GAMSAT Section I Humanities: Sonnet, Ode or Elegy?

Having an understanding of the common lyric forms will help you to identify the purpose of a given poem in GAMSAT Section I. It will also give you clues about the subject matter, themes, ideas and the message the poet is attempting to convey. Poets choose to write poems in a particular format depending on the subject matter they wish to explore. This means that a working knowledge of poetic styles and forms can make it much easier for you to identify what a given GAMSAT poem is about and the meaning the poet wants you to attain.

So, to succeed in section 1 of the GAMSAT test, it is best to be aware of the following types of poetry and some of the poets known for using the form:

The Sonnet

• A 14 line lyric poem
• A Petrarchan (Italian) sonnet is divided into an octave (the first 8 lines) and a sestet (the last 6 lines). The octave establishes a situation or problem and the sestet provides an answer.
• A Shakespearean (English) sonnet is divided into three quatrains (lots of 4 lines) and a rhyming couplet (last 2 lines). The four quatrains develop the subject of the poem and the couplet comments upon the preceding 12 lines.
• Traditionally, a sonnet is a love poem. However, some poets have used it for other themes as well.
• The most well-known sonnet writers were Shakespeare, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, John Keats, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Robert Frost, W.B. Yeats, Wilfred Owen, W.H. Auden and Seamus Heaney.

The Ode

• A lyrical verse written to praise someone or written about an object that inspired the poet.
• The ode was popular amongst the Romantic poets, with William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge and John Keats all having composed some of the most well known odes in the English Language.

The Elegy

• A reflective, mournful poem written in lament of the dead.
• Amongst the most well-known elegy writers were Alfred Lord Tennyson and W.H. Auden.

The Ballad

• A lyrical narrative poem designed to tell a story.
• Most ballads are structured using four line stanzas.
• Well-known poets who used the ballad form quite often were William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

The Dramatic Monologue

• A spoken verse which gives insight into the speaker’s thoughts and feelings. A dramatic monologue usually follows the speaker through a narrative/story they wish to tell.
• The most famous poet in the ‘dramatic monologue’ category was Robert Browning, alongwith Sylvia Plath who also wrote in a similar fashion.

The Epic/Narrative

• The epic is a lengthy narrative poem that is usually broken into several parts. It normally details heroic deeds and significant historical events. Shorter epic poems are known as epyllia and generally have a romantic mythological theme.
• Well-known poets who wrote epics include William Wordsworth, William Blake, John Keats, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Alfred Lord Tennyson.

Make sure you familiarise yourself with these common forms of poetry before sitting for GAMSAT 2010. The form the poem takes can help you identify the purpose, themes and ideas contained within the poem with greater ease. The more background knowledge you can bring to the GAMSAT test, the easier it will be for you to comprehend any unseen poems you may face in the Humanities section of the test.