For a reader who may notice the similarities between short stories and poetry, may not that easily recognize the differences between the two. For example, take two pieces of literature from the same author, Edgar Allen Poe. When analyzing "The Raven" and "The Tell-Tale Heart", some differences that may be noticed would be the length of each piece, the rhythm and rhyme at which the work is written, and the different language used to detail events that may or may not occur. .
After a reader reads both pieces of work, the first and most obvious difference is the length. Now this may not always be the case but for the most part, short stories are generally longer than poems. "The Tell-Tale Heart" is written in paragraphs and doesn't follow a specific pattern or format. "The Raven", on the other hand does exactly this. It is not written in paragraphs, but verses instead and only contains four to five lines for each verse. One can also say that a poem may be more direct and to the point where a short story can draw itself out to last longer.
To explain further about the pattern of the two, understanding the difference in the rhythm and rhyme between short stories and poems may help. "The Tell-Tale Heart" is a story that would be read as you would read your child a bedtime story. If one were to read "The Raven" to a group of listeners, he would recite the poem to a beat and a distinct rhyme would be heard amongst the listeners. Now this rhyme doesn't always come at the end of the line, it may be found in the middle as it is in "The Raven". "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore, While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door." (The Raven, Poe 1) The listeners hear this rhythm; they feel the beat or melody at which this poem is read.
