Verse and Turning Points in Literary History

Abstract

Not every change of poetics and not every turning point in literature is accom­panied by a change in the methods of versification. It sometimes happens that innovation in versification is connected, not with new literary genres, but more generally with the adaptation of new literary models. The Polish syllabo-tonic verse is a case in point. Versification sometimes retains a degree of autonomy in the face of changes which affect literature.