Prose

For the Wikipedia guideline on prose, see Wikipedia:Manual of Style.

Prose is the ordinary form of the written, or spoken, language.^{[1][2][better source needed]} It is not poetry. On the written page it looks like a cluster of paragraphs. It does not need any special format, such as lists and tables. In writing, it is without special rhythm. It is similar to everyday communication. That is what makes it different from poetry and from theatrical works such as plays.^[source?]

Origin

Prose comes from the Latin word prosa, meaning straightforward.^[3] Prose writing is usually used to describe facts or to discuss whatever one's thoughts are in free flowing speech. It may be used for newspapers, novels, magazines, encyclopedias, letters, stories, history, philosophy and biography.^[source?]

Forms

Prose generally has no formal structure, like meter or rhyme, that is often found in poetry. Therefore, it is used to describe literature which is non-poetic, and non-theatrical. There is, however, a blend of the two forms of literature known as prose poetry.^[source?]