Rhyme ‘n’ reason
Blank verse is a literary device defined as un-rhyming verse written in iambic pentameter. In poetry and prose, it has a consistent meter with 10 syllables in each line (pentameter); where, unstressed syllables are followed by stressed ones and five of which are stressed but do not rhyme. It is also known as un-rhymed iambic pentameter.
The following verse from Hamlet by William Shakespeare is a perfect example of a typical blank verse. It is written in iambic pentameter.
But, woe is me, you are so sick of late,
So far from cheer and from your former state,
That I distrust you. Yet, though I distrust,
Discomfort you, my lord, it nothing mus
Silent love
By Zunaira Afzal
Those tracks
Where memories lay...
And eyes
Where tears stay
Intend not to look around
But the eyes see
The mist of years…
That wouldn’t shed
In years…
The rolling wheel
Of days and nights
can never fill the spaces
Between you and me
And the memories
Lying on the pathways
Crushing beneath our feet
Would never grumble...
Savage endeavour
By Suhd Nazeer
I wore many faces just to get you.
This one is new; a little sad and wild
Passionate as my nature is
This disguise will last I don’t know
For how many days or months or maybe years
It will take. To tell you the truth I feel myself in it
Morose, threatening, inflammable, volatile.
These transformations have changed
Every part save from the fleshy drum
Which still rejoices, darts back and forth
With a might that scares me
Whenever you show up and indulge in chatter.
It will burst away eventually, will suffer inflammation
The holiness of it will scatter round
It will illuminate the area where you are fenced in.
Is there anything more romantic or tender than that!
Where in the world?
By Joanne Jervis
Meet the people, see the smiles
Roam the counties, walk for miles
Conquer mountains, see the coasts
Try the famous Sunday roasts,
Drink the whiskey, drink the beer
Marvel at the cultures here
Visit Scotland, see the Glens
Through your eyes or through a lens,
Watch the sunsets on the west
That is Ireland at its best
Channel Islands, Isle of Wight
Shetlands for the Northern Lights,
Fish the rivers, walk the dales
Seeped in history, hear the tales
Palaces and castles stand
Waterways snake through the land,
Know the heritage and laws
Learn of battles, read of wars
Rulers, monarchs of the ages
Archived in the history pages,
Come and ride the railway
Through Snowdonia today
As the light fades, day is done
Go to Stonehenge, watch the sun
John O’ Groats down to Lands End
Wales to Ireland, families, friends
Meet the people, see the smiles
Come explore The British Isles.
Empty
By Zahra Akbar
My questions are spellbound in this archway,
standing still, listening to rustles of passing
infinities
and revelations without sounds
no whispers or screams - only astonishment.
What is this place?
here curses and blessings don’t matter
It is the temple of wisdom’s reclusion,
here souls come to embrace the shift
It is... emptiness.
