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Tetrameter lament

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 mournful poem written in lines of four metrical feet, typically iambic tetrameter

Detailed Definition
A tetrameter lament uses four-beat lines to convey sorrow with folk-like simplicity and rhythmic regularity; accessible yet poignant, it often appears in ballads and communal mourning songs, its steady beat offering both comfort and inevitability, akin to a walking pace or heartbeat during vigil.
Example
Example in poetry:
Tetrameter lament uses four-beat lines for sorrow, as in Emily Dickinson’s “After great pain”: “The Nerves sit ceremonious, like Tombs”; In “Dirge Without Music,” Millay uses tetrameter: “I am not resigned to the shutting away”; Another: “The clock ticks slow in empty rooms— / no footfall, no familiar tune”
Additional Notes
Tetrameter lament uses four-beat lines to convey sorrow with folk-like simplicity and rhythmic regularity; accessible yet poignant, often found in ballad traditions and communal mourning songs.
Also Known As
Four-beat elegy Quadruple threnody Iambic tetrameter dirge Elegiac four-measure Lament four-foot line
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