Jack Sprat Could Eat No Fat

Iambic Pentameter

William Shakespeare wrote all of his 36-38 plays and over 150 sonnets in a very distinct form called iambic pentameter. The key to unlocking what exactly iambic pentameter is, is to break down the words. Say iambic. The first syllable is not stressed. The stress is on the second syllable. This tells you that whenever you have iambic pentameter, there is an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one.

Say the following sentence to yourself and mark which syllables are stressed and which are unstressed. *Hint – It is written in iambs.

I want to intervene.

The sentence sounds sing-songy, almost like a children’s nursery rhyme. In fact, most nursery rhymes are written in iambs. Let’s look at the following nursery rhyme and mark which syllables are stressed and which are unstressed.

Jack Sprat could eat no fat.

His wife could eat no lean.

And so, betwixt the two of them,

They ate the platter clean.

It would have been impossible for Shakespeare to write with the depth that he did if he paid attention only to syllables and their stresses, and not the actual words he wanted to use. For this reason, iambic pentameter is not an exact science. There will be sentences and phrases that break the rules.

Now you know a little about the iamb. But what does pentameter mean? Again, if we break the word apart, we can figure it out. A meter is a form of measurement. Now what is ‘penta?’ Penta is the prefix for five (5). Now if you put those together, you now know that that a pentameter is a measurement where there will be five (5) of something.

In each line of iambic pentameter, there are five (5) iambs. Each iamb is two syllables. Ideally, a line of iambic pentameter has ____ syllables. Consider the following passage from Romeo and Juliet. Map out the stresses and the number of syllables in each line.

Prologue of Romeo and Juliet # syllables =

Two households, both alike in dignity,

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,

From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,

Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.

From forth the fatal loins of these two foes

A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;

Whole misadventured piteous overthrows

Do with their death bury their parents' strife.

*** Yes, iambic pentameter is a very complicated poetic form. Shakespeare used it most eloquently when he wrote for characters of upper class. When you read selections with dialogue spoken by lower class, (included for comic relief) pay attention to the iambic pentameter used. Shakespeare botched it on purpose. Why do you think he did this?