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Agitated pentameter

Meter
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 five-foot line characterized by irregular stress creating emotional intensity

Detailed Definition
Agitated pentameter is a five-foot metrical line characterized by rhythmic irregularity, tension, or disruption that creates a sense of emotional or psychological unease. Unlike regular pentameter's steady flow, this variation employs strategic substitutions, pauses, or stress patterns that mirror anxiety, conflict, or turbulence in the poem's subject matter or tone.
Example
Example in poetry:
"My heart | aches, and | a drow|sy numb|ness pains" from Keats's "Ode to a Nightingale" uses irregular stresses to convey emotional disturbance; Gerard Manley Hopkins's sprung rhythm often creates agitated pentameter through unexpected stress placement; Browning's dramatic monologues frequently employ restless five-beat lines to mirror psychological turmoil; Shakespeare's later plays use broken pentameter to express character anxiety
Additional Notes
Often found in dramatic monologues where emotional intensity disrupts regular iambic pentameter. The agitation comes from unexpected stresses, spondees, or pyrrhic feet that break the expected pattern. Common in confessional poetry and moments of high drama in verse plays.
Also Known As
Restless pentameter Turbulent iambics Uneasy meter Fractured pentameter Dochmiac pentameter
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