[Bill Carpenter]

I like the 4-point scale too, which provides more accurate descriptions than the binary scale. On the other hand, the 4-point scale has not displaced the traditional vocabulary for different kinds of feet, suggesting that the traditional vocabulary is convenient for discussions like this one.

I guess I find myself in disagreement with Tim Steele's declining to use the term spondee for a heavily stressed foot just because there is still some differential of stress between the two syllables. (I believe that is stated in All the Fun's In How You Say a Thing, a wonderful book recommended to me by Duncan on the Sphere.) "Satst" in "Dove-like satst brooding on the vast Abyss" is heavily stressed, both semantically and because of its length or quantity. (In my opinion quantity translates into stress for scanning purposes, our version of E = mc squared, though I admit I have barely stuck my toe in the ocean of metrical science.) Arguably, "satst brood-" is a 4-4 foot, but even if we give it 3-4, in choosing between calling it an iamb or a spondee I would still call it a spondee to be more consistent with the meaning and art of the line. Calling it a spondee better captures the relationship of the foot to the metrical type in the background (1-4/1-4/1-4/1-4/1-4). "Satst brood-" is a departure from type both semantically and by quantity, and calling it a spondee rather than an iamb acknowledges that departure, while calling it an iamb minimizes it. Although one could regard both spondee and iamb as unsuitable terms in the circumstances, calling it a spondee helps the reader appreciate the art of the line. The whole line of course could be scanned as 4-2-3-4-1-1-1-4-1-4 (for example) without any regard for the traditional vocabulary.

Michael Lewis's Moneyball tells the story of how Oakland A's manager Billy Beane came to disbelieve in the traditional statistics used to measure player performance and sought more relevant, predictive statistics. That enabled him to buy undervalued players and enabled the A's to perform at a higher level than their low salary budget would normally have allowed. Is there a more accurate system of scansion available that expresses, for example, the relationship of quantity to stress, the place of the syllable in larger units than the line, or as Clive emphasized, the relationship of grammar to meter, which brings us to cesuras? If anyone has found a persuasive one I would love to hear about it. Bill