THE ELEMENTS OF POETRY. RHYME

Rhyme is the repetition of the same or similar sounds often occurring at set intervals in a poem. Many find it pleasant in itself, and it also serves to suggest order and pattern. In addition, it often relates to the meaning of the verse, for it brings words together and suggests relationships.

The most obvious type of rhyme is called end rhyme, since it appears at the end of a line. For example, the word "light" rhymes with "fight" "sight," etc. The rhyming constant is the sound "ight," on which the poet forms other rhymes by changing the first letter or letters. To some extent, the use of rhyme is similar to the musical pattern of returning to a recognized theme or note. In ancient poetry, before the advent of writing, rhyme was invaluable, for it was far easier to commit to memory poetry that had a strong pattern of rhyme.

True or perfect rhyme occurs when the first consonants change, but following consonants or vowels stay the same; This can also tie referred to as exact rhyme. These involve identity of sound, not spelling. "Fix" and "sticks," like "buffer" and "rougher," though spelled differently, are perfect rhymes. Anne Bradstreet's "Before the Birth of One of Her Children" (1678) illustrates true rhyme:

All things within this fading world hath end,

Adversity doth still our joys attend;

No ties so strong, no friends so dear and sweet,

But with death's parting blow is sure to meet.

In the lines quoted, "end" which we shall call a, rhymes with "attend" also called a, while "sweet," called b, rhymes with "meet." The rhyme scheme, then, is aabb, etc.

Half-rhyme (also called slant rhyme, approximate rhyme, near rhyme, or off-rhyme) occurs when there are changes within the vowel sounds of words intended to rhyme and only the final consonant sounds of the words are identical. The stressed vowel sounds as well as the initial consonant sounds (if any) differ. Examples include: soul: oil; firth: forth; trolley: bully. The following lines from William Whitehead's "Je Ne Sais Quof exemplify half-rhyme:

Tis not her face that love creates,

For there no grace revel;

Tis not her shape, for there the Fates

Had rather been uncivil.

"Revel" and "uncivil " in lines 2 and 4 above illustrate half-rhyme because the vowel sound changes, but the "vl" sound has remained the same.

Assonance occurs when the vowels in the words are the same, but the consonants are not, for example, in the words "seat" and "weak"

Consonance occurs when the consonants agree but the vowels do not, as in the words "luck" and "lick," "Tide" and "mine" are assonantal. Assonance and consonance are both variations of half-rhyme.

Internal rhyme occurs within the line instead of at the end. Oscar Wilde's "Each narrow cell within which we dwell" would be an example of internal rhyme because the words "cell" and "dwell" rhyme.

Masculine and feminine rhymes are the equivalents of masculine and feminine line endings. Rhymes that end on a stress, such as "yon" and "span," are masculine, while those ending on an unstressed syllable, such as 'falling" and "calling," are called feminine. Thus, "stark/mark" and "support/retort" would be masculine while "revival/ arrival" and "flatter/batter" are-feminine.

Feminine rhyme is also referred to as double rhyme. Also a feminine rhyme, triple rhyme as defined in A Handbook to. Literature is a rhyme in which the correspondence of sound lies in three consecutive syllables. "Machinery/scenery" and "tenderly /slenderly" are two examples.

Alliteration is the repetition of an initial sound in two or more words. Although not technically considered a type of rhyme, it will be treated here because its use adds to the musical quality of a poem.

About the lilting house and happy, as the grass was green shows alliteration in the repetition of h in "house" and "happy" and the gr in "grass" and "green." Alliteration is also called initial rhyme. In Macbeth's line, "after life's fitful fever," true alliteration is found in the repeated// of "fitful fever" and hidden alliteration is found in the fs of "after" "life," and "fit/ill." Accentual Anglo-Saxon poetry, used alliteration a great deal to create the balance and music of its verses.

Eye-rhyme occurs when words are spelled the same and look alike but have a different sound, see the following lines 3 and 4 of Sir Walter Raleigh's poem "The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd."

"These pretty pleasures might me move

To live with thee and be thy love "

The words "move" and "love" are an example of eye-rhyme. These rhymes are also called historical rhymes as, in the above example by Sir Walter Raleigh, the pronunciation has changed over the years. The word "tea," for example, once rhymed with "day," but today these two words are, at best, half-rhymes.

Onomatopoeia occurs when the sound of word echoes or suggests the meaning of the word. "Hiss"
and "buzz" are examples. There is a tendency for readers to see onomatopoeia in far too many instances,
in words such as "thunder' and "horror." Many words that are thought to echo the sound they suggest
merely contain some sound which seems to have a resemblance to the thing it suggests. Tennyson's
lines from "Come Down, О Maid" are often cited to explain true onomatopoeia:

"The moan of doves in immemorial elms

And murmuring of innumerable bees. "

Euphony is the use of a pleasant-sounding or harmonious combination of words, while cacophony is harsh or discordant sound used to produce an unharmonious effect.

(From: Laurie Rozakis. AP English Literature and Composition, p. 180-181)

Date: 2015-01-11; view: 942