--
Dactylic
Hexameter or Heroic Verse
* As Ode xi.
* As Ode xi.
Latin - Casserly - Complete System of Latin Prosody
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to JB-C C ? g ? G G
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? 2222 . ? 2213 SiSS! 8SS8 88
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? 88 VERSIFICATION.
OF FEET CALLED ISOCHRONOUS.
1. Feet that are in metre, considered interchangeable
or convertible, have been called Isochronous* For in-
stance, as a long syllable contains two times, while a short
syllable contains but one time, the Spondee consisting of
two long syllables is Isochronous, or of equal-time, with
the Anapaest consisting of two short and one long ; -- with
the Dactyl consisting of one long and two short ; -- or with
the Proceleusmatic consisting of four short syllables : and
vice versa : as in the following scheme : --
The Spondee -
The Anapaest ^ ^
The Dactyl
The Proceleusmatic *-* -
thus the long or double time of the first member or first
half of the Spondee, is equivalent to, or convertible into
the two single times of the Anapaest, while the double
time of the second member or second half, is equivalent
to, or convertible into, the two single times of the Dactyl :
-- and the double time of either member of the Spondee,
answers a similar purpose for either half of the Proceleus-
matic : and so again the times of each of the three, are
resolvable into those of the Spondee. t But of the other
feet, the Iambus is not substituteable for the Trochee ;
nor is the Spondee for the Amphibrach.
* That is, even or equal-timed; from "cog, "equal ; " and xP^og, "time. "
t The young Prosodian must beware of misconception on this subject 5 because,
critically speaking, no feet are Isochronous, unless they are so in their separate
members, as the four above compared: whose first and second members consist
of equal times. Therefore neither a Trochee nor an Amphibrach is Isochronous
with any of the four just mentioned. Of this any one may be convinced by pro-
nouncing the words reclude, resume, repclle, -- three Amphibrachic feet -- and
comparing them with three Dactyls, tludere, sitmere, pellere; the voice requiring
more time for the distinct enunciation of the three former than of the three latter ;
because the voice dwells longer on each of the short syllables when separate, than
when following each other consecutively.
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? METRE. 89
2. The arsis* is naturally assigned to the long syllable
of every foot : in the iambus to the second syllable ; in
the trochee to the first, while on the spondee and tribrach,
the position of the arsis must depend on circumstances :
because as the predominant foot and metre always deter-
mine the position for the subordinate feet, the spondee
when intoduced into iambic or anapaestic verse, has the
arsis on the second syllable, but in trochaic or dactylic
verse on the first : so the tribrach introduced in iambic
verse, has the arsis on the third, and when in trochaic,
on \\\e first.
SECTION VII.
OF METRE.
1. Metre is most commonly used to signify a combi-
nation of verses succeeding each other in regular order :
thus Dactylic metre. Iambic metre, Trochaic metre, are
synonymous with Dactylic, Iambic, Trochaic verse.
2. Metre is also used in a more restricted sense to
signify either a single foot or a combination of feet in
poetry, and in this sense, it is technically called " a
metre. 19
3. The metres employed in Latin poetry, are six :
viz. , -- 1. the Dactylic; 2. the Anapcestic ; 3. the Iambic;
4. the Trochaic ; 5. the Choriambic ; 6. the Ionic :t to
which may be added another, irreducible to any of these
six, under the head of Compound Verses, as the 7th kind.
* See pp. 2, 74, and 81, for an account of the arsis.
t These metres are thus designated from their predominance in some particu-
lar foot; as each species had been originally composed of those feet only, whence
the name was given: but other feet of equal time, were afterwards occasionally
substituted, according as the taste of the poet or the necessity of the verse re-
quired. Metres are not unfrequently denominated after some celebrated poet
who composed in this particular species : as the Alcaic, the Anacreontic, the
Happhic, &c. , &c.
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? 90
METRE.
4. Metres are likewise divided into eight classes, cor-
responding to the number of feet or measures which they
contain ; thus, a verse of eight metres or feet, is called
Octameter ; -- a verse of seven metres is called Heptame-
ter ; -- a verse of six, Hexameter ; -- a verse of five, Penta-
meter ; -- of four, Tetrameter ; -- of three, Trimeter ; -- of
two, Dimeter ; -- of one, Monometer.
5. In Dactylic, Choriambic, and Ionic verse, a metre
consists of one foot only ; but in Anapaestic, Iambic, and
Trochaic verse, a metre contains tivo feet ; -- thus, in the
three former, a Monometer consists of one foot ; -- a Di-
meter, of two feet ; -- a Trimeter, of three ; -- a Tetrameter,
of four : -- a Pentameter, of five ; -- an Hexameter, of six ;
and an Heptameter, of seven feet, while in the three latter,
a Monometer contains two feet ; -- a Dimeter contains four
feet ; -- a Trimeter, six; -- a Tetrameter, eight ; -- a Penta-
meter, ten ; -- an Hexameter, twelve ; -- and an Heptameter,
fourteen*
6. Scanning! is the technical division of a line or verse
into its component feet. It also assigns to each of these
component feet its proper quantity.
Directions for scanning. A vowel, or a diphthong,
or a syllable composed of a vowel and M, is cut off from
the end of a word, when the next word begins with a
vowel. This is called Elision. Thus,
Quidve moror? si omnes uno ordine habetis Achivos. Vir.
Gentis Iuleae, et rapti secreta Quirini. Lucan.
Monstrumhorrendum,informe,ingens,cui lumen ademtum.
Virg.
* Two consecutive feet are sometimes called a dipodia, (SnroSta) or Syzygy,
(fju^vyia): in general, however, two dissyllabic feet are termed a dipodia, while
two trisyllabic feet, or a dissyllabic and trisyllabic together, is called a syzygy.
The combination of two feet is also called a base.
X Or "Scanding" from Scandere, "to climb"; as if mounting, climbing, or
advancing through the poem, step by step. Among the polished nations of anti-
quity, more attention was paid to scanning, as indispensable to the elegant read-
ing or verse, than among the moderns; who do not seem conscious of the poet's
rebuke --
Scandere qui nescis, versiculos laceras.
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? METRE. 91
must be read in scanning
Quidve moror ? s' omnes un' ordin' habetis Achivos.
Gentis Iule\ et rapti secreta Quirini
Monstr' horrend', inform', ingens, cui lumen ademtum.
The elision of a vowel or diphthong is called Synalcepha ;
that of m and the vowel before it, Ecthlipsis. The ear-
lier poets frequently elided s final before a consonant, to
preserve the vowel from becoming long by position ; as,
. . . Sive foras fertur, non est ea^rci' profecto. Lucret.
Sceptra potitus, eadem aliis sopitu 1 quiete est Id.
And when the next word begins with a vowel, the s is
sometimes cut off to expose the vowel before it to Elision ;
as,
Etenim ille quoin? hue jussu venio Jupiter [Iambic Trim. ]
Plautus.
To be sounded " quo' hue" And in Lucretius, III. 1048,
we ought to read
Ossa dedit terrse, proinde ncfamulu' infimus esset.
instead oifamul, as it is commonly printed.
Exc. The interjections o, heu, ah, proh, never suffer
elision.
7. Verses are called Acalalectic* Catalectic,^ Brachy-
catalectic, Hyper catalectic, (or Hyper meter,) and Acepha-
lous. X A line or verse that contains an exact number of
feet without deficiency or excess, is called Acatalectic ;
a line or verse that wants one syllable of a certain regu-
lar number of feet, is called Catalectic, or deficient by one;
a verse wanting two, is called Brachy catalectic, or deficient
* From aicara\iiKTiK6{, (fr. a priv. and KaraMjyw, " I stop, or cease. '')
t From Kara\ tiktik6<, denoting verses that stop short before completion;
wanting one syllable. Hence the derivation of the next two kinds is evident.
X From axtyaXos. (fr. a prixu and Kcdxxfoi, ? ? head") without a head.
9*
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? 92
METRE.
by tioo ; and if a verse have one or two syllables super-
fluous, after the regular number of feet is complete, it is
called Hyper cataleptic or Hypermeter ; i. e. , redundant ;
while a verse that wants a syllable at the beginning, is
called Acephalous or headless.
COMBINATIONS OF VERSE.
( two 'J ( Distrophos* or Distrophon.
A poem written J three I lines I Tristrbphos or Tristrophon.
in stanzas of ] four j is called ] Tetrastrophos or Tetrastroption.
I five J i. Pentastrbplws or Pentastrdpfton.
A nopm ( one kind ) nf -ppi-sp ( MonocoM or Monocolon.
wJS! << >><< S tw0 kinds J ? * ? I? L i < ^icoZo5 or Z? /cd/ow.
written in } ^ kindg J is called ( T/ . . . ^ or jy*^
Hence poetic composition is distinguished and denomi-
nated after two different ways ; viz. -- 1st, according to the
variety [or kinds] of verse used ; -- 2dly, from the number
of verses, of which it consists, previous to the completion
of each strophe ; i. e. , before the poem returns to the same
kind of verse, with which it had commenced.
First, according to the variety [or kinds] of verse used :
-- a poem written in one kind or sort of verse, is called
Monocolos, or Monocolon ;t a poem written in two kinds
or sorts of verse, is called Dicolos, or Dicolon ;? a poem
written in three kinds or sorts of verse, is called Tricolos,
or Tricolon. II
Secondly, according to the number of verses in each
strophe. When the same kind of verse with which a
poem commenced, recurs after the second line, the poem
is denominated Distrophos or Distrophon ;1f when the
same kind of verse recurs after the third line, the poem
* From Sis, "twice or double," and rrrpo^f], "a stanza :"' and so of the rest.
t From nofog, "single," and KcoAoiy"a member;" -- and so of tne others.
t As the Eclogues, Georgics, and ^neis of Virgil, the Satires of Horace, and
Ovid's Metamorphosis, -- all consisting of hexameters.
? As Ovid's Epistles, the Elegies of Tibullus, &c, Sec, composed in hexameters
and pentameters alternately.
II As the Alcaics of Horace.
tf As iii Ode, Lib. i. of Horace.
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? DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE. 93
is denominated Tristrophos or Tristrophon ;* when the
same kind recurs after the fourth line, it is denominated
Tetrastrophos or Tetrastrophon ;t and so of the rest.
Then by a combination of the preceding terms, a poem
written in stanzas, consisting of two verses of different
kinds, is called Dicolon-Distrophon jt when the stanza
consists of three verses, but of two sorts only, (one sort
being twice repeated,) it is called Dicolon-tristrophon ;?
when the stanza consists of four verses, -- still of two sorts
only, (one being thrice repeated,) it is called Dicolon-tetra-
strophon. W When the poem is written in stanzas consist-
ing of three lines, each of a different kind, it is called
Tricolon-tristrophon ;1T when a stanza consists of four
verses, but of three kinds only, (one being repeated,) it is
called Tricolon-tetrastropkon ;** and so of the rest.
SECTION VIII.
DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE.
GENUS I. DACTYLIC VERSES.
1. General Canon. These have their last foot always
a spondee,tt and the last but one always a dactyl, while
the rest may indiscriminately be either dactyles or spon-
dees. The penultimate foot is very seldom a spondee,
but when it is so, a dactyl most generally precedes it.
2. Species 1.
-- Dactylic Hexameter or Heroic Verse
* As Ode xi. lib. Epod. of Horace, and the Preface to the Hymns of Pruden-
tius.
t As Ode ii. lib. i. of Horace.
X As the Elegiacs of Ovid, Catullus, Propertius, Tibullus, and many of Horace'i
Odes.
5 As Ode xii. lib. iii. of Horace.
f| As Ode ii. lib. i. of Horace, already quoted.
IT As Ode xi. and xiii. lib. Epod. of Horace.
** As Ode ix. lib. i. of Horace.
tt Because a dactyl at the end, would become an amphimacer.
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? 94
DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE.
consists of six feet,* varied and limited as above : i. e. ,
five dactyls and one spondee ; admitting a spondee instead
of a dactyl, on any of the first four places, but on the fifth,
rarely : according to the following scale --
l
2
3
45 6
-- ~~
---1 --
Raditi|terltqui|dum,cele-|resneque | commovet| alas. "for.
oil! j respon|d! t rex | Alba|i lon|gai. Ennius.
Ludere | quae vel-|lem cala-|mo per-jmlsit a|gresti. V*rg.
Marglne | terra-|rum por-|rexerat | Amphi-|trite. Ovid,
The fifth foot should never be a spondee, unless for the
purpose of expressing slow or difficult motion, in solemn,
majestic, or mournful descriptions, or in those expressive
of dignity, gravity, astonishment, consternation, vastness
of extent, &c, &c.
3. Species 2. -- Dactylic Tetrameter a priore consists
of the first four feet of the ordinary hexameter varied and
limited as in Art. 1 ; with this difference, that the fourth
or last foot is always a dactyl.
Lumini-|bus que pri-|6r redi-|it vigor. Boethius.
Garrula | per ra-|mos avis | obstrepit. Seneca.
4. Species 3. -- Dactylic Tetrameter a posteriore, has
the last four feet of an hexameter ; as,
* As each of these feet -- whether dactyls or spondees-- contains fonr times,
there are consequently in every line or verse -- prosodially speaking-- twenty-four
times. So also in every other species of verse, must the number of times, in pro-
portion to the number of its feet, be inviolably preserved. Hence appears the
absurdity of attempting to read Latin verse, according to the rules of English
accent and quantity; by which the twenty-four times of an hexameter line are
often extended to twenty-nine times ! ! -- not unfrequently to thirty-one ! ! ! &3* It
may be useful to the young Prosodian to bear in mind, that every regular Hexa-
meter verse or line must contain not fewer than thirteen, and not more than
seventeen, syllables; i. e. , the line or verse may consist of five spondees and on<
dactyl (the penultimate foot), making thirteen syllables ; or of five dactyls an<
one spondee, making seventeen syllables.
IT
i
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? DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE. 95
lbimus|o socI-|I cdmi-|tesque. Hor.
Judice|te non|sor didus|auctor. Idem.
Menso-|rem cohi-|bent Ar-|chyta. Idem.
5. Species 4. -- Tetrameter Catalectic is the last species
with its final syllable cut off; as,
Ibimus|o soci-|I comi-|tes.
Unus e-|nim re-|rum pater|est. Boeth.
6. Species 5. -- Trimeter (Pherecratic) consists of a
spondee, a dactyl, and a spondee without variation ; as,
Cras do-|naberis|h2edo. Hor.
%* By some Prosodians this is scanned as a choriam-
bic. See Art. 34, under that head.
7. Species 6. -- Trimeter Catalectic (Arckilockian)
consists of two dactyls and a syllable ; a spondee being
seldom admitted ; as,
Arb5ri-|busque co-|mai. Hor.
8. Species 7. -- Dimeter (Adonic*) consists of a dactyl
and a spondee without variation ; as,
Terr CiT t|urbem. Hor.
The Adonic is rarely used unless joined to the Tro-
chaic, Pentameter or Sapphic : one Adonic being annexed
to three Sapphics, to form the strophe or stanza. In tragic
choruses, however, it is annexed to any number of Sap-
phics at the will of the poet. t
IRREGULAR DACTYLIC VERSES. t
Of Pentameter.
9. Species 1. -- Pentameter consists of five feet, of
* So called from the metre used in lamenting the fate of Adonis.
t See Seneca, (Edip. act 1 \-Troas, act 4;-- Here. Fur. act 3;-- Thy 'est. act 3,
&c.
X Those verses are called irregular, because they deviate from the general
canon laid down at the beginning of the genus.
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? 96
DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE.
which the first and second are either dactyls or spondees,
the third is always a spondee, and the fourth and fifth are
anapaests, according to the scale --
! 1
2
3
4
5
_w ^
--- ~
~v-
wV-
Lassa-|ret vidu-|as pen-jdiila te-|la manus. Ovid.
Et graci-|lis struc-|tos ef-jfugit um-|bra rogos. Idem.
The Pentameter must always have a caesura Penthe-
mimeris ; and every line ought to conclude with a dis-
syllable ; as a trisyilable is considered inelegant.
Another mode of dividing the Pentameter, and which
is preferred by the best Prosodians, -- is to separate each
line into two Catalectic Trimeters (7), the first admitting
the spondee, the second not : in other words, the first
two feet may be either dactyls or spondees, followed by
a long syllable, then two dactyls followed by another long
syllable : according to the scale --
1
2
3
4
5
6
--^ V
-
~
Lassa-|ret vidu-|as|jpendula|tela ma-|nus.
Et graci-|lls struc-]tos||effugit|umbra ro-|gos.
10. Species 2. -- Alcmanian Tetrameter Hypercatalec-
tic* consists of two divisions, the first being a dactylic
* Carey who has been followed hy Anthon and other distinguished classical
scholars-- calls it Phalacian, on the authority, it is alleged, of Terentianus. But
this writer's meaning appears to hare been misunderstood on this passage. Te-
rentianus in describing that particular form of verse in the above text, remarks,
that it is hendecasyllabic. But as in making this remark, he uses a Phalacian
verse, to which species, the term hendecasyllabic is almost exclusively confined,
he adds, in his prolix manner, that the verse he is describing i* alter--" differ-
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? DIFFERENT KINDS OF Y r ERSE. 97
penthemimeris, i. e. , two feet and a half from the begin-
ning of an Hexameter, and the second a dactyl and spon-
dee ; as,
Heu quam|praeclpi-|ti||mersa pro-|fundo. Boethius.
This might be scanned as a common Pentameter defi-
cient by a semifoot ; as,
Heu quam|praecipi-|ti mer-|,&a profun-|do.
or still again as a Choriambic Catalectic Tetrameter ; as,
Heu quam|prfficipitl|mersa profun|do.
GENUS II. ANAPAESTIC VERSES.
11. General Canon, The Anapaest is everywhere con-
vertible into a dactyl or a spondee, [and sometimes into
a proceleusmatic] with this limitation, that a dactyl is
rarely found in an even place : i. e. , in the second or
fourth ; -- according to the following scale of the Ana-
paestic Dimeter --
1
2
3
4
-- >-? >w*
12. Species 1. -- The Anapcsstic series is not limited to
any definite number of feet, but runs on continue carmine,
till it stops short at a pause in the sense, sometimes in
the middle of a foot. It then begins again, runs on and
stops short as before ; and so on to the end of the poem.
It is sometimes printed in verses of four feet ; as,
Indus |gelidum||potat Ar-|axem,
Albim | Persse, 1 1 Rhenum- 1 que bibunt.
ent/'-- from that he is using;-- "for the latter," says he, "is PhaUzcia/n, which
shall be afterwards described. " In the original his words are--
Fiet hendecasyllabos, sed alter,
Namque hie de genere est Phalaeciorum,
Cujus~mox tibi regulam loquemur.
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? 98 DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE.
Venient|annis||sascu]a|seris ;
Quibus 0|ceanus||vIncula|rerum,
Laxet et|ingens||pateat|tellus
Tiphys-|que novos||detegat|6rbes.
Nee sIt|tems||ultima|Thule. * Seneca,
Sometimes in verses of two feet ; as,
Defle | te virum,
Quo non | alms
Potuit | citius
Discere causas. Seneca.
But divide them as we may in printing, we should
always scan the whole paragraph as one line, the verses
being connected by Synapheia,t and a short syllable at
the end of a line being always lengthened by a consonant
or consonants at the beginning of the next : as the final
syllables of virum,% alius, citius, in the above\ examples.
13. Species 2. -- Anapaestic Tetrameter Catalectic (or,
as called by others, Dimeter Catalectic or Parcemiac)
consists of three anapaests and a syllable ; varied by the
admission of a spondee on the first two places ; as,
Nee vinct-|ta libi-|dine col-|la.
Fcedls | submlt-|tat habe-|nls. Bo'eth.
GENVS III. IAMBIC VERSES.
14. General Canon. Iambic verse is of two kinds,
pure and mixed. The pure admits no foot except the
iambus ; the mixed admits spondees on the odd places --
the first, third, &c, and allows any long syllable to be
* This remarkable prophecy uttered nearly 1500 years before its accomplish-
ment, has been verified to an extraordinary degree, by the discovery of America,
and its colonization from Europe. The poet doubtless drew his inspiration ftom
some of the Sybilline vaticinations extant in his day.
t See Synapheia, p. 78.
t M litera terminatus accusativus, in omni genere semper brevem habet . V&l.
Probus, i. See also Servius de ultimis syTlabis ; and Diomedes, iii.
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to JB-C C ? g ? G G
3<<
*
II*
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? 2222 . ? 2213 SiSS! 8SS8 88
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? 88 VERSIFICATION.
OF FEET CALLED ISOCHRONOUS.
1. Feet that are in metre, considered interchangeable
or convertible, have been called Isochronous* For in-
stance, as a long syllable contains two times, while a short
syllable contains but one time, the Spondee consisting of
two long syllables is Isochronous, or of equal-time, with
the Anapaest consisting of two short and one long ; -- with
the Dactyl consisting of one long and two short ; -- or with
the Proceleusmatic consisting of four short syllables : and
vice versa : as in the following scheme : --
The Spondee -
The Anapaest ^ ^
The Dactyl
The Proceleusmatic *-* -
thus the long or double time of the first member or first
half of the Spondee, is equivalent to, or convertible into
the two single times of the Anapaest, while the double
time of the second member or second half, is equivalent
to, or convertible into, the two single times of the Dactyl :
-- and the double time of either member of the Spondee,
answers a similar purpose for either half of the Proceleus-
matic : and so again the times of each of the three, are
resolvable into those of the Spondee. t But of the other
feet, the Iambus is not substituteable for the Trochee ;
nor is the Spondee for the Amphibrach.
* That is, even or equal-timed; from "cog, "equal ; " and xP^og, "time. "
t The young Prosodian must beware of misconception on this subject 5 because,
critically speaking, no feet are Isochronous, unless they are so in their separate
members, as the four above compared: whose first and second members consist
of equal times. Therefore neither a Trochee nor an Amphibrach is Isochronous
with any of the four just mentioned. Of this any one may be convinced by pro-
nouncing the words reclude, resume, repclle, -- three Amphibrachic feet -- and
comparing them with three Dactyls, tludere, sitmere, pellere; the voice requiring
more time for the distinct enunciation of the three former than of the three latter ;
because the voice dwells longer on each of the short syllables when separate, than
when following each other consecutively.
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? METRE. 89
2. The arsis* is naturally assigned to the long syllable
of every foot : in the iambus to the second syllable ; in
the trochee to the first, while on the spondee and tribrach,
the position of the arsis must depend on circumstances :
because as the predominant foot and metre always deter-
mine the position for the subordinate feet, the spondee
when intoduced into iambic or anapaestic verse, has the
arsis on the second syllable, but in trochaic or dactylic
verse on the first : so the tribrach introduced in iambic
verse, has the arsis on the third, and when in trochaic,
on \\\e first.
SECTION VII.
OF METRE.
1. Metre is most commonly used to signify a combi-
nation of verses succeeding each other in regular order :
thus Dactylic metre. Iambic metre, Trochaic metre, are
synonymous with Dactylic, Iambic, Trochaic verse.
2. Metre is also used in a more restricted sense to
signify either a single foot or a combination of feet in
poetry, and in this sense, it is technically called " a
metre. 19
3. The metres employed in Latin poetry, are six :
viz. , -- 1. the Dactylic; 2. the Anapcestic ; 3. the Iambic;
4. the Trochaic ; 5. the Choriambic ; 6. the Ionic :t to
which may be added another, irreducible to any of these
six, under the head of Compound Verses, as the 7th kind.
* See pp. 2, 74, and 81, for an account of the arsis.
t These metres are thus designated from their predominance in some particu-
lar foot; as each species had been originally composed of those feet only, whence
the name was given: but other feet of equal time, were afterwards occasionally
substituted, according as the taste of the poet or the necessity of the verse re-
quired. Metres are not unfrequently denominated after some celebrated poet
who composed in this particular species : as the Alcaic, the Anacreontic, the
Happhic, &c. , &c.
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? 90
METRE.
4. Metres are likewise divided into eight classes, cor-
responding to the number of feet or measures which they
contain ; thus, a verse of eight metres or feet, is called
Octameter ; -- a verse of seven metres is called Heptame-
ter ; -- a verse of six, Hexameter ; -- a verse of five, Penta-
meter ; -- of four, Tetrameter ; -- of three, Trimeter ; -- of
two, Dimeter ; -- of one, Monometer.
5. In Dactylic, Choriambic, and Ionic verse, a metre
consists of one foot only ; but in Anapaestic, Iambic, and
Trochaic verse, a metre contains tivo feet ; -- thus, in the
three former, a Monometer consists of one foot ; -- a Di-
meter, of two feet ; -- a Trimeter, of three ; -- a Tetrameter,
of four : -- a Pentameter, of five ; -- an Hexameter, of six ;
and an Heptameter, of seven feet, while in the three latter,
a Monometer contains two feet ; -- a Dimeter contains four
feet ; -- a Trimeter, six; -- a Tetrameter, eight ; -- a Penta-
meter, ten ; -- an Hexameter, twelve ; -- and an Heptameter,
fourteen*
6. Scanning! is the technical division of a line or verse
into its component feet. It also assigns to each of these
component feet its proper quantity.
Directions for scanning. A vowel, or a diphthong,
or a syllable composed of a vowel and M, is cut off from
the end of a word, when the next word begins with a
vowel. This is called Elision. Thus,
Quidve moror? si omnes uno ordine habetis Achivos. Vir.
Gentis Iuleae, et rapti secreta Quirini. Lucan.
Monstrumhorrendum,informe,ingens,cui lumen ademtum.
Virg.
* Two consecutive feet are sometimes called a dipodia, (SnroSta) or Syzygy,
(fju^vyia): in general, however, two dissyllabic feet are termed a dipodia, while
two trisyllabic feet, or a dissyllabic and trisyllabic together, is called a syzygy.
The combination of two feet is also called a base.
X Or "Scanding" from Scandere, "to climb"; as if mounting, climbing, or
advancing through the poem, step by step. Among the polished nations of anti-
quity, more attention was paid to scanning, as indispensable to the elegant read-
ing or verse, than among the moderns; who do not seem conscious of the poet's
rebuke --
Scandere qui nescis, versiculos laceras.
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? METRE. 91
must be read in scanning
Quidve moror ? s' omnes un' ordin' habetis Achivos.
Gentis Iule\ et rapti secreta Quirini
Monstr' horrend', inform', ingens, cui lumen ademtum.
The elision of a vowel or diphthong is called Synalcepha ;
that of m and the vowel before it, Ecthlipsis. The ear-
lier poets frequently elided s final before a consonant, to
preserve the vowel from becoming long by position ; as,
. . . Sive foras fertur, non est ea^rci' profecto. Lucret.
Sceptra potitus, eadem aliis sopitu 1 quiete est Id.
And when the next word begins with a vowel, the s is
sometimes cut off to expose the vowel before it to Elision ;
as,
Etenim ille quoin? hue jussu venio Jupiter [Iambic Trim. ]
Plautus.
To be sounded " quo' hue" And in Lucretius, III. 1048,
we ought to read
Ossa dedit terrse, proinde ncfamulu' infimus esset.
instead oifamul, as it is commonly printed.
Exc. The interjections o, heu, ah, proh, never suffer
elision.
7. Verses are called Acalalectic* Catalectic,^ Brachy-
catalectic, Hyper catalectic, (or Hyper meter,) and Acepha-
lous. X A line or verse that contains an exact number of
feet without deficiency or excess, is called Acatalectic ;
a line or verse that wants one syllable of a certain regu-
lar number of feet, is called Catalectic, or deficient by one;
a verse wanting two, is called Brachy catalectic, or deficient
* From aicara\iiKTiK6{, (fr. a priv. and KaraMjyw, " I stop, or cease. '')
t From Kara\ tiktik6<, denoting verses that stop short before completion;
wanting one syllable. Hence the derivation of the next two kinds is evident.
X From axtyaXos. (fr. a prixu and Kcdxxfoi, ? ? head") without a head.
9*
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? 92
METRE.
by tioo ; and if a verse have one or two syllables super-
fluous, after the regular number of feet is complete, it is
called Hyper cataleptic or Hypermeter ; i. e. , redundant ;
while a verse that wants a syllable at the beginning, is
called Acephalous or headless.
COMBINATIONS OF VERSE.
( two 'J ( Distrophos* or Distrophon.
A poem written J three I lines I Tristrbphos or Tristrophon.
in stanzas of ] four j is called ] Tetrastrophos or Tetrastroption.
I five J i. Pentastrbplws or Pentastrdpfton.
A nopm ( one kind ) nf -ppi-sp ( MonocoM or Monocolon.
wJS! << >><< S tw0 kinds J ? * ? I? L i < ^icoZo5 or Z? /cd/ow.
written in } ^ kindg J is called ( T/ . . . ^ or jy*^
Hence poetic composition is distinguished and denomi-
nated after two different ways ; viz. -- 1st, according to the
variety [or kinds] of verse used ; -- 2dly, from the number
of verses, of which it consists, previous to the completion
of each strophe ; i. e. , before the poem returns to the same
kind of verse, with which it had commenced.
First, according to the variety [or kinds] of verse used :
-- a poem written in one kind or sort of verse, is called
Monocolos, or Monocolon ;t a poem written in two kinds
or sorts of verse, is called Dicolos, or Dicolon ;? a poem
written in three kinds or sorts of verse, is called Tricolos,
or Tricolon. II
Secondly, according to the number of verses in each
strophe. When the same kind of verse with which a
poem commenced, recurs after the second line, the poem
is denominated Distrophos or Distrophon ;1f when the
same kind of verse recurs after the third line, the poem
* From Sis, "twice or double," and rrrpo^f], "a stanza :"' and so of the rest.
t From nofog, "single," and KcoAoiy"a member;" -- and so of tne others.
t As the Eclogues, Georgics, and ^neis of Virgil, the Satires of Horace, and
Ovid's Metamorphosis, -- all consisting of hexameters.
? As Ovid's Epistles, the Elegies of Tibullus, &c, Sec, composed in hexameters
and pentameters alternately.
II As the Alcaics of Horace.
tf As iii Ode, Lib. i. of Horace.
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? DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE. 93
is denominated Tristrophos or Tristrophon ;* when the
same kind recurs after the fourth line, it is denominated
Tetrastrophos or Tetrastrophon ;t and so of the rest.
Then by a combination of the preceding terms, a poem
written in stanzas, consisting of two verses of different
kinds, is called Dicolon-Distrophon jt when the stanza
consists of three verses, but of two sorts only, (one sort
being twice repeated,) it is called Dicolon-tristrophon ;?
when the stanza consists of four verses, -- still of two sorts
only, (one being thrice repeated,) it is called Dicolon-tetra-
strophon. W When the poem is written in stanzas consist-
ing of three lines, each of a different kind, it is called
Tricolon-tristrophon ;1T when a stanza consists of four
verses, but of three kinds only, (one being repeated,) it is
called Tricolon-tetrastropkon ;** and so of the rest.
SECTION VIII.
DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE.
GENUS I. DACTYLIC VERSES.
1. General Canon. These have their last foot always
a spondee,tt and the last but one always a dactyl, while
the rest may indiscriminately be either dactyles or spon-
dees. The penultimate foot is very seldom a spondee,
but when it is so, a dactyl most generally precedes it.
2. Species 1.
-- Dactylic Hexameter or Heroic Verse
* As Ode xi. lib. Epod. of Horace, and the Preface to the Hymns of Pruden-
tius.
t As Ode ii. lib. i. of Horace.
X As the Elegiacs of Ovid, Catullus, Propertius, Tibullus, and many of Horace'i
Odes.
5 As Ode xii. lib. iii. of Horace.
f| As Ode ii. lib. i. of Horace, already quoted.
IT As Ode xi. and xiii. lib. Epod. of Horace.
** As Ode ix. lib. i. of Horace.
tt Because a dactyl at the end, would become an amphimacer.
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? 94
DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE.
consists of six feet,* varied and limited as above : i. e. ,
five dactyls and one spondee ; admitting a spondee instead
of a dactyl, on any of the first four places, but on the fifth,
rarely : according to the following scale --
l
2
3
45 6
-- ~~
---1 --
Raditi|terltqui|dum,cele-|resneque | commovet| alas. "for.
oil! j respon|d! t rex | Alba|i lon|gai. Ennius.
Ludere | quae vel-|lem cala-|mo per-jmlsit a|gresti. V*rg.
Marglne | terra-|rum por-|rexerat | Amphi-|trite. Ovid,
The fifth foot should never be a spondee, unless for the
purpose of expressing slow or difficult motion, in solemn,
majestic, or mournful descriptions, or in those expressive
of dignity, gravity, astonishment, consternation, vastness
of extent, &c, &c.
3. Species 2. -- Dactylic Tetrameter a priore consists
of the first four feet of the ordinary hexameter varied and
limited as in Art. 1 ; with this difference, that the fourth
or last foot is always a dactyl.
Lumini-|bus que pri-|6r redi-|it vigor. Boethius.
Garrula | per ra-|mos avis | obstrepit. Seneca.
4. Species 3. -- Dactylic Tetrameter a posteriore, has
the last four feet of an hexameter ; as,
* As each of these feet -- whether dactyls or spondees-- contains fonr times,
there are consequently in every line or verse -- prosodially speaking-- twenty-four
times. So also in every other species of verse, must the number of times, in pro-
portion to the number of its feet, be inviolably preserved. Hence appears the
absurdity of attempting to read Latin verse, according to the rules of English
accent and quantity; by which the twenty-four times of an hexameter line are
often extended to twenty-nine times ! ! -- not unfrequently to thirty-one ! ! ! &3* It
may be useful to the young Prosodian to bear in mind, that every regular Hexa-
meter verse or line must contain not fewer than thirteen, and not more than
seventeen, syllables; i. e. , the line or verse may consist of five spondees and on<
dactyl (the penultimate foot), making thirteen syllables ; or of five dactyls an<
one spondee, making seventeen syllables.
IT
i
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? DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE. 95
lbimus|o socI-|I cdmi-|tesque. Hor.
Judice|te non|sor didus|auctor. Idem.
Menso-|rem cohi-|bent Ar-|chyta. Idem.
5. Species 4. -- Tetrameter Catalectic is the last species
with its final syllable cut off; as,
Ibimus|o soci-|I comi-|tes.
Unus e-|nim re-|rum pater|est. Boeth.
6. Species 5. -- Trimeter (Pherecratic) consists of a
spondee, a dactyl, and a spondee without variation ; as,
Cras do-|naberis|h2edo. Hor.
%* By some Prosodians this is scanned as a choriam-
bic. See Art. 34, under that head.
7. Species 6. -- Trimeter Catalectic (Arckilockian)
consists of two dactyls and a syllable ; a spondee being
seldom admitted ; as,
Arb5ri-|busque co-|mai. Hor.
8. Species 7. -- Dimeter (Adonic*) consists of a dactyl
and a spondee without variation ; as,
Terr CiT t|urbem. Hor.
The Adonic is rarely used unless joined to the Tro-
chaic, Pentameter or Sapphic : one Adonic being annexed
to three Sapphics, to form the strophe or stanza. In tragic
choruses, however, it is annexed to any number of Sap-
phics at the will of the poet. t
IRREGULAR DACTYLIC VERSES. t
Of Pentameter.
9. Species 1. -- Pentameter consists of five feet, of
* So called from the metre used in lamenting the fate of Adonis.
t See Seneca, (Edip. act 1 \-Troas, act 4;-- Here. Fur. act 3;-- Thy 'est. act 3,
&c.
X Those verses are called irregular, because they deviate from the general
canon laid down at the beginning of the genus.
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? 96
DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE.
which the first and second are either dactyls or spondees,
the third is always a spondee, and the fourth and fifth are
anapaests, according to the scale --
! 1
2
3
4
5
_w ^
--- ~
~v-
wV-
Lassa-|ret vidu-|as pen-jdiila te-|la manus. Ovid.
Et graci-|lis struc-|tos ef-jfugit um-|bra rogos. Idem.
The Pentameter must always have a caesura Penthe-
mimeris ; and every line ought to conclude with a dis-
syllable ; as a trisyilable is considered inelegant.
Another mode of dividing the Pentameter, and which
is preferred by the best Prosodians, -- is to separate each
line into two Catalectic Trimeters (7), the first admitting
the spondee, the second not : in other words, the first
two feet may be either dactyls or spondees, followed by
a long syllable, then two dactyls followed by another long
syllable : according to the scale --
1
2
3
4
5
6
--^ V
-
~
Lassa-|ret vidu-|as|jpendula|tela ma-|nus.
Et graci-|lls struc-]tos||effugit|umbra ro-|gos.
10. Species 2. -- Alcmanian Tetrameter Hypercatalec-
tic* consists of two divisions, the first being a dactylic
* Carey who has been followed hy Anthon and other distinguished classical
scholars-- calls it Phalacian, on the authority, it is alleged, of Terentianus. But
this writer's meaning appears to hare been misunderstood on this passage. Te-
rentianus in describing that particular form of verse in the above text, remarks,
that it is hendecasyllabic. But as in making this remark, he uses a Phalacian
verse, to which species, the term hendecasyllabic is almost exclusively confined,
he adds, in his prolix manner, that the verse he is describing i* alter--" differ-
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? DIFFERENT KINDS OF Y r ERSE. 97
penthemimeris, i. e. , two feet and a half from the begin-
ning of an Hexameter, and the second a dactyl and spon-
dee ; as,
Heu quam|praeclpi-|ti||mersa pro-|fundo. Boethius.
This might be scanned as a common Pentameter defi-
cient by a semifoot ; as,
Heu quam|praecipi-|ti mer-|,&a profun-|do.
or still again as a Choriambic Catalectic Tetrameter ; as,
Heu quam|prfficipitl|mersa profun|do.
GENUS II. ANAPAESTIC VERSES.
11. General Canon, The Anapaest is everywhere con-
vertible into a dactyl or a spondee, [and sometimes into
a proceleusmatic] with this limitation, that a dactyl is
rarely found in an even place : i. e. , in the second or
fourth ; -- according to the following scale of the Ana-
paestic Dimeter --
1
2
3
4
-- >-? >w*
12. Species 1. -- The Anapcsstic series is not limited to
any definite number of feet, but runs on continue carmine,
till it stops short at a pause in the sense, sometimes in
the middle of a foot. It then begins again, runs on and
stops short as before ; and so on to the end of the poem.
It is sometimes printed in verses of four feet ; as,
Indus |gelidum||potat Ar-|axem,
Albim | Persse, 1 1 Rhenum- 1 que bibunt.
ent/'-- from that he is using;-- "for the latter," says he, "is PhaUzcia/n, which
shall be afterwards described. " In the original his words are--
Fiet hendecasyllabos, sed alter,
Namque hie de genere est Phalaeciorum,
Cujus~mox tibi regulam loquemur.
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? 98 DIFFERENT KINDS OF VERSE.
Venient|annis||sascu]a|seris ;
Quibus 0|ceanus||vIncula|rerum,
Laxet et|ingens||pateat|tellus
Tiphys-|que novos||detegat|6rbes.
Nee sIt|tems||ultima|Thule. * Seneca,
Sometimes in verses of two feet ; as,
Defle | te virum,
Quo non | alms
Potuit | citius
Discere causas. Seneca.
But divide them as we may in printing, we should
always scan the whole paragraph as one line, the verses
being connected by Synapheia,t and a short syllable at
the end of a line being always lengthened by a consonant
or consonants at the beginning of the next : as the final
syllables of virum,% alius, citius, in the above\ examples.
13. Species 2. -- Anapaestic Tetrameter Catalectic (or,
as called by others, Dimeter Catalectic or Parcemiac)
consists of three anapaests and a syllable ; varied by the
admission of a spondee on the first two places ; as,
Nee vinct-|ta libi-|dine col-|la.
Fcedls | submlt-|tat habe-|nls. Bo'eth.
GENVS III. IAMBIC VERSES.
14. General Canon. Iambic verse is of two kinds,
pure and mixed. The pure admits no foot except the
iambus ; the mixed admits spondees on the odd places --
the first, third, &c, and allows any long syllable to be
* This remarkable prophecy uttered nearly 1500 years before its accomplish-
ment, has been verified to an extraordinary degree, by the discovery of America,
and its colonization from Europe. The poet doubtless drew his inspiration ftom
some of the Sybilline vaticinations extant in his day.
t See Synapheia, p. 78.
t M litera terminatus accusativus, in omni genere semper brevem habet . V&l.
Probus, i. See also Servius de ultimis syTlabis ; and Diomedes, iii.
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