Trochaic

Sometimes, a poet crafts a verse that is so captivating, so rhythmic, and so perfectly melodious that it gives us goosebumps. Other times, they write poetry that seems like it's trying to frustrate us. Why does it feel so uncomfortable to read? Why can't I just fall into a nice rhythm? Is the poet just bad at their job?

What if we told you that every decision the poets make is consciously done for effect? Just as one poem may mesmerise you with its beauty, another jolts you back and forth and keeps you from ever getting comfortable. One of the ways the poet can achieve this disruption is through trochees. Trochees sound abnormal when we speak them. They just don't fit our usual pattern of human speech. This makes them the perfect tool for writers who want to prevent you from getting complacent with a poem's rhythm.

Let's learn a little bit more about the trochaic meter. We'll look at the basic meaning of the term and recap meter and feet. After that, we'll look at the differences between trochaic tetrameter and trochaic pentameter. We'll even look at a handful of examples throughout to show the different uses of the trochee.

Trochaic meaning

What do we mean when we refer to a 'trochee'? Let's begin with a preliminary definition.

For example, the word 'forest' is an example of a trochee (for/est).

Don't worry if this all seems confusing. Let's recap the basics of meter to help us better understand this definition.

Recap: feet and stress patterns

To recap, let's start with a basic definition of a poetic 'foot'.

We know which category a foot falls into based on which syllables the poet emphasises within a word. If a poet emphasises a syllable, we call it 'stressed'; if they don't, we refer to it as 'unstressed'.

Once we know where the stresses are placed in a line, we can identify its meter. Different combinations of stressed/unstressed syllables have different names. For example, an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable is known as an iamb. Here's a list of common stress pattern combinations and their names:

• Iamb: Unstressed/Stressed (da-DUM)
• Trochee: Stressed/Unstressed (DA-dum)
• Spondee: Stressed/Stressed (DA-DUM)
• Anapest: Unstressed/Unstressed/Stressed (da-da-DUM)
• Dactyl: Stressed/Unstressed/Unstressed (DA-da-dum)

The 'trochaic' meter, which we are focusing on today, is underlined. As you can see, it consists of one 'stressed' syllable followed by one 'unstressed' syllable.

To find the final meter, we need to count how many times a stress pattern is repeated in a line. For example, if we counted five repetitions of trochees in a line, we would say that line is in 'trochaic pentameter'. Here are a list of the most common meters and the number of feet they contain.

• Monometer = one foot
• Dimeter = two feet
• Trimeter = three feet
• Tetrameter = four feet
• Pentameter = five feet
• Hexameter = six feet
• Heptameter = seven feet
• Octameter = eight feet

To be 'trochaic', a line must follow a stressed/unstressed pattern. (DA-dum/DA-dum/DA-dum). Let's look in more detail at what effect trochees can have on a poem and explore some famous examples of the meter.

Trochaic meter

Trochaic poetry has a 'falling' rhythm. This is because the stressed syllable is on the first beat, meaning that the following syllables sound like they are cascading downward. (DA-dum/DA-dum). This gives trochaic meter a unique cadence that can make a poem sound immediate, tense and decisive. For example, here's an excerpt from Edgar Allan Poe's (1809-1849) 'The Raven' (1845):

The use of trochees here makes the verse feel panicked and hurried, mirroring the narrator's fear after they are awoken by a knock at the door.

Fig. 1 - Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) is famed for his iconic poem 'The Raven', written in a very unorthodox 'trochaic octameter'. 'The Raven' is written in the unusual trochaic octameter (eight trochees per line). Usually, the length of the poem's lines would make this verse sound like prose. However, Poe's inclusion of internal rhymes (napping/tapping/rapping) helps to make the lines read poetically.

The unique rhythm of trochees can also make lines sound sorrowful and melancholic. For this reason, trochaic meter is often used in poems with bleak topics. Here's an excerpt from W.H Auden's (1907-1973) 'In Memory of W.B Yeats' (1939) that illustrates this:

Here Auden reflects on the loss of his good friend William Yeats (1865-1939). The falling rhythm creates a downcast tone that perfectly suits the poem's mournful mood.

You'll also notice that Auden, like Poe, uses catalectic lines to make the final words of his verse easier to rhyme (guest/rest).

Trochaic tetrameter

Trochaic tetrameter occurs when a line of poetry contains four trochaic feet.

Writing poetry exclusively in trochaic tetrameter is challenging because it tends to sound unnatural when read aloud. For this reason, poets often intertwine trochees with another meter to achieve a specific effect. A trochaic line in iambic poetry can jolt a reader from a comfortable rhythm or draw attention to a particular part of the verse.

Let's look more closely at some examples of trochaic tetrameter within poetry.

Trochaic tetrameter poem examples

Let's look at two prominent examples of trochaic tetrameter within poetry and drama.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - 'The Song of Hiawatha'

Longfellow's (1807-1882) 'The Song of Hiawatha' (1855) is written entirely in trochaic tetrameter. It tells the story of the tragic love between indigenous American characters. This excerpt sets the stage for the poem:

You'll once again notice how unnatural trochaic stress patterns feel to an English speaker. The stressed syllable that begins each line here is jarring and prevents the reader from falling into any natural rhythm. Longfellow claimed he chose the meter to better mirror what he perceived as the cadence of American Indigenous speech. While this may be a stereotypical perception, it shows us the effect Longfellow was trying to achieve.

William Shakespeare - 'Macbeth'

Trochaic octameter isn't only reserved for poetry; it is also used for dramatic effect in plays! William Shakespeare (1564-1616) is famous for writing in 'blank verse'. This means that his plays are made up almost exclusively of unrhyming iambic pentameter (five repetitions of an unstressed/stressed pattern).

Occasionally, Shakespeare deviates from his usual iambic pentameter verse, instead choosing an unconventional meter like trochaic tetrameter to achieve a particular effect. For example, in Act 4, Scene 1 of Macbeth (1606), the witches chant in trochaic tetrameter:

This trochaic verse sounds abnormal compared to the usual iambic pentameter of Shakespeare's plays. As a result, the witches seem otherworldly, powerful and supernatural. The trochaic rhythm also gives the words a sense of gravity and importance, making the chants sound like a dangerous incantation.

Fig 2. This watercolour painting depicts the three witches from Macbeth (1606). It portrays the witches as alien, otherworldly figures gathered around their cauldron chanting.

Trochaic pentameter

Trochaic pentameter consists of five repetitions of trochees. This makes it two syllables longer than lines of trochaic tetrameter.

Poems purely written in trochaic pentameter are extremely rare, even when compared to trochaic tetrameter. As we know, writing in trochaic tetrameter is difficult because of the unnatural effect the meter creates. Adding additional syllables can make this challenge even harder, so poets typically stick to shorter verses when writing trochaic poetry.

Furthermore, the trochaic meter works best when it is 'running' through the page. As the final syllable of each line is unstressed, the reader quickly jumps to the stressed syllable that begins the following line. This makes it feel like each line is a rapid continuation of the last, giving trochaic poetry a sense of urgency and constancy that is unique to the meter.

Extending the meter diminishes this effect by making the lines longer and, thus, harder to recite uninterrupted. Even the slightest difference in line length can be enough to impact the urgency of a poem significantly. For this reason, tetrameter is the conventional choice when working with trochees.