English Literature / Unit 1 ENL 0010 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Iambic Pentameter
Captions available
The idea
An iamb is one unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one, as in "above." Iambic pentameter is a line of five iambs, about ten syllables, and is the most common meter in English poetry. "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day" is the pattern: five rising beats.
In practice
Da-DUM, five times.
Where people slip
Real lines vary the pattern; the norm still holds.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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