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Unread 07-04-2001, 10:29 PM
Solan Solan is offline
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Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Grimstad, home of Ibsen and Hamsun
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I sat with a phrase today that I couldn't resolve to myself:

"[...] Mildred is a cat [...]"

In Steele's 1-2-3-4 stress notation, my ears get

MIL - dred - is - a - cat

to be one of these

4 - 2 - 2 - 2 - 3
4 - 2 - 2 - 1 - 3

How would you resolve this into a meter?

If I am mistaken about Mildred, how would you in general resolve a 4-2-2-2-3 phrase into meter?

Timothy: If you read this, know that I am that Norwegian guy on the board who is trying to figure out English meter.

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Svein Olav
http://nonserviam.com/solan/
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  #2  
Unread 07-05-2001, 03:41 PM
Timothy Steele Timothy Steele is offline
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Your question is a good one. I, however, hear as slightly heavier the middle syllable ('is') of the three light syllables. This is partly because the word is a verb (albeit a weak one) and partly because it is flanked by such light syllables that we tend to 'promote' it a little in pronunciation. (I discuss this latter matter in the into to All the Fun's)

In terms of integrating such a phrase in an iambic line, we'd probably want to set its five syllables from a stressed position to a stressed position, as in this made up ballad stanza:

I don't think Mildred dresses well:
She never wears a hat.
Nor is this all that terrible,
For Mildred is a cat.

Best wishes,

Timothy Steele
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  #3  
Unread 07-06-2001, 12:52 PM
Solan Solan is offline
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Location: Grimstad, home of Ibsen and Hamsun
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Thank you, Timothy.

I received your book from Amazon yesterday. I look forward to reading it.

I have had your book on order from Amazon for a few weeks, and they finally have it in stock to ship. But I will probably not receive it until after you have stepped down as Poet Lariat here. So I hope you'll bear with me when I ask questions already answered in your book, and just point to the book.

Two questions that I seek to resolve to myself are what meters are permissible, and how this may differ from one language to the next. I will probably ask those questions here a bit later, after I have done the first part of the digesting what I've learnt at Eratosphere this week.


Regards,
Svein Olav

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Svein Olav http://nonserviam.com/solan/

[This message has been edited by Solan (edited July 10, 2001).]
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