Blank verse is a type of poetry that has a regular meter, but no rhyme scheme. Some examples of blank verse poems include 'Fra Lippo Lippi' (1855) by Robert Browning and 'The Second Coming' (1920) by W.B Yeats. Blank verse is closely associated with free verse. However, the latter has no meter.
Blank verse: definition
What is blank verse?
Blank verse - This is a type of poem that is written with a meter but has no rhyme scheme. The meter of a blank verse poem is typically iambic pentameter.
Blank verse is a frequently used form of poetry. It was used widely by poets such as William Shakespeare and John Milton. These poets used blank verse for long, narrative-based poems, which commonly featured a dramatic monologue. Since the 1600s, blank verse has remained a popular form of poetry and was used by poets such as Robert Frost and W.B Yeats during the 20th century.
Blank verse: characteristics
There are two defining characteristics of blank verse. These are its meter and rhyme scheme.
Meter
Iambic pentameter - This is a type of meter that is comprised of five iambs, consisting of one unstressed syllable, followed by a stressed syllable.
One of the defining features of blank verse is that it has a regular meter. This means that there will be a consistent number of syllables in each line of the poem. A regular meter is used here as blank verse poems are usually longer narrative poems.
There is no set meter for blank verse, however, most of these poems use iambic pentameter. An iambic pentameter is a popular form of meter as it replicates the natural speech patterns of English. An example of iambic pentameter being used in a blank verse poem is found in 'Fra Lippo Lippi' (1855) by Robert Browning. This poem is a dramatic monologue that uses blank verse and iambic pentameter to make it easier to read.
I am poor brother Lippo, by your leave!
You need not clap your torches to my face.
Zooks, what's to blame? you think you see a monk!
Rhyme Scheme
The rhyme scheme of a poem has a significant impact on the interpretation of its meaning.
Rhyme scheme - The pattern of rhyming words at the end lines of poems.
A key trait of blank verse is that there is no rhyme scheme. This means that the end words of each line will not sound alike. The absence of a rhyme scheme means that poets have the most choice in what vocabulary they can use in their poems.
A key way to tell the difference between blank verse and poems written in iambic pentameter is to look for a rhyme scheme. For example, William Shakespeare's poem 'Sonnet 18' (1609) is not written in blank verse, as although it has a consistent meter, there is also a rhyme scheme in the poem. An example of blank verse that uses no rhyme scheme can be seen in 'Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey' (1798) by William Wordsworth.
Five years have past; five summers, with the length
Of five long winters! and again I hear
These waters, rolling from their mountain-springs
With a soft inland murmur.—
Blank verse: examples and poems
Now that we understand the two key characteristics of blank verse, let's look at some examples of this form.
Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it,
And spills the upper boulders in the sun;
And makes gaps even two can pass abreast.
Robert Frost's poem 'Mending Wall' (1914) is a widely known example of blank verse. The poem is written in iambic pentameter, as evident by the 5 iambs in each line. There is also no rhyme scheme. Frost uses the blank verse in this poem to mimic the structure of a wall. Blank verse allows the poem to be written without stanza breaks, and so if the poem is tipped on its side, it resembles the shape of a wall.
Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
William Butler Yeats uses the blank verse in the poem 'The Second Coming' (1920). The poem discusses themes of religion and violence as well as Irish history. Yeats uses iambic pentameter in this poem, though at times a line will contain 13 syllables instead of 10. It is thought that Yeats chooses to occasionally deviate from the meter to reflect the fearful tone of uncertainty in the poem.
Blank verse vs free verse
Another major form of poetry is free verse. There are some similarities between blank and free verse but other key differences.
Free verse - A poem with no rhyme scheme or regular meter.
Free verse poetry lacks any consistent rhyme scheme or regular meter. This allows poets a lot of freedom as they are not tied to a structure. Free verse has become increasingly popular over the years, in part due to the success of Walt Whitman's poetry collection Leaves of Grass (1855) as well as through the work of Modernist poets such as Ezra Pound and T.S Eliot. An example of a free-verse poem from the 20th century is 'Two-Headed Calf' (1977) by Laura Gilpin.
Tomorrow when the farm boys find thisfreak of nature, they will wrap his bodyin newspaper and carry him to the museum.But tonight he is alive and in the northfield with his mother. It is a perfectsummer evening: the moon rising overthe orchard, the wind in the grass. Andas he stares into the sky, there aretwice as many stars as usual.
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