Prose
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Prose is the form of written language (including written speech or dialogue) that follows the
Works of philosophy, history, economics, etc., journalism, and most fiction (an exception is the verse novel), are examples of works written in prose. Developments in twentieth century literature, including free verse, concrete poetry, and prose poetry, have led to the idea of poetry and prose as two ends on a spectrum rather than firmly distinct from each other. The British poet T. S. Eliot noted, whereas "the distinction between verse and prose is clear, the distinction between poetry and prose is obscure."[2]
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Latin's role was replaced by French from the 17th.- to the mid-20th century, i.e. until the uptake of English:
- For about three hundred years French prose was the form in which the human relationships — everything except metaphysics. It is arguable that the non-existence of a clear, concrete German prose has been one of the chief disasters to European civilisation.[4]
Qualities
Prose usually lacks the more formal metrical structure of the
In
American novelist Truman Capote, in an interview, commented as follows on prose style:
I believe a story can be wrecked by a faulty rhythm in a sentence— especially if it occurs toward the end—or a mistake in paragraphing, even punctuation. Henry James is the maestro of the semicolon. Hemingway is a first-rate paragrapher. From the point of view of ear, Virginia Woolf never wrote a bad sentence. I don't mean to imply that I successfully practice what I preach. I try, that's all.[6]
Types
Many types of prose exist, which include those used in works of
- A prose poem – is a composition in prose that has some of the qualities of a poem.[8]
- Haikai prose – combines haikuand prose.
- Prosimetrum – is a poetic composition which exploits a combination of prose and verse (metrum);[9] in particular, it is a text composed in alternating segments of prose and verse.[10] It is widely found in Western and Eastern literature.[10]
- Purple prose – is prose that is so extravagant, ornate, or flowery as to break the flow and draw excessive attention to itself.[11]
Divisions
Prose is divided into two main divisions:
- Fiction
- Non fiction
References
- ^ "prose (n.)". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
- ^ Eliot, T. S. Poetry & Prose: The Chapbook, Poetry Bookshop London, 1921.
- ^ "Literature", Encyclopaedia Britannica. online
- OCLC 879537495 – via repetition in the TV series of the same name.
- ^ "Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme". English translation accessible via Project Gutenberg. Retrieved 2010-01-31.
- ^ Hill, Pati. "Truman Capote, The Art of Fiction No. 17". The Paris Review. Spring-Summer 1957 (16). Retrieved 18 February 2015.
- ISBN 978-1439105115.
- ^ "Prose poem". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 2012-05-27.
- ^ Braund, Susanna. "Prosimetrum". In Cancil, Hubert, and Helmuth Schneider, eds. Brill's New Pauly. Brill Online, 2012. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ a b Brogan, T.V.F. "Prosimetrum". In Green et al., pp. 1115–1116.
- ^ "A Word a Day – purple prose". Wordsmith.org. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
Further reading
- Gosse, Edmund William (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 22 (11th ed.). pp. 450–455. .
- Patterson, William Morrison, Rhythm of Prose, Columbia University Press, 1917.
- Kuiper, Kathleen (2011). Prose: Literary Terms and Concepts. The Rosen Publishing Group. ISBN 978-1615304943. 244 pages.
- Shklovsky, Viktor (1991). Theory of Prose. Dalkey Archive Press. ISBN 0916583643. 216 pages.