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Building meter

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 progressive metrical structure where rhythmic intensity increases across the line or stanza

Detailed Definition
Building meter describes a rhythmic pattern that accumulates intensity, complexity, or emotional weight as the poem progresses, often through increasing line length, syntactic density, or sonic layering; this technique creates a sense of architectural or emotional crescendo, as in Whitman’s catalogues or the mounting urgency of prophetic poetry.
Example
Example in poetry:
In “The Faerie Queene,” Spenser uses building meter to escalate heroic tone; Alexander Pope’s heroic couplets employ building meter for satirical crescendo; Longfellow’s “Evangeline” uses dactylic hexameter as building meter for epic sweep; Contemporary poet Annie Finch uses building meter in ritualistic verse; Derek Walcott’s “Omeros” adapts Homeric building meter to Caribbean context.
Additional Notes
The process or technique of establishing and maintaining a consistent metrical pattern throughout a poem; The poet uses various substitutions and variations without allowing the underlying meter to be lost; Requires technical skill.
Also Known As
metrical construction rhythm-building metrical assembly structure of meter Additive meter
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