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How to Write an Epic Poem: Infographic

By LW Willingham 9 Comments

Somewhere in medias res between Iliad and Odyssey, betwixt Gilgamesh and Beowulf, a lonely hero (of noble character) trods a path constructed of dactylic hexameter. Clothed with epic simile (selected from a lengthy catalog), he fights good and evil, with angels and demons, and after a harrowing descent into the underworld, with superhuman feats (fueled, no doubt, by a wee bit of supernatural intervention) rescues the great people from otherwise certain doom.

That, in a nutshell, is epic poetry. To illustrate, we’ve created this fun, colorful Epic Infographic you can share with your friends, your classroom, or your teacher. (Be the first to use the word brobdingnagian—which has no particular relation to the epic except in its own prodigious size—in a sentence,  and you might get bonus points on your next epic poetry exam.)

How to Write an Epic Poem Infographic

Browse more Poetry Teaching Resources

Browse more Poetry Infographics

Browse more Articles on Epic Poems

Post and infographic by LW Lindquist.

________________

How to Write a Poem 283 highHow to Write a Poem uses images like the buzz, the switch, the wave—from the Billy Collins poem “Introduction to Poetry”—to guide writers into new ways of writing poems. Excellent teaching tool. Anthology and prompts included.

“How to Write a Poem is a classroom must-have.”

—Callie Feyen, English Teacher, Maryland

BUY HOW TO WRITE A POEM NOW!

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Filed Under: Blog, Epic Poetry, Infographics, poetry, poetry teaching resources

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Comments

  1. Maureen says

    September 30, 2015 at 8:56 am

    So good, LW!

    Reply
  2. Monica Sharman says

    September 30, 2015 at 10:52 am

    Standing ovation!

    Reply
  3. L. L. Barkat says

    September 30, 2015 at 1:21 pm

    Love it.

    And the “somewhere in medias res, between… betwixt…” totally made me smile. A veritable thesaurus of middling words, right there 😉

    Reply
  4. KITTY KILIAN says

    October 1, 2015 at 2:15 am

    Do not feed the dactyl! Very witty – will keep it in mind.

    Reply
  5. Megan Willome says

    October 12, 2015 at 12:25 pm

    Fabulous!

    Reply
  6. Herb says

    June 4, 2018 at 7:25 pm

    Epic stuff!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. The Best in Poetry: This Month's Top 10 Poetic Picks - says:
    November 5, 2015 at 10:11 am

    […] is not iambic pentameter, nor dactylic hexameter. But maybe you can see in it the circular winding of the villanelle. (Or, you can see it for just […]

    Reply
  2. Our Partners: What You Did for Poetry in 2015 - says:
    November 23, 2015 at 10:35 am

    […] gazelles writing ghazals to phantoms writing pantoums, to heroes writing epic poems, you’ve helped Tweetspeak regularly bring amusing and informative infographics for use in the […]

    Reply
  3. A Poem in Every Heart: John Borling, John McCain and the Hanoi Hilton - says:
    September 12, 2018 at 8:00 am

    […] and holidays in “The Holidays and Hollow Days.” He also wrote a 123-stanza (twelve lines each) epic poem called “Southeast Asia Story.” He wrote odes and sonnets and a ballad and other poems whose […]

    Reply

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