This work borrow (Beyers, 2001) definition of free verse, when he defined Free verse as a literary stratagem that is unrestricted from restrictions of regular meter or rhythm, and does not rhyme with fixed forms. Usually written is a form of poems and such poems are have no rhythm and rhyme schemes, this types of poems do not have a systematic rhyme scheme rules, However they still provide inventive expression to readers. As by (Beyers, 2001) definition, this work believe, free verses should be in an open form, which means it has no predetermined structure and not limited in terms of its length, therefore there is no need for a rhyme scheme and set of metrical pattern when one writes a free verse poem.
Additionally, free verse poems have no specific rules for line breaks or stanza divisions. (William, 2012), in his study titled is free verse killing poetry?, stated that, Some free verse poems are so short, they might not resemble poems at all.
Based on the above, free verse poems can then be said to have the following structures: they have no set line length, no set rhythm, and no rhyming pattern and there is a way of conveying ideas and feelings are fully crafted word pictures. This can be seen I the poem by Walt Whitman Insert 1
If one critically looks at this poem it has all the characteristics of free verse poems, in that the poet did not follow grammatical structure and pays little or no attention to punctuations the poem does also not have a rhyme scheme nor does it have a rhythm paten. This is in line with the definition above poems as articulated above. This also seems to concur with (William, 2012)who provided a well-crafted outline of how a free verse poem should be like from which part of this assignment is borrowed from.
To fully appreciate free verse poem definitions and other aspects regarding free verse poems, an analysis of a free verse poem (The Red Wheelbarrow) (Insert 2) has been embarked upon paying focus on the form and structure to shade more light on free poems and bring out what scholars believe about them.
This poet often wrote of American subjects and themes.
If one take a close look at this poem, this poem is guileless and easy to read, but encompasses deep messages that contract with personal individuality and discovering your place in the world. In this poem, the poet states in his autobiography that the four verses are like a “piece of cloth, strained on a frame.” The construction of the poem creates powerful visual descriptions and gives each word connotation. The poet wanted to lay the massage in this poem across the world. He selected to use artless, common language and everyday vocabulary words to title things and ideas in this poem. Additionally, this poem also has an influence on readers, because the limited number of words put a lot of stress on the use of everyday things. In the first phrase of the poem “so much depends” — powers readers to evaluate why the subject under discussion is extensive. This is because the subject is a necessary tool for work, or because the subjects, rain and chickens are serious to the farmer’s durability. The poet divides the words “wheelbarrow” and “rainwater” into separate, smaller words to add stress. This makes readers to slow down and think about the wheel separate from the barrow and rain separate from water. The poet made use of free verses in order to powerfully depict visual images as they offer a purely authentic picture of a wheelbarrow, based in the rain beside white chickens. The useful image is ordinary, serene and uplifting and creates a happy tone. The text organization of this poem also supports the themes in the form of free verses. The text is organized into two-line stanzas, and the second line of each couplet contains only one word. The reader’s attention is drawn to the isolated single words — upon, barrow, water and chickens — which create a strong visual image by themselves. Williams wants readers to identify with the scene and understand that the most important things in life aren’t complicated or glamorous. Personal identity is often found in the simple, ordinary things in life. According to (Oliver, 2011), the speaker sees that wheelbarrow is red. Red probably suggests things like life, blood, courage and zeal that are a part of what the farmer sustains and supports.
The wheel barrow is one thing to us, but by splitting the word in two lines. Williams separated parts of the wheel barrow (the body) to make leaders better understand the subject underdiscission. The barrow depends on the wheel. The wheel could be the symbol of life (process), progress, passage of time and life, and so on.The chickens are white, probably suggesting that this is a pure and sacred, uncorrupted and honest profession. There is also peace in this natural and simple mode of a farmer (William, 2012). It may also remind readers of innocence. The word rainwater is split into two to make us see them separately and in turns (William, 2012), and appreciate them
Williams’s line-break forces us to read slowly; it invites us to look for significance in the scene described and the word used to describe it. According to (Warfel, 2008), Not only do poets writing in free verse have the freedom to write unrhymed lines of any length, but they also often use enjambment in unconventional ways, inserting line breaks in the middle of sentences and even in the middle of words (such as wheelbarrow and rainwater). According to (Warfel, 2008), while free verse lacks some of the restraints of formal and blank verse, it still involves all the elements that make up the form of a poem (including diction, syntax, lineation, stanza, rhythm, and the many different types of rhyme). It’s just that there aren’t any rules governing how they must be used.
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