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Address poem

Form
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A lyric directly speaking to a person, object, or abstract concept

Detailed Definition
An address poem directly speaks to a specific entity—such as a person, deity, abstract concept, or inanimate object—often using the second person (“you”); this form creates intimacy and immediacy, as in John Donne’s “Holy Sonnets” or Shelley’s “Ode to the West Wind.”
Example
Example in poetry:
“Ode to the West Wind” addresses the wind as if present; “To Autumn” addresses the season directly; “To a Mouse” by Robert Burns addresses the mouse; “O Captain! My Captain!” addresses the deceased captain
Additional Notes
Address poem: A poem written directly to a specific person, object, or abstract idea, often using the second-person ('you'); a common subgenre is the ode or epistle.
Also Known As
Direct address poem Apostrophic poem Invocation verse Dedicatory poem Dedication verse
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