Blank Verse and Iambic Pentameter

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Blank Verse and Iambic Pentameter
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Definition and Example

• Shakespeare wrote his plays almost entirely in
  blank verse unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter,
  in which a line generally has five unstressed
  syllables each followed by a stressed syllable
• My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand
• To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss

U / U / U
/ U / U /
U / U /
U / U / U
/
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Couplet

• Sometimes, however, Shakespeare has characters
  speak in prose, and sometimes he uses rhymed
  lines, especially two rhymed lines in a row,
  called a couplet.
• Saints do not move, though grant for prayers
  sake.
• Then move not while my prayers effect I take.

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Sonnet

• A sonnet is a lyric poem of 14 lines, commonly
  written in iambic pentameter. The sonnet may be
  classified as Petrachan or Shakespearean. The
  Shakespearean sonnet consists of a verse of
  poetry rhyming with every other line in a pattern
  of abab, cdcd, efef, gg. The final two lines are
  a couplet.