Concrete poetry is an artistic expression of written language. Concrete poets make designs out of letters and words. Even though the visual pattern (shape) can really catch our eye, it is the language itself that makes a poem poetic. There are different kinds of concrete poetry. We will try a type of concrete poetry that combines two couplets with a visual image. A couplet has two lines in which each line ends with words that rhyme. Read the two couplets below:
A click, a sputter, a whoosh- to roar!
| line 1
|
A flick, a shudder, a push- to soar!
| line 2
|
The wings held steady; the nose held high;
| line 3
|
The plane is ready to touch the sky!
| line 4
|
In the first two lines, the words roar and soar rhyme. In the second two lines, the words high and sky rhyme. Lines one and two form the first couplet. Lines three and four form the second couplet. These are then grouped on the page in such a way that it appears the plane is starting its engines, moving down the runway and then lifting up into the sky. See the concrete poem below.
Takeoff
Sources:
http://www.gardendigest.com/concrete/cvpindex.htm
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/aero/wright/teachers/wfomanual/langarts/poem.html
