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corporeal verse

Concept
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

Poetry that emphasizes the physical body, bodily experience, or sensory presence

Detailed Definition
Corporeal verse emphasizes the physical body—its sensations, movements, vulnerabilities, and desires—as the primary site of poetic experience; it often employs visceral imagery, tactile diction, and rhythmic mimicry of breath or pulse to ground abstract ideas in flesh, as in the work of Lucie Brock-Broido or Ocean Vuong.
Example
Example in poetry:
A poem describing the ache of arthritis: “My knuckles knot like old tree roots”; Lucille Clifton’s “homage to my hips,” celebrating bodily autonomy and strength; A verse detailing childbirth: “Her body split like ripe fruit, / offering life in blood and breath”; A poem where sweat, breath, and heartbeat form the rhythm of the lines.
Additional Notes
Corporeal verse centers the physical body—its sensations, functions, and vulnerabilities; it counters abstract idealism—draw from lived experience to ground emotional truth.
Also Known As
Bodily poetry Flesh lyric Somatic verse Visceral utterance bodily verse Embodied poetry Physical verse Somatic lyric
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