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Prose Poetry

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 poetic composition in prose paragraphs that retains lyrical intensity, imagistic density, and rhythmic cadence without lineation.

Detailed Definition
A hybrid literary form that exhibits lyrical qualities of poetry while maintaining the appearance and some characteristics of prose, without traditional line breaks
Example
Example in poetry:
Baudelaire’s “Paris Spleen” pioneered prose poetry with urban vignettes; Charles Simic’s “The Voice at 3:00 A.M.” uses surreal, compact prose poems; Prose poetry in Claudia Rankine’s “Citizen” blends essay, lyric, and visual art; Contemporary: Ocean Vuong’s prose poems merge memoir and myth in “Time Is a Mother”
Additional Notes
Prose with heightened poetic elements: imagery, rhythm, compression. Lacks line breaks but maintains lyrical intensity. Baudelaire pioneered the form. Study prose rhythm and internal music.
Also Known As
paragraph poem prose verse Prose poem Poème en Prose
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