Rhythm and Stress. Rhythm is the pattern of beats in a line of poetry or prose. Stress, or accent, is the amount of emphasis given to a syllable. The pattern of stresses in a poem determines its rhythm. Syllables are described as being strongly or weakly stressed, and accented or unaccented. When you read a line of poetry, a strongly stressed syllable receives a strong emphasis and a weakly stressed syllable a weak one. Read a stanza or two of “Paul Revere’s Ride” aloud to yourself, listening to its rhythm, or the patterns of beats you hear your voice making.
Narrative Poem. A narrative poem is a verse that tells a story. As you read, try to determine whether “Paul Revere’s Ride” is a good example of narrative verse.
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- Paul Revere (1725–1818) was an American silversmith who took a stand against the British and later became known as an American patriot. On April 18, 1775, the British were moving to destroy some military supplies and to capture patriot leaders Samuel Adams and John Hancock. Paul Revere and other messengers set out from Boston around midnight to warn colonists in Concord that the British were coming. Longfellow immortalized this midnight ride in the poem you are about to read, but in reality Paul Revere’s ride was not completely successful. During the ride, Revere was stopped by the British, and it was the other messengers who made their way through with the warning. Because of the warning the colonists received, they were waiting the next morning in the village of Lexington for the battle that began the Revolutionary War.
What story from history captures your imagination? What do you find interesting about that piece of history?
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