Elegiac couplets are an important form of poetry that can be found throughout history. Roman elegiac poetry has had an integral influence on how couplets are used in English literature. Throughout English literature, there are multiple examples of elegiac couplets, which show their influence on the form.
Elegiac couplet: meaning
Elegiac couplets are a form of poetry that was popular in ancient Greece and Rome. It consists of two lines of poetry, where the first line is written in a dactylic hexameter, and the second line is written in a dactylic pentameter. But don’t panic. Both these meters will be explained below.
Greek elegiac couplets
The elegiac couplet, which is one of the oldest forms of poetry, originated in Greece. It was originally used for funeral songs. However, during the 7th century BC, it became popular to write erotic (or love) poems in elegiac couplets. As the form became more popular, it was used to discuss many themes, including politics, war, social change, and philosophy. Many key Greek elegiac couplets were written by the Alexandrine School, which is the culture of literature, medicine, and philosophy that occurred during the Hellenistic period (323–31 BC).
Catullus and Roman elegiac poetry
The importance of the elegiac couplet in Greece carried over into Italian literature, as the form was used by many key figures in the Roman Empire. One of these was Catullus, a Roman poet who wrote many poems using elegiac couplets. These couplets were also frequently used by Ovid, whose work ‘Amores’ (16 BC) was written entirely in elegiac couplets.
English elegiac couplets
The elegiac couplet entered English Literature during the medieval period when Latin works were being translated into English. Poets such as John Milton also wrote elegiac sonnets throughout their lives.
Example of elegiac couplets
Many examples of elegiac sonnets can be found in ancient Greek and Roman literature. They include Virgil’s ‘The Aeneid’ (16 BC) and Ovid’s ‘Amores’ (17 BC).
Features of elegiac couplets
Defining features of elegiac couplets include the number of lines, the meter, and the rhyme scheme used.
Number of lines
A key trait of the elegiac couplet is that it consists of two lines that are sequential (they come after one another). These couplets can occur within larger poems, but they will still be linked together. Look at the example below and try to count the number of elegiac couplets you see.
Ovid, ‘Amores: Book 1 Elegy 1 The Theme of Love’ (16 BC)
Just now, I was preparing to start with heavy fighting
and violent war, with a measure to fit the matter.
Good enough for lesser verse – laughed Cupid
so they say, and stole a foot away.
In this extract, there are two elegiac couplets. Lines 1 and 2 constitute the first, while lines 3 and 4 create the second.
Meter
The most noticeable feature of the elegiac couplet is its distinct meter. There are two different meters used in elegiac couplets. The first line uses the dactylic hexameter, while the second line uses the dactylic pentameter.
Dactylic hexameter
- U U / - U U / - U U / - U U / - U U / - U
In English, this translates as:
‘Ju st now, I wa s pre par ing to sta rt with hea vy fight ing’
- U U / - U U / - U U / - U U / - U U / - U
Dactylic pentameter
The second line of an elegiac couplet is written in dactylic pentameter, which is similar to the dactylic hexameter. A line of dactylic pentameter is divided into two and follows the pattern of two dactyls and a spondee. Spondees are broken into two parts. The first part, which follows the first two dactyls, is then repeated in the second part. Lines written in dactylic pentameter look like the following:
- UU / - UU / - | | - UU / - UU / -
Again, this is more noticeable in the original Latin verse of Ovid’s ‘Amores’, which reads as:
ēd er e, māt er iā con ve ni en te mo d īs.
- U U / - U U / - | - U U / - U U / -
In English, it translates as:
‘and violent war, with a measure to fit the matter.’
Rhyme scheme
There is no set rhyme scheme for elegiac couplets, meaning that the poet can use a rhyme scheme if they wish but can also leave out rhyming completely.
Open vs closed elegiac couplets
There are both open and closed elegiac couplets.
Open elegiac couplets
Open couplets are those where the first line flows into the second line.
Good enough for lesser verse – laughed Cupid
so they say, and stole a foot away.
The first line of this couplet (from Amores: Book I) has no punctuation, leaving the sentence open to flow into the next line, where it finishes with a full stop.
Closed elegiac couplets
Many elegiac couplets are written as closed couplets, in which each line of the couplet is written as an individual sentence.
‘Cruel boy, who gave you power over this song?
Poets are the Muses’, we’re not in your crowd.
Each line ends with a piece of punctuation, meaning that the sentence has ended (closing it off).
The differences between elegiac couplets and heroic couplets
| Feature | Heroic couplet | Elegiac couplet |
| Line number | 2 | 2 |
| First line meter | Iambic pentameter | Dactylic hexameter |
| Second line meter | Iambic pentameter | Dactylic pentameter |
| Rhyme scheme | Masculine paired rhyme (AA) | No rhyme scheme |
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