"What is a Stanza?": A Literary Guide for English Students and Teachers

What is the definition of stanza? How do stanzas organize poems? Poet-in-Residence David Biespiel answers these questions and provides examples of three common types of stanzas--couplet, tercet, and quatrain--using examples from poems by Rita Dove, Basho, Dante, Thom Gunn, and Seamus Heaney. The short video is designed not only to help high school and college English students to properly identify these common stanzas but also to analyze their purposes in literary analysis. The video is sponsored by the School of Writing, Literature, and Film at Oregon State University. For more discussions of literary topics and essay writing tips, please subscribe to the free SWLF YouTube Channel or visit https://liberalarts.oregonstate.edu/w...

This video is now available with Spanish as well as English subtitles.

In the comments section below, please feel free to add your favorite examples of stanzas! Liking, sharing, and commenting on these videos will help us to build a rich digital learning environment around these topics.

Timestamps
0:00 Introduction to Stanzas
1:52 Couplet Definition and Example
2:25 Tercet or Triplet Examples
3:10 Quatrain Examples
4:18 Using Stanzas to Create Meaning

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