emblematical poems
Preserved but no longer current.
Poems consisting of lines of different lengths so that when printed or written the outline of the poem on the page can be made to represent the object of the verse. Thus, George Herbert in the Temple prints a poem on the Altar that is shaped like an altar, and one on Easter Wings like wings.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “emblematical poems” mean?
Poems consisting of lines of different lengths so that when printed or written the outline of the poem on the page can be made to represent the object of the verse. Thus, George Herbert in the Temple prints a poem on the Altar that is shaped like an altar, and one on Easter Wings like wings.
Is “emblematical poems” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.