How to understand open and closed form in poetry

Did you know?

William Shakespeare is the bestselling poet of all time.

The word 'poetry' is from the Greek term poiesis, which means 'making'.

The oldest written poem is the Epic of Gilgamesh originating from Babylon.

Form is the physical structure or pattern of a poem. The main forms of poetry are open form and closed form. In closed form poetry, the poet follows a set pattern; and in open form poetry, the poet doesn’t follow any rules but their own.

Line length, rhythm patterns and rhyme structures all contribute to poetic form.

The form, the physical structure of a poem, refers collectively to line lengths, rhythms and patterns of rhyme. It includes both how the poem looks on the page and how it sounds when read out loud. There are some forms of poetry which follow specific rules and others which can be freer.

Poems can be ordered by breaking them into groups of lines called stanzas. Stanzas in a poem separate ideas, shape the poem and guide the reader through the poem.

The main forms of poetry are open and closed.

Open form is very free – it doesn’t have to follow traditional or specific patterns. This style of poetry may not follow any rules at all or it might use small elements of traditional forms of poetry. When looking at an open form poem consider some of the structural ideas, such as rhyme and the rhythm, and think about how these have been created and why.

Closed form is much more structured, and governed by specific rules, or patterns. In closed form specific poetic structures may repeat throughout the poem, perhaps to create rhythmic effects. Closed-form poetry is what we usually think of as traditional poetry – but modern poets also enjoy the unique challenges of using these forms.

John Agard’s Checking Out Me History is an example of an open form poem but one that still has a shape and structure. It is divided into stanzas and includes some rhyme and rhythm but not in a regular pattern. If we look at the opening stanza we can see this.

Dem tell me
Dem tell me
Wha dem want to tell me

Bandage up me eye with me own history
Blind me to me own identity

Dem tell me bout 1066 and all dat
dem tell me bout Dick Whittington and he cat
But Toussaint L’Ouverture
no dem never tell me bout dat

The irregular pattern makes it seem more conversational, like the poet is talking to you. This is also shown by his spelling of words – you can hear a Caribbean accent.

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