WHAT IS ACROSTIC POETRY?

Acrostic poetry is a form of short verse constructed so that the initial

letters of each line taken consecutively form words. The word

"acrostic" was first applied to the prophecies of the Erythranean

Sibyl, which were written on leave and arranged so that the initial

letters of the leaves always formed a word. Acrostic poetry was

common among the Greeks of the Alexandrine period and with Latin

playwrights Ennuis and Plautus.

Acrostic mainly became famous during the Middle High German and

Italian Renaissance periods. There are basically three types of

acrostic poem:

1. Using the first alphabet of the first word.

2. Using the last alphabet of the last word.

3. Using the first or last alphabet of the middle word.

The following is an example of an acrostic known as "Elizabeth"

written by the famous poet Edgar Allan Poe.

Elizabeth it is in vain you say

"Love not" – thou sayest it in so sweet a way:

In vain those words form thee or L.E.L.

Zantippes's talents had enforced so well:

Ah! If that language from thy heart arise,

Breath it less gently forth-and veil thine eyes.

Endymion, recollect, when Luna tried

To cure his love – was cured of all beside –

His follie – pride – and passion – for he died.

NOTE: None of poems we present belong to us. We present an

organised record and analysis of them. All copyrights are reserved

to the original author and we are not using plagiarized work. The

originality of rights has been verified to the fullest extent we can.

TIPS TO WRITE ACROSTIC POEM:

1. Think of a word/words/phrases you want to write your poem

about like family, hope, birthday, a person's name etc.

2. Write down the word vertically. TIP: You may use your

computer or laptop when you prefer to write acrostic poem,

since, it makes it easier to erase and re write your thoughts.

3. Pen down some words or phrases which connect and are

similar to your topic. For example, if you are writing about

FRIENDS, you should pen down the words which makes you

feel connected to your friends, like the common words which

makes everyone feel connected to their friends are love,

memories, fun, fights, parties, birthdays etc.

4. If the words or phrases you think start from the same alphabet

as that of the letter, you may fill it in. For example, if the word

you think if fun and you need to fill the F in FRIENDS then you

may fill it up with the word fun.

5. When penning an acrostic poem make sure that the

word/phrase you are penning is high lighted. You can do so by

using capitals, quotations and bold prints.

6. When writing an acrostic poem try to add more details related

to the word/phrase you are high lighting.

TIP: If teaching acrostic to young kids or if learning as a beginner you

may start with easy things like by using one word for each alphabet.

Acrostic style of poetry became famous as it has no rules to write

and it helps to express beautifully. Hope this blog helped you dear

readers. So, what are you waiting for put on some good music, take

up some juice and jot down your feelings!

Regards,

Sezica (Member of team PoeTree FoRest)