It is so well explained, and I am thrilled to have understood it in such a convincing way as is yours. I really look forward to learning more and sincerely desire that you be indispensable for the learners like me.
@@DrAidan He has IGCSE English literature coming up and has to analyse Sonnet 116. He was a little confused about what iambic pentameter was, and as a child of the 1970s I never had to learn anything like that! After watching your video, we've just looked at Tyger Tyger by William Blake and can see that the emphasis is on the first syllable for contrast with Iambic. Iambic pentqmeter wasn't as scarey as we thought - thank you for the explanation!
I was assigned this video for an English assignment. I thought I was just going to skim through it and grab the terms I needed, but this video was weirdly entertaining.
Question: “Kind gentlemen, lets go see poor Cassio dressed” that’s not an iambic pentameter line, right? It’s not ten syllables of unstressed followed by stressed? Or am I wrong?
Zendo. My apologies for the delay in replying to you. That is a very good observation because it highlights the variation that can be found in plays that are largely written in iambic pentameter. Some lines vary in length and some vary in the type of feet. Here you have both types of variation. FIRST, thinking about metric feet, the basic pattern will be iambs - which as you point out are formed when an unstressed syllable is followed by a stressed syllable. There are also three other main types of feet you will find in an iambic pentameter line. The first is a trochee (pronounced troh-key) - this is the reverse of an iamb, where a stressed syllable is followed by an unstressed syllable. They often occur at the beginning of a line; so I think an actor could choose to put more stress on 'Kind' than 'gent' in the line you mention - equally he or she may not!. The second is a spondee (pronounced sponn-dee). This is a foot where fairly strong stress is placed equally on both syllables. The third is called a pyrrhic foot - this is two syllables that are both very lightly stressed so that you skip over them in speech. All of these are often used in combination by Shakespeare, although you'd still describe the play as being written in iambic pentameter. SECOND, is the variation in line length. Fairly often you'll find lines with 11 syllables, where there is an unstressed final syllable - this used to be called a feminine ending but is now called an unstressed ending. In fact, one of the most famous lines in Shakespeare has eleven syllables with an unstressed ending: u x u x u x x u u x u 'To be or not to be, that is the question' Here I have scanned 'that is' as what is called a medial trochee - but you can also read 'that is' as an iamb - it's often a matter of interpretation. You will also find a line in the video that has metrical variations and possibly an extra syllable: u xux x x u u x u u Emilia, run you to the citadel Although you could read it as pentameter by compressing Emilia to three syllables - Em-eel-ya u x u x x u u x u u Emilia, run you to the citadel The 'Othello' example you mention above is most easily read as a hexameter line - with six feet of two syllables, making twelve syllables in all. These hexameter lines occur frequently in Shakespeare and would be classed as variations on the basic iambic line. You could also make an argument for reading this line as pentameter by compressing the syllables in 'gentlemen' to read 'gent-men' and 'Cassio' to read 'Cass-yo'. I hope that all makes sense, and thanks once again for a great question. Do let me know if you have any other questions - very happy to answer them if I can.
I hope what follows is helpful, but do reply if you have other questions about this - very happy to try and help. There are four main variations of metrical feet in iambic pentamer. 1. The Iamb is obviously the basic type of metrical foot, with stress on the second of two syllables. 2. The Trochee is the second variation: that is basically a revised iamb, with more stress on the first syllable. Trochees normally appear at the beginning of a line. 'Richard III' opens with a Trochee - 'Now is /the win/ter of /our dis/con/tent'. 3. The third type of foot is a Spondee - that's where both syllables have EQUALl and relatively STRONG stress - this technique puts more emphasis on a word and slows down our pronunciation slightly. 4. Lastly there is a Pyrrhic foot, where both syllables have EQUAL but relatively WEAK stress - this is so we skip over the syllables quickly and it accelerates the line.
Good question. The reason there are two terms is that an iamb is just one type of metrical foot. There are also trochees, spondees and pyrrhic feet amongst others. I hope that makes sense but let me know if you have any other questions about it.
Good question. The way I think about it is like this: if a writer uses iambic pentameter and the majority of it does not rhyme, then you would describe the work as written in blank verse. This does not mean that there can't be sections where there are rhyming couplets, or where the writer might insert a sonnet form (for example in Act 1 Scene 5 of Romeo and Juliet, or the witches in Macbeth who use iambic tetrameter - four feet per line). Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth would still be described as being written in blank verse, even though there are some rhyming lines. But if a poem or play were to be written entirely in rhyme then this would not be blank verse - although it may still be iambic pentameter if the basic rhythm of the lines was based on the pattern of five feet made up - predominantly - of iambs (a syllable with less stress followed by a syllable with more stress). In other words, you think about the work as a whole and then decide whether it is mainly written in blank verse or in rhyme. I hope that makes sense.
OK. Here's a link to another video that might help you to spot the difference between prose and verse (there is quite a lot of prose in Hamlet and that can confuse matters when assessing which parts are blank verse: ua-cam.com/video/QpWPbDz8C1M/v-deo.html Hope that's useful.
Prose is literally anything that isn't in verse. If you watch my video on Verse and Prose I give a couple of examples to hep you identity Verse and Prose. Here is a link: ua-cam.com/video/QpWPbDz8C1M/v-deo.html Hope that's useful.
Your teaching is fantastic! You keep things simple yet very informative. Thanks
I appreciate that!
Much thanks doctor. Now I can finally become The true Shakespeare
It is so well explained, and I am thrilled to have understood it in such a convincing way as is yours. I really look forward to learning more and sincerely desire that you be indispensable for the learners like me.
I am very pleased to hear that you found it useful and thank you for your very kind words.
Really nice explanation ; good for my son doing his exams, and nice for me to know what the term means at last!
Thank you. I'm very pleased that you like the video and best of luck to your son with his exams. Which play is he studying?
@@DrAidan He has IGCSE English literature coming up and has to analyse Sonnet 116. He was a little confused about what iambic pentameter was, and as a child of the 1970s I never had to learn anything like that! After watching your video, we've just looked at Tyger Tyger by William Blake and can see that the emphasis is on the first syllable for contrast with Iambic. Iambic pentqmeter wasn't as scarey as we thought - thank you for the explanation!
Great. I'm very pleased that it was of help.
YOU! Are a blessed genius-THANK YOU for that explanation!
Happy to help! Thank you.
Thanks for the video, it helped simplify things...Well done
Thank you very much! Glad you liked it.
Excellent!.. It's a amazing teaching
Thank you : I'm very pleased you liked the video and thanks for taking the trouble to let me know.
This is so clear! Thank you!!!
Glad it was helpful!
Very helpful 😀 thank you
I’m pleased you found it helpful. And thank you for letting me know.
I was assigned this video for an English assignment. I thought I was just going to skim through it and grab the terms I needed, but this video was weirdly entertaining.
That's always good to hear!
Very easy to understand, thank you
A really clear explanation !thankssss
Easily explained. Thank you Dr.
Thank you. I’m very pleased you found it useful.
Thanks man, great breakdown.
Thank you: I'm pleased that it was useful to you.
Wow so clear. Thanks
Glad it was helpful! Thank you.
really good it was really helpful
That's kind of you to say: I'm very pleased you found it helpful. Thank you.
Thank you
Amazingly didactic! Congratulations!
Thanks!
No problem!
Just amazing man...😍😍😍
Will u plz make a video on 12,18 & 36 sonnets of Shakespeare..🙂🙂
Thanks
My pleasure. I’m glad you found it useful.
Very informative.
Thank you. Pleased to hear that you found it useful.
This helped me aloooot thank yoouuu 😻
No problem. I'm pleased you liked it and that you found it useful.
Genius. thank you so much sir !
Thank you
Question: “Kind gentlemen, lets go see poor Cassio dressed” that’s not an iambic pentameter line, right? It’s not ten syllables of unstressed followed by stressed? Or am I wrong?
Zendo. My apologies for the delay in replying to you.
That is a very good observation because it highlights the variation that can be found in plays that are largely written in iambic pentameter. Some lines vary in length and some vary in the type of feet. Here you have both types of variation.
FIRST, thinking about metric feet, the basic pattern will be iambs - which as you point out are formed when an unstressed syllable is followed by a stressed syllable. There are also three other main types of feet you will find in an iambic pentameter line.
The first is a trochee (pronounced troh-key) - this is the reverse of an iamb, where a stressed syllable is followed by an unstressed syllable. They often occur at the beginning of a line; so I think an actor could choose to put more stress on 'Kind' than 'gent' in the line you mention - equally he or she may not!.
The second is a spondee (pronounced sponn-dee). This is a foot where fairly strong stress is placed equally on both syllables.
The third is called a pyrrhic foot - this is two syllables that are both very lightly stressed so that you skip over them in speech.
All of these are often used in combination by Shakespeare, although you'd still describe the play as being written in iambic pentameter.
SECOND, is the variation in line length. Fairly often you'll find lines with 11 syllables, where there is an unstressed final syllable - this used to be called a feminine ending but is now called an unstressed ending. In fact, one of the most famous lines in Shakespeare has eleven syllables with an unstressed ending:
u x u x u x x u u x u
'To be or not to be, that is the question'
Here I have scanned 'that is' as what is called a medial trochee - but you can also read 'that is' as an iamb - it's often a matter of interpretation.
You will also find a line in the video that has metrical variations and possibly an extra syllable:
u xux x x u u x u u
Emilia, run you to the citadel
Although you could read it as pentameter by compressing Emilia to three syllables - Em-eel-ya
u x u x x u u x u u
Emilia, run you to the citadel
The 'Othello' example you mention above is most easily read as a hexameter line - with six feet of two syllables, making twelve syllables in all. These hexameter lines occur frequently in Shakespeare and would be classed as variations on the basic iambic line.
You could also make an argument for reading this line as pentameter by compressing the syllables in 'gentlemen' to read 'gent-men' and 'Cassio' to read 'Cass-yo'.
I hope that all makes sense, and thanks once again for a great question. Do let me know if you have any other questions - very happy to answer them if I can.
@@DrAidan Thank you that helps so much. I was getting confused because it didn't seem like all of the lines I was reading were in iambic pentameter
need a detailed description of meter
I hope what follows is helpful, but do reply if you have other questions about this - very happy to try and help.
There are four main variations of metrical feet in iambic pentamer.
1. The Iamb is obviously the basic type of metrical foot, with stress on the second of two syllables.
2. The Trochee is the second variation: that is basically a revised iamb, with more stress on the first syllable. Trochees normally appear at the beginning of a line. 'Richard III' opens with a Trochee - 'Now is /the win/ter of /our dis/con/tent'.
3. The third type of foot is a Spondee - that's where both syllables have EQUALl and relatively STRONG stress - this technique puts more emphasis on a word and slows down our pronunciation slightly.
4. Lastly there is a Pyrrhic foot, where both syllables have EQUAL but relatively WEAK stress - this is so we skip over the syllables quickly and it accelerates the line.
@@DrAidan Is a trochee interchangeable with trochaic foot
@@shorx9199 Good question. Yes, a trochee can be described as a trochaic foot.
I learned this from a Dan brown book
Ohh so were reading angels and demon huh
Why even have the term foot if you can just use iamb?
Good question. The reason there are two terms is that an iamb is just one type of metrical foot. There are also trochees, spondees and pyrrhic feet amongst others. I hope that makes sense but let me know if you have any other questions about it.
So does that mean that iambic pentameter that isn't blank verse has to rhyme?
Good question. The way I think about it is like this: if a writer uses iambic pentameter and the majority of it does not rhyme, then you would describe the work as written in blank verse. This does not mean that there can't be sections where there are rhyming couplets, or where the writer might insert a sonnet form (for example in Act 1 Scene 5 of Romeo and Juliet, or the witches in Macbeth who use iambic tetrameter - four feet per line). Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth would still be described as being written in blank verse, even though there are some rhyming lines. But if a poem or play were to be written entirely in rhyme then this would not be blank verse - although it may still be iambic pentameter if the basic rhythm of the lines was based on the pattern of five feet made up - predominantly - of iambs (a syllable with less stress followed by a syllable with more stress). In other words, you think about the work as a whole and then decide whether it is mainly written in blank verse or in rhyme. I hope that makes sense.
Dr Aidan cheers! Struggling with identifying blank verse in Hamlet but your videos are very helpful thank you :)
OK. Here's a link to another video that might help you to spot the difference between prose and verse (there is quite a lot of prose in Hamlet and that can confuse matters when assessing which parts are blank verse: ua-cam.com/video/QpWPbDz8C1M/v-deo.html Hope that's useful.
I didn't know what this was, now I do
see what i did there
I'm very pleased to hear that the video was helpful. Thank you for letting me know.
Verse example is iambic pentameter
Prose example is ???
Prose is literally anything that isn't in verse. If you watch my video on Verse and Prose I give a couple of examples to hep you identity Verse and Prose. Here is a link: ua-cam.com/video/QpWPbDz8C1M/v-deo.html Hope that's useful.
But I wonder why did such men of letter in the past even bothered with rhyme and verse? Does it add to the drama to hear a rhyme?
I think that, in part, being able to express thoughts and emotions in this form was a sign of the writer's skill.
LMAO 4 min 20 sec and 42,000 views.
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Wut-