Advanced Placement (AP) English Literature Practice Exam

In poetry, what is the rhythm created by an alternating pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables called?

1. Meter

2. Rhyme scheme

3. Stanza

4. Verse

The correct answer is: Meter

The rhythm created by an alternating pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables is known as meter. Meter serves as the framework for a poem's structure, establishing the overall rhythm and pace. Different types of meter, such as iambic pentameter or trochaic tetrameter, consist of specific arrangements of these stressed and unstressed syllables, contributing to the musical quality of poetry. While other terms like rhyme scheme, stanza, and verse refer to different elements of poetry, they do not specifically address the rhythmic component defined by the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables. Rhyme scheme pertains to the pattern of rhyming words at the ends of lines, stanza refers to a grouped set of lines within a poem, and verse is a term that generally relates to poetic writing as opposed to prose but doesn't specifically define rhythmic structures. Therefore, meter is the precise term that captures the alternating pattern of stress in poetry.