Blank verse

Blank verse is verse with a clear metrical structure but without rhyme. Unlike free verse, blank verse preserves the foot organisation and a fixed measure (most often iambic pentameter), renouncing only the consonance of endings. The absence of rhyme brings it closer to natural speech and makes it suitable for dramatic and philosophical utterance, which is why the monologues of Shakespearean drama are written in blank iambic verse. In Ukrainian literature unrhymed iambic pentameter was used in dramatic poems and translations of classics, notably by masters of the Neoclassical school. Blank verse unites the rhythmic discipline of metre with freedom from the obligation of rhyme, yielding a restrained, noble intonation.