Poetry and prose are written literary works that have their own characteristics. Many people think that the two are the same. In fact, there are differences in the characteristics of poetry and prose. You need to understand the basic differences between poetry and prose texts so that you can understand their use.
In fact, the characteristics of poetry and prose can be distinguished simply by reading these two types of written works. However, there are still many people who do not understand it. Therefore, we provide here an explanation of these two types of literary works.
Understanding poetry and prose
Prose and poetry are often associated with each other. In fact, they both have different characteristics. For this reason, it is important to understand these two types of literary works based on their definitions. Below is a complete explanation of the meaning of poetry and prose.
1. Definition of poetry
Based on the explanation in the Great Indonesian Dictionary (KBBI), poetry is a literary work whose language is closely related to lines, rhymes and stanzas. Understanding the rules of poetry is more difficult than understanding other types of literary works.
This is because words in poetry have many verbal forms or verbal images. The purpose of using metaphorical words is to show the elements of beauty in poetry. Therefore, you cannot read a poem just once.
It requires reading it several times to understand the meaning of the poem. At the same time, James Reeves explained that poetry is an expression of language that has such an extraordinary appeal that it attracts the attention of many people.
2. Definition of prose
Prose is a literary work written in the form of a story. Prose contains several elements such as theme, plot, and character. Unlike poetry, prose is free-writing. Therefore, there are no rules for writing prose.
Prose language is also easier to understand because it does not contain many figures of speech or figures of speech. The prose uses clear language that is often used in everyday Indonesian language contexts. Thus, the reader can understand the meaning of the prose with just one reading.
According to Hermann Wallio, prose is an imaginative literary work that has many forms. Examples include novels, romances, and short stories. Prose is a story about a particular character that shows the background, stages of the story, and a series of events.
Characteristics of poetry and prose
Having understood the meaning of prose and poetry, we will now talk about the characteristics of poetry and prose.
1. Hair characteristics
Based on its definition, poetry is characterized by the following characteristics.
- A poem is a group of words that form a line.
- Each line consists of a syllable.
- The last line of the poem uses both vowels and consonants.
- Many figures of speech have metaphorical meanings. Figures of speech are also known as orthography. The choice of diction in poetry must be good so that the meaning of the poem feels deep.
- There is rhythm and rhyme.
- There is no plot or characters. Therefore, a poet can write poetry as he pleases without using a coherent plot.
2. Features of prose
Meanwhile, prose has the following characteristics.
- Prose contains a story that can explain the events in it.
- There is a theme that is the basis of the story.
- There are characters and characterization.
- There is a point.
- He has a background in space, time and atmosphere.
- There is development in the story due to the impact of changes in societal conditions.
- It has a moral mission or mandate.
Therefore, prose is defined as story. At the same time, poetry is not a story or a novel.
The purpose of writing poetry and prose
Because the characteristics of poetry and prose are different, poetry and prose also have different goals.
1. The purpose of poetry
Poetry has a symbolic nature. Poetry uses creative expressive language. There is rhyme and rhythm in poetry so that the poetry seems more distinct when read. The purpose of writing poetry is to convey the heart of the writer or poet.
Poetry is a way for poets to express thoughts, admiration, and other feelings about social conditions, people, or nature. Poetry can also be used as a warning or criticism.
2. The purpose of writing prose
If poetry has a metaphorical nature, prose is realistic or practical. The structure of prose sentences is general and inexpressive. Therefore, the primary purpose of writing prose is to convey information, ideas, or stories.
Prose is used to convey opinions in a systematic order so that readers can more easily understand the messages contained in it. Prose is also used to increase intimacy through dialogue that can connect characters and readers.
The structure of writing poetry and prose
Prose and poetry have different writing structures. There are two structures of hair. They are the mental structure and the physical structure. Physical structure includes images, diction, figures of speech, concrete words, and rhyme (rhythm). The internal structure is divided into tone, theme, feeling, and message.
At the same time, prose has structure in the form of theme, plot, setting, characterization, and conflict. Apart from this, the prose is also arranged based on language style, point of view and moral message. Let us discuss them one by one here.
1. Poetic structure
If we look from its structure to the general characteristics of poetry, they are as follows:
- Poetry has a metaphorical dictation. Diction is the term used for word choice in poetry and prose. Literary works should display an interesting style, especially poetry.
- Poetry relies heavily on rhyme. Ancient poetry is concerned with certain rhymes at the end of sentences. Distinctive rhyme is also important for writing poetry.
- Writing poetry depends on stanzas and lines. This is because poetry is not a long novel, as it only uses verses and stanzas. Each word will help the line and each line will form a stanza.
- Poetry also contains figures of speech. Figures of speech are figurative words with exaggerated meanings. There are many forms of speech used in the literary field. Some of them are exaggeration and diagnosis.
2. The structure of prose writing
If you want to write prose, you should pay attention to the following two important structures.
- Essential Elements: The essential structure of prose is theme, message, story, plot, characters, and characterization. The theme is the idea of the story. Plot is the way the story moves. Plot is a cause and effect relationship.
- External elements: External structure is the elements that make up the prose from the outside. Examples include aspects of sociology, psychology, economics, etc. So the socio-economic conditions, environment and background of the author influence this element.
Types of poetry and prose
In general, poetry and prose are two types. A comparison can also be seen between the characteristics of poetry and prose through their types. Below are the types of poetic and prose texts.
1. Hair types
Poetry consists of two types: ancient poetry and modern poetry. Ancient poetry is a written literary work bound by standard rules according to the structure of poetry writing. At the same time, modern poetry has a more flexible writing.
Ancient poetry flourished during the time of classical literature. Examples include sharia, pantun, talibon, mantra, gorindam, and others. Most ancient poems were created from spiritual beliefs. Therefore, ancient poetry is widely used in ritual events.
Words used in ancient poetry have meanings that are believed to invoke magical powers. For this reason, ancient poetry must follow strict writing rules so that the magical meaning contained in it can truly be felt.
As for modern poetry, it is free and not bound by a rhyme, line, or line. Modern poetry contains several genres such as romance, epic, and ballad. Modern poetry is widely used to convey ideas, criticism and impressions of the poet.
Modern poetry is written more simply and uses poignant language. The meaning of the poem is also implied. Readers are left to understand the meaning of the poem from their own point of view.
2. Types of prose
As with poetry, prose also has two types. There is old prose and new prose. These two types of prose have different plots, linguistic styles, and characteristics.
Ancient prose is not at all influenced by any culture from outside. Therefore, ancient prose is fixed. The stories in ancient prose are stories of kingdoms, palaces, royal families, and various other things of a feudal nature.
In addition, prose authors usually do not include their names in prose. Ancient prose stories are well known and spread by word of mouth. In Indonesia, ancient prose is influenced by classical Hindu and Arabic culture.
Some examples of literary works that include ancient prose are histories, epics, fairy tales, stories, etc.
New prose is the prose that developed after the entry of Western culture into Indonesia. Stories in new prose have many types because they show many points of view.
Examples of new prose are fiction and non-fiction such as essays, short stories, biographies, essays, novels, opinions, romances, etc. Now new prose is rapidly developing in society.
Examples of poetry and prose
In order to understand the characteristics of poetry and prose, you also need to know several examples of poetry and prose. Here are some examples of prose and poetry. You can analyze the following examples to understand the characteristics of prose and poetry.
1. Examples of poetry
There are many poems that can be examples. The following poems have figures of speech and diction that are not very difficult to understand, so it will be easy for you to find the meaning.
Poetry by Sutji Harijanti
Applicants do not come in the morning
No one came in the morning
When the barrier fence lines up
Block incoming applicants
Closed tightly
The beggars ran away in the morning
All the streets of the alley became quiet
This is my abode, hidden and trembling
Every house
Every fence
Every door
Closed all day
Hello..daily student
what did you eat today?
What do we eat today?
Poetry by Sam Heidi
Indonesia is crying
Thousands of names are arranged together
temporary
The bodies that haven’t left yet
Lying covered in debris
Oh tsunami
Your water flows into our eyes!
2. Example of prose text
If you want to see examples of prose, you can read short stories or novels. Some prose we recommend is Rindu by Tere Liye, Frog Wants to Be a Bull by Nur Sutan Iskandar, and Girl of Four Ages by Salkha.
So the characteristics of poetry and prose can be seen through their meaning, purpose, genre and structure. You also understand the characteristics of poetry so you can distinguish it from prose.
Apart from that, you also learned what are examples of prose so as not to confuse it with poetry. By learning more about poetry and prose, you will become skilled at creating these two types of literary works.