Isoictic metre

Literary/ Cultural Context Note

Peter Lewis Groves (Monash University)

The Literary Encyclopedia. WORLD HISTORY AND IDEAS: A CROSS-CULTURAL VOLUME.

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Isoictic metre: a metre (also called

demotic

accentual

) in which each line has a fixed number of beats (usually four or eight) but no fixed number of syllables; where there are only three sounded beats there will be a fourth occurring in silence (a rest), indicated in what follows by “” (if you try clapping on the beats you will find yourself wanting to clap on the rests as well). The following nursery-rhyme has been slightly altered to show that equivalent four-beat lines may contain anything from 3 to 13 syllables :

Péase pórridge hót 4 syllablesPéase pórridge cóld 4 syllablesInédible pábulum próbably pútrefied, 13 syllablesNíne dáys óld. 3 syllables

Péase pórridge hót 4 syllablesPéase pórridge cóld 4 syllablesInédible pábulum próbably…

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259 words

Citation: Groves, Peter Lewis. "Isoictic metre". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 04 June 2008 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=5518, accessed 25 April 2024.]

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