Riddle Poems

While taking this class, my definition of “poetry” has expanded. I realized that poetry doesn’t just encompass the works of William Shakespeare, Edgar Allen Poe, and all of the other famous poets that might first come to mind. I started seeing all the songs I listen to everyday as poetry. When I discovered that riddles were also a poetic genre, my view of poetry was further widened. If you have never associated poetry with fun, you probably never considered riddles as poetry. 

According to this source, a riddle is “a puzzling question that relies on allegory or wordplay for its answer. Riddles are often short, and often include an answer to the question posed, albeit an unsatisfying one. The riddle of the Sphinx, which Oedipus solved, is a particularly famous example: ‘what walks on four legs in the morning, two at midday, and three in the afternoon?’”

After searching around the web for some more riddle poems, here are some I came across (cover the answer if you want to try them yourselves):

Riddle: Three eyes have I, all in a row;

          when the red one opens, all freeze.

Answer: A traffic light.

Riddle: Voiceless it cries,

          Wingless flutters,

          Toothless bites,

          Mouthless mutters.

  Answer: The wind.

Riddle: This thing all things devours:

          Birds, trees, beasts, flowers;

          Gnaws iron, bites steel;

          Grinds hard stones to meal;

          Slays king, ruins town,

          And beats high mountain down.

  Answer: Time.

There are a lot more on the internet if you are interested in reading more. If there are any good ones you know or that you come across, please share them in the comments!