Entry 42: Elements of Poetry

When we talk about stories, we use words like “plot,” “character,” “setting,” “conflict,” and “resolution,” among others. In order to talk about poetry, we need to understand what it is made of. Aside from “words,” what are the elements of poetry? Do they share any of the same elements that we find in fiction? Explain giving specific examples from stories and poems you’ve read.

• The elements of poetry are basically very similar to the elements of fiction, except for the fact that it contains a few more elements. First, most poems, like fiction, contain a plot. The plot may be complete, or it may be partial. Second, a poem will have a character or characters, and it doesn't matter if it is the narrator, if it is the person/thing/item that the narrator is talking about, or if it is the person/animal that is actually doing the action. Third, there is always a setting for any poem or fiction. The setting of both of these gives the story a general mood and tone. Lastly, both of them have a conflict (or the issue that is being addressed in the case of a poem) and a resolution (depending on whether the author wants to give a resolution or not).
• Poems are different compared to fiction because of their structures. Other than free verse, poems follow a form or structure while fiction does not have any obvious form or structure. Poems also have rhythm and rhyme to give it a feeling of being sung rather than just said (many poems in the past are sung).
• An example of a poem is Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass. It contains characters (the narrator and the little boy who asked him a question at the beginning, etc.), a plot (the narrator trying to find out truths), etc.