fOrm aNd strUCture iN pOetrY

Often, the physicality of a poem, or the structure, is as important as the words that the poet choses, the meter used, and the rhyme scheme.  Sometimes it's done  in an overt way, like a poem that's about an apple where the words are actually shaped like the fruit.  Sometimes it's done in a subconscious or subliminal way, like this poem, where I use an extreme physical structure that gives the illusion of waves  to soothe the eyes (which is what most people are already thinking when they read "day breaks--" waves also break.  The water illusion is further enhanced with "drops of water" and "first kiss").  In this case, the structure compliments the ideas within the poem.  It's an exaggerated illustration of the deliberateness of poetry: every element of a poem-- every word, every bit of punctuation, every rhyme, every step of the meter, the physical layout-- is used by the poet.  Nothing is accidental.

© Ray Cattie