Syllabic Verse

"The Fish" is written in rhymed syllabic verse: organized in eight five-line stanzas, the poem is rhymed a-a-b-b-c. The syllabic pattern for each stanza is 1, 3, 9, 6, 8. In addition to end rhymes, Moore uses a variety of internal rhymes including slant rhyme, off rhyme, consonance, and alliteration. The sound of her poem mimics its subject matter. In the second through fourth stanzas, for example, the "s" sound dominates, echoing the ripple and splash of water itself. Her organization of the poem into syllabic units also provides the poem with its visual shape. Like the sea it describes, the poem ebbs and flows, the number of syllables expanding and contracting with each line.

Concrete Imagery

The poem looks like it does on the page because of its syllabic structure. However, the concrete visual imagery in the poem constructs another "look" in readers' imaginations. Images are concrete when they refer to...