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Hexameter

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language that condenses vowels and consonants between stressed syllables, while hexameter relies on the regular timing of the phonetic sounds. Languages having the latter properties (i.e., languages that are not stress-timed) include Ancient Greek, Latin, Lithuanian and Hungarian.
165:), or both. Spaces between words are not counted in syllabification, so for instance "cat" is a long syllable in isolation, but "cat attack" would be syllabified as short-short-long: "ca", "ta", "tack" (υ υ –). 161:
A short syllable (υ) is a syllable with a short vowel and no consonant at the end. A long syllable (–) is a syllable that either has a long vowel, one or more consonants at the end (or a
295: 264:. The iambic six-foot line has also been used occasionally, and an accentual six-foot line has been used by translators from the Latin and many poets. 404:
Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A. (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann Ltd., 1918).
458: 421: 172:(logical full stops within the line) are essential in avoiding what may otherwise be a monotonous sing-song effect. 300: 188:
While the above classical hexameter has never enjoyed much popularity in English, where the standard metre is
196:. There are numerous examples from the 16th century and a few from the 17th; the most prominent of these is 451: 245: 180:
Although the rules seem simple, it is hard to use classical hexameter in English, because English is a
17: 206:(1612) in couplets of iambic hexameter. An example from Drayton (marking the six feet on each line): 289: 260:
lines. In the 20th century a loose ballad-like six-foot line with a strong medial pause was used by
657: 411:
Translated by John Bostock, M.D., F.R.S. H.T. Riley, Esq., B.A. (London: Taylor and Francis, 1855).
444: 272: 253: 305:(1893–1962) used a natural form of hexameter in his translation of some verses from Homer's 261: 96: 68:). It was the standard epic metre in classical Greek and Latin literature, such as in the 8: 576: 552: 370: 268: 581: 564: 322: 285: 277: 249: 241: 126: 547: 542: 189: 425: 193: 181: 45: 621: 626: 559: 197: 157:). Exceptions can occur when a polysyllabic (especially Greek) name ends a verse. 140: 102: 61: 475: 467: 433:, practice scanning lines of dactylic hexameter from a variety of Latin authors 230: 222: 53: 34: 651: 611: 593: 537: 529: 327: 257: 41: 37: 332: 616: 601: 225:, and as one of the types of permissible lines in lyrical stanzas and the 606: 234: 218: 202: 513: 503: 498: 281:
is considered the most successful hexameter text in Lithuanian as yet.
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Variations of the sequence from line to line, as well as the use of
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Several attempts were made in the 19th century to naturalise the
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The fifth is almost always a dactyl, and last must be a spondee/
154: 114: 110: 87: 82: 49: 631: 70: 57: 44:(a "foot" here is the pulse, or major accent, of words in an 310: 91: 430: 267:
In the late 18th century the hexameter was adapted to the
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In classical hexameter, the six feet follow these rules:
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In the 17th century the iambic hexameter, also called
252:, and others — none of them particularly successful. 213:
So rich / and fair / a vale / in for/tuning / to wed.
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A foot can be made up of two long syllables (– –), a
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The first four feet can contain either one of them.
210:Nor a/ny o/ther wold / like Cot/swold e/ver sped, 86:. Its use in other genres of composition include 649: 192:, English poems have frequently been written in 256:wrote many of his poems in six-foot iambic and 27:Metrical line of verses consisting of six feet 452: 424:, a tutorial on Latin dactylic hexameter at 459: 445: 395:The Norton Anthology of English Literature 64:, but describes various combinations of 397:, volume D, 9th edition (Norton, 2012). 139:; or a long and two short syllables, a 101:and the Hymns of Orpheus. According to 14: 650: 120: 440: 221:, was used as a substitution in the 24: 25: 669: 466: 415: 284:For dactylic hexameter poetry in 402:Description of Greece, Vol. IV. 290:Dactylic hexameter#In Hungarian 363: 354: 345: 175: 13: 1: 387: 371:"Bärndütsch isch Chärndütsch" 105:, hexameter was invented by 40:of verses consisting of six 7: 316: 10: 674: 393:Stephen Greenblatt et al. 309:into the Swiss dialect of 246:Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 124: 592: 527: 474: 338: 273:Kristijonas Donelaitis 360:Pliny the Elder, 7.57 278:"Metai" (The Seasons) 254:Gerard Manley Hopkins 153:(together forming an 409:The Natural History. 262:William Butler Yeats 577:Trochaic tetrameter 269:Lithuanian language 121:Classical hexameter 60:a "foot" is not an 582:Trochaic octameter 565:Dactylic hexameter 323:Dactylic hexameter 286:Hungarian language 250:Arthur Hugh Clough 242:dactylic hexameter 127:Dactylic hexameter 645: 644: 553:Iambic heptameter 548:Iambic pentameter 543:Iambic tetrameter 407:Pliny the Elder. 351:Pausanias, 10.5.7 190:iambic pentameter 16:(Redirected from 665: 572:Trochee/Trochaic 461: 454: 447: 438: 437: 426:Skidmore College 381: 380: 378: 377: 367: 361: 358: 352: 349: 304: 244:to English — by 194:iambic hexameter 21: 673: 672: 668: 667: 666: 664: 663: 662: 658:Types of verses 648: 647: 646: 641: 588: 523: 470: 465: 418: 390: 385: 384: 375: 373: 369: 368: 364: 359: 355: 350: 346: 341: 319: 298: 198:Michael Drayton 178: 129: 123: 103:Greek mythology 28: 23: 22: 15: 12: 11: 5: 671: 661: 660: 643: 642: 640: 639: 634: 629: 624: 619: 614: 609: 604: 598: 596: 590: 589: 587: 586: 585: 584: 579: 569: 568: 567: 557: 556: 555: 550: 545: 534: 532: 525: 524: 522: 521: 516: 511: 506: 501: 496: 491: 486: 480: 478: 472: 471: 464: 463: 456: 449: 441: 435: 434: 428: 417: 416:External links 414: 413: 412: 405: 398: 389: 386: 383: 382: 362: 353: 343: 342: 340: 337: 336: 335: 330: 325: 318: 315: 223:heroic couplet 215: 214: 211: 177: 174: 163:long consonant 159: 158: 147: 144: 125:Main article: 122: 119: 113:and the first 109:, daughter of 56:as well as in 26: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 670: 659: 656: 655: 653: 638: 635: 633: 630: 628: 625: 623: 620: 618: 615: 613: 610: 608: 605: 603: 600: 599: 597: 595: 594:Arabic poetry 591: 583: 580: 578: 575: 574: 573: 570: 566: 563: 562: 561: 558: 554: 551: 549: 546: 544: 541: 540: 539: 536: 535: 533: 531: 530:metrical feet 526: 520: 517: 515: 512: 510: 507: 505: 502: 500: 497: 495: 492: 490: 487: 485: 482: 481: 479: 477: 473: 469: 468:Poetic meters 462: 457: 455: 450: 448: 443: 442: 439: 432: 429: 427: 423: 420: 419: 410: 406: 403: 399: 396: 392: 391: 372: 366: 357: 348: 344: 334: 331: 329: 328:Latin prosody 326: 324: 321: 320: 314: 312: 308: 302: 297: 293: 291: 287: 282: 280: 279: 274: 270: 265: 263: 259: 258:sprung rhythm 255: 251: 247: 243: 238: 236: 232: 228: 224: 220: 212: 209: 208: 207: 205: 204: 199: 195: 191: 186: 183: 173: 171: 166: 164: 156: 152: 148: 145: 142: 138: 134: 133: 132: 128: 118: 116: 112: 108: 104: 100: 98: 97:Metamorphoses 93: 89: 85: 84: 79: 78: 73: 72: 67: 63: 59: 55: 51: 47: 43: 39: 36: 32: 19: 508: 431:Hexameter.co 408: 401: 394: 374:. Retrieved 365: 356: 347: 333:Poetic meter 306: 296:Albert Meyer 294: 283: 276: 266: 239: 216: 201: 187: 182:stress-timed 179: 167: 160: 130: 95: 90:'s satires, 81: 75: 69: 30: 29: 422:Hexametrica 400:Pausanias. 299: [ 275:. His poem 219:alexandrine 203:Poly-Olbion 176:Application 117:of Delphi. 528:Meters by 514:Heptameter 504:Pentameter 499:Tetrameter 388:References 376:2024-09-08 18:Hexameters 617:Mutaqārib 519:Octameter 509:Hexameter 484:Monometer 66:syllables 31:Hexameter 652:Category 494:Trimeter 317:See also 229:odes of 227:Pindaric 143:(– υ υ). 107:Phemonoe 48:line of 35:metrical 489:Dimeter 307:Odyssey 170:caesura 151:trochee 137:spondee 77:Odyssey 46:English 560:Dactyl 288:, see 235:Dryden 231:Cowley 155:adonic 141:dactyl 115:Pythia 111:Apollo 88:Horace 83:Aeneid 62:accent 50:poetry 637:Wāfir 632:Tawīl 627:Rajaz 622:Madīd 612:Kāmil 607:Hazaj 602:Basīṭ 476:Meter 339:Notes 303:] 71:Iliad 58:Latin 54:Greek 52:; in 33:is a 538:Iamb 311:Bern 233:and 92:Ovid 80:and 42:feet 38:line 271:by 200:'s 94:'s 654:: 313:. 301:de 292:. 248:, 237:. 74:, 460:e 453:t 446:v 379:. 99:, 20:)

Index

Hexameters
metrical
line
feet
English
poetry
Greek
Latin
accent
syllables
Iliad
Odyssey
Aeneid
Horace
Ovid
Metamorphoses
Greek mythology
Phemonoe
Apollo
Pythia
Dactylic hexameter
spondee
dactyl
trochee
adonic
long consonant
caesura
stress-timed
iambic pentameter
iambic hexameter

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