Poetic Devices The Sounds of Poetry

Onomatopoeia When a word’s pronunciation imitates its sound. Examples Buzz Fizz Woof Hiss Clink Boom Beep Vroom Zip

Repetition Repeating a word or words for effect. Example When you, my Dear, are away, away, How wearily goes the creeping day.

Rhythm When words are arranged in such a way that they make a pattern or beat. Example There once was a girl from Chicago Who dyed her hair pink in the bathtub I own a solace shut within my heart, A garden full of many a quaint delight Hint: hum the words instead of saying them.

Rhyme When words have the same end sound. Happens at the beginning, end, or middle of lines. Examples Where Fair Air Bear Glare

Alliteration When the first sounds in words repeat. Example Peter Piper picked a pickled pepper. Slim-pinioned swallows sweep and pass

Consonance When consonants repeat in the middle or end of words. Creates a near rhyme sound Examples Fixed in onyx A pillar of valor The calm lamb Fish in a mesh net

Practice Quiz I’ll put some lines of poetry on the board. Write down which techniques are used: Alliteration, consonance, rhythm, rhyme, and onomatopoeia. Some poems use more than one technique.

1 Oh! To be a wave Splintering on the sand, Drawing back, but leaving Lingeringly the land.

2 Drip--hiss--drip--hiss– fall the raindrops on the oaken log which burns, and steams, and smokes the ceiling beams. Drip--hiss--the rain never stops.

3 A trumpet-vine covered an arbour With the red and gold of its blossoms. Red and gold like the brass notes of Trumpets.

4 I passed through the gates of the city, The streets were strange and still, Through the doors of the open churches The organs were moaning shrill.

5 Upon the enchanted ladder of his rhymes, Round after round and patiently The poet ever upward climbs.

Answers 1. Rhythm, rhyme, consonance, alliteration. 2. Onomatopoeia, consonance, repetition, rhyme Alliteration, consonance, repetition Rhythm, rhyme, alliteration Repetition, rhyme, light alliteration

Assonance He saw the cost and hauled off. Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds. It is often used in combination with consonance and alliteration. Will she read these cheap leaflets. The snow in the rose garden groaned. Notice the repetition of the “awe” sounds in the first example, the “e” sounds in the second example, or the “o” sounds in the third example? Assonance can be subtle and may go unnoticed if you’re not scanning for it.

Enjambment Enjambment is when the writer uses line breaks meaningfully and abruptly to either emphasize a point or to create dual meanings. When a poem is read, the reader will conventionally make a slight pause (shorter than a comma) when transitioning from line to line. When a writer uses enjambment, he or she uses this space to spread an idea over more than one line, either creating an alternate interpretation of the lines or drawing attention to the enjambed words. Rolling through the field in the dead of winter. When the word “dead” is placed on a line in isolation, it invites the reader to focus on that idea. Surrounded by empty space, the idea may resonate powerfully. Though enjambment could be used during a speech, the term “enjambment” is generally applied to the study of poetry.