What is blank verse?
Q: What is blank verse?
A: Blank verse is a type of poetry that does not use rhyme, but instead relies on the meter of the lines to give structure and create the feeling of poetry.
Q: Who are some famous poets who used blank verse?
A: William Wordsworth, John Milton, Lord Tennyson, John Keats, Edwin Atherstone and John Fitchett all wrote poems in blank verse.
Q: What did Shakespeare prefer for his more mature works?
A: Shakespeare preferred to use blank verse for his more mature works such as Hamlet.
Q: What did John Keats do differently with his second attempt at a major poem?
A: With his second attempt at a major poem, Hyperion, John Keats switched from using rhyme to using blank verse.
Q: How long can poems written in blank verse be?
A: Poems written in blank verse can be quite long - The Fall of Nineveh by Edwin Atherstone and King Alfred by John Fitchett are both about 130 000 lines long.
Q: Why do many critics judge blank verse to be better than rhyme for serious subjects?
A: Many critics judge blank verse to be better than rhyme for serious subjects because it allows them to focus on the meter rather than worrying about finding rhymes which can sometimes distract from the content or message of the poem.
Q: What has replaced both rhyme and strict meter in modern poetry?
A: In modern poetry, both rhyme and strict meter have been replaced by free-verse.
