|
Grammatical aspects of poetic meter| title | Grammatical aspects of poetic meter |
|---|
| start_date | 2026/03/11 |
|---|
| schedule | 14h-17h |
|---|
| online | no |
|---|
| location_info | nc |
|---|
| summary | The analysis of poetic meter in relation to other structure is usually made in terms of matching (Hanson & Kiparsky 1996). For instance, prominences (stresses) in the linguistic prosodic structure are matched to metrical positions in the meter. In generative metrics, metricality is evaluated based on how well individual lines meet constraints on matching (Blumenfeld 2015). Meters and constraints on matching are envisaged as sensitive to language-specific information, but they are themselves language-external.
In my talk, I would like to question some aspects of this established view of how poetic meter works, by arguing that meter is grammatical in a more direct way. The first argument is that the units of metrical structure are authentic units of prosody (prosodic feet, prosodic words, etc.). The second argument is that both units of prosody and the syntagmatic combination of them are constrained by grammar. Just as there is clash avoidance in the prosodic structure of English (the rhythm rule, Visch 1990), there is clash avoidance in Berber meter (Riad 2017). If grammatical constraints apply directly on metrical structure of verse, the question arises if matching is needed as a mediator between linguistic prosody and metrical prosody.
The third argument, then, is that at least some meters may be understood in terms of grammar proper. To make such an idea fly, the linguistic nature of meter must be recognized in the same terms as prosodic morphology (truncation, reduplication, root-and-pattern), among other things. Examples will be drawn from several languages, including Swedish, Berber, Arabic, Greek, and Spanish. |
|---|
| responsibles | Dell, Benini |
|---|
Workflow history| from state (1) | to state | comment | date |
|---|
| submitted | published | | 2026/02/17 07:56 UTC |
| |
|