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tactile poetry

Genre
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 or evokes the sense of touch through language and imagery

Detailed Definition
Tactile poetry is verse that prioritizes the sense of touch, using descriptive language to convey textures, weights, temperatures, and physical interactions; by engaging the reader’s somatic imagination, it creates immersive experiences where meaning is felt as much as understood, bridging the gap between body and text.
Example
Example in poetry:
Charles Bernstein’s “Asylum” uses fragmented lines to simulate rough texture; H.D.’s “Oread” evokes sea spray and pine needles through tactile diction; Lucille Clifton’s “homage to my hips” celebrates bodily texture; Ocean Vuong’s “Someday I’ll Love Ocean Vuong” uses skin, ash, and water for tactile intimacy
Additional Notes
Tactile poetry foregrounds the sense of touch through diction and imagery (“gritty,” “velvet,” “prickling”), engaging readers somatically and expanding beyond visual or auditory dominance.
Also Known As
Haptic verse sensory poetry touch-evoking lyric somatic composition
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