Limerick

Definition of Limerick
Limerick is a comic verse that contains five anaesthetic (non-stressed / non-stressed / stressed) lines where the first, second and fifth lines are longer, rhyme, and are followed by three metric feet. The third and fourth lines rhyme together. are shorter and follow two metric feet. However, sometimes it can vary, and the amphibrachian (non-stressed / stressed / non-stressed) form can replace anapestic. In fact, it is a blatant, humorous, or nonsensical verse written in the form of five anapestas.As it has a special structure and format, it is called a solid or closed form of poetry.

Limerick and Villanelle
Although both types of Are poems with fixed structures, both differ in their form 19 lines with omitted rhyming sounds appear in the first and third lines, while the last quatrain has a closing couplet. A limerick has five lines that have an anapestic form with the first, second, and fifth lines rhyming together, but the third and fourth lines are different and rhyme together Century. They are linked to Edward Lear, who first published this verse form in his book A Book of Nonsense in 1846. Later this form became popular, and many poets, including Alfred Lord Tennyson, Shakespeare, Rudyard Kipling, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Ogden Nash, H. Wells, W. Auden, T. Eliot, James Joyce, and Lewis Carroll, tried their luck. . In this form of poetry. Here are some examples of limerick from the literature:

Example # 1: To Miss Vera Beringer (by Lewis Carroll)
“There was a young lady from station
'I love the man' was her only exclamation;
But when the men shouted: 'You compliment',
She replied: 'Oh! Nevermind
The Isle of Man is the real explanation. '

This limerick contains five lines with a rhyme scheme from aabba. Here we can notice the first, second and fifth lines. rhyme together, with three feet; while the third and fourth lines contain two feet and rhyme together.

Example # 2: There was an old man with a beard (by Edward Lear)
“There was an old man with a beard,
who said, 'It's like me
Two owls and a hen,
Four larks and a wren,
They have built all their nests in my beard!

Edward Lear was considered the father of Limericks. This is one of the very good examples of Limerick poetry that follows its typical format, with the first, second, and fifth lines rhyming together and being longer. while the remaining two are shorter and can be read faster. Lear has called this form nonsense.

Example 3: There was a little boy from Quebec (by Rudyard Kipling)
“There was a little boy from Quebec
Who was buried Snow on his neck
When they said,“ Are you crazy? ”
He replied: "Yes, I'm -
But we don't call it cold in Quebec." Four lines look funny, while the last line in this poem creates a strange and special mood.

Example 4: Othello (by William Shakespeare)
"And leave clink, clink;
A Life is only a period of time;
Why, then let a soldier drink. “

It is quite interesting that the earliest limericks written were associated with drinking.Similarly, William Shakespeare used this form in a Stephano drinking song to create nonsensical and humorous effects.

Example 5: A man hired by John Smith & Co (by Mark Twain)
“A man who was hired by John Smith and Co.
Loudly stated that he would have.
Men he had seen
Dumping dirt near his door
So the drivers didn't do it. “

As we know, Mark Twain is also popular for writing limericks. Here he used a fun and whimsical Limerick poem. with a final punchline.

Function by Limerick
Poets use limericks as literary or poetic forms to convey funny and humorous imagery and create craziness. We can find its use in literature to describe humor or light topics as the first four lines create a joke and it ends on a punch line. It's also often used in serial rhymes just to make kids enjoy reading.
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