simply a matter of
chopping sentences into random linear fragments. The matter of how long or short a line should
depend on the natural system of breathing.”Free verse originated in Paris where the poetic form
Alexandrine, a rhyme-and-meter poem with 12 syllables each line, was practiced. The Romanticists
grew tired of the traditional form. They wanted to free it, to let it find its own shape. They made the
caesura inconsistent and employed enjambment. Ezra Pound said that poetry could be divided
according to three essential elements: phanopoeia, melopoeia, and logopoeia—the play of image,
music, and meaning, respectively. By tradition, whole lines form a phrase or have a complete thought.
You cut the line where the comma or period ends it. With enjambment, you cut the line for effect.
Though the cutting seems abrupt, you give emphasis on either the last word or the first word of the next
line. Take this stanza, for example:

High in September’s frontier winds, white

brocade feathers, the Mongol falcon flies

alone, a flake of snow, a hundred miles

some fleeting speck of autumn in its eyes
Prose Poetry
A prose poem is a poem in prose form.

Sweater
Mark Angeles
When I hold this sweater I picture you. One summer we were in Baguio rummaging the hills of
used clothing when you said something about mystery schools. The curious cat that I was I
began making a mountain out of a molehill. You answered back with a piece of wool sweater—
Celtic green patterns coiling on onyx black—and with serious, subterranean eyes, you
covered me with it as though it was a blanket and said, “Kasya kaya?” For a moment I was
tentative I was there. I was there, alright, but I was somebody else, or something else,
like a headless mannequin, strangely naked, making the most of myself—the replacement of
someone corporeal. And so, when you said, “Kasya kaya?”, I pokerfaced. That night, when it
started to drizzle, you knocked on my door and said you will be out for a while. Some
rendezvous. Perhaps with your mystery school. But you never returned. You left me with
this sweater which I carried back to our hometown without the slightest idea who it was for.
When I hold this sweater I imagine you. One summer I surveyed Baguio, alone, and paved my
way through hills of old clothes, inhaling their rot and story. The schmaltzy beaver that I was I
began conjuring the people who once wore them. I imagined them ailing or dead, their next of
kin granting the Salvation Army their possessions as a symbol of releasing themselves from the
memory of skin. I salvaged a piece of wool sweater—hideous and impersonal—and with
you in mind, I mumbled “Kasya kaya?” For a moment I was certain you were there. I didn’t
know where you were, really. You were like a drizzle. You knocked on my window in tiny
and almost invisible pieces. I longed for rain, the solidness of glass. I bought the sweater with
the will of a harbor that you will sail back to me. (If not in time, it would not matter. So long as
you arrive.)When I hold this sweater I have the hankering to think of someone. I try to
remember who it was—shuffling faces, names, places in my mind. (Will it help to think where I
bought this piece of clothing?) It feels as if I am trying to grab strings of smoke rising
from a blazing photograph, as though I am trying to squeeze shards of glass in my hand
until they sink their teeth into my palm. I remember a scene, though vaguely. I suppose it
was drizzling by the whiff of damp earth. I remember this sweater, its green patterns coiling on
black, on the bedside, in a manner it is worn by a person lying there with his face down like a
grapefruit beaten to a pulp.

When you read the poem, you will

notice that there is a certain cadence
or rhythmic pacing
to it, despite not appearing in verse
form. While it lacks the line breaks
associated with poetry,
the prose poem, according to
poets.org, maintains a poetic
quality, often utilizing techniques
common to poetry, such as
fragmentation, compression,
repetition, and rhyme.
There are many techniques that
you can employ to make your
poem more effective. Use
idioms and figures of speech.
Innovations also escalate its
effectiveness. For example, a
script
can be accepted as a prose poem. A
text of a poem about a tree can look
like a tree. It is called
concrete poem. When you stack
books, the spines can form lines
to make a poem. You can
erase texts and make an erasure
poem. You can collect pictures
and texts and form a collage.
When you read the poem, you will notice that there is a certain cadence or rhythmic pacing to
it, despite not appearing in verse form. While it lacks the line breaks associated with poetry, the prose
poem, according to poets.org, maintains a poetic quality, often utilizing techniques common to
poetry, such as fragmentation, compression, repetition, and rhyme. There are many techniques
that you can employ to make your poem more effective. Use idioms and figures of speech.
Innovations also escalate its effectiveness. For example, a script can be accepted as a prose poem. A
text of a poem about a tree can look like a tree. It is called concrete poem. When you stack books, the
spines can form lines to make a poem. You can erase texts and make an erasure poem. You can
collect pictures and texts and form a collage.
You can make a digital image and call it visual poem. You can have a verbal joust. You can do
performance poetry such as spoken word. There are many ways and avenues to innovate the
form and content of a poem. Some poets use HTML codes for hypertextual poems. Whether your
poem is narrative or lyrical, visual or aural, it has to be understood by your readers.

Activity: Apply it in real life

You are going to present a lecture at an ASEAN literary conference. Your lecture will focus on your
research about the impact of CoVid 19 in your place and how it changed lives. You will write a paper (for
modular learners) and a PowerPoint presentation for (online learners). To persuade your audience, you
must appeal to both interest and intellect, select best words, impact a clear message, present the right
information give an outstanding analysis of your research, show proper preparation, and demonstrate
proficiency in deliberation.

Note: Module 2 is good for two (2) weeks. Deadline of submission of your presentation and written
composition is on October 10, 2020. Presentation for both literary composition and PowerPoint
presentation will be announced later.
Resource: Diwa Learning Book (Creative Non Fiction)
Prepared by: Rodimar M. Ramirez

Rhythm and insight are two essential

elements of poetry. In Filipino, these
are called ritmo/
indayog and kislap-diwa,
respectively.
Another basic element of poetry
is the persona. In the previous
lesson, you have learned
that the speaker in a work of
fiction is called narrator. In
poetry, it is called persona.
Same as in fiction, the persona does
not have to be the main character or
one of the characters
in your poem. But your poem
can mention who or what the
persona is. You can also imply it
by giving out clues or
descriptions. Also, you will notice
that, as in fiction writing, the
POV of
the persona is also important.
As a poet, you have to make sure
that the persona in your poem is
transparent. That means
the reader of the poem that you
wrote must be able to identify who
or what is speaking in your
poem. In your end, anything that
the persona says must be limited
to his/her/its capacity or
knowledge. For example, if the
persona is a two-year old, he or
she will not be able to explain
stuff about quantum physics, unless
the toddler is a savant in that
field.
Take t