47. Close read by sound devices: (poetry analysis paper)

Definitions:

Alliteration is the repetition of identical consonant sounds at the beginning of words. For example, Samuel Taylor Coleridge uses alliteration in the following lines, "The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew, / The furrow followed free" in order to emphasize the initial puff of wind with the "b" sound and the trailing sound of wind passing with the repetition of the "f" sound.

Assonance is a resemblance or similarity in sound between vowels followed by different consonants in two or more stressed syllables. Assonance differs from rhyme in that rhyme is a similarity of vowel and consonant. "Lake" and "fake" demonstrate rhyme; "lake" and "fate" assonance.

Consonance is the repetition of consonants in the stressed syllables of words, especially the last syllable. For example, Alfred lord Tennyson uses consonance by repeating the "m" sound in order to imitate the sound of bees buzzing. He writes, "The moan of doves in immemorial elms, / And the murmuring of innumerable bees."

Euphony is the repetition of smooth, pleasant, melodious, or mellifluous sounding consonants: (l,m,n,r,f,v,s,) or long vowel sounds: (a,e,i,o,u) in a series of words. Usually used to describe pleasant experiences, scenes, or characters.

Cacophony is the repetition of harsh or rough sounding consonants: (b,d,g,k,p,t,) or short vowel sounds: (a,e,i,o,u) in a series of words. Usually used to describe unpleasant experiences, scenes, or characters.

Example of a close read by sound devices in a poetry analysis paper on "Design":

Design

I found a dimpled spider, fat and white,

On a white heal-all, holding up a moth

Like a white piece of rigid satin cloth-

Assorted characters of death and blight

Mixed ready to begin the morning right,

Like the ingredients of a witches' broth-

A snowdrop spider, a flower like a froth,

And dead wings carried like a paper kite.

What had that flower to do with being white,

The wayside blue and innocent heal-all?

What brought the kindred spider to that height,

Then steered the white moth thither in the night?

What but design of darkness to appall?-

If design govern in a thing so small.

-Robert Frost

The alliteration in Robert Frost’s poem “Design” reinforces the dark and melancholic imagery, tone, and message of the poem. By bringing emphasis to key words by linking them in sound, Frost is able to make certain words resonate with the reader. For example, when the speaker states, "A snowdrop spider, a flower like a froth," the alliterative "f" sound in flower and froth bring auditory emphasis to the metaphor of the flower and froth. By linking the two words by sound, they become more prominent and reinforce the image that the white heal-all flower is like a rabid dog foaming at the mouth. This metaphor and the alliteration force the reader to recall the image of an innocent flower as a hemorrhaging person near death or a rabid, wild animal. Similarly, the alliterative "d" sound in design of darkness" emphasizes the connection between God's plan and the blanket of "darkness" or evil that overrides it. In both instances, Frost employs alliteration to underscore that the world may seem benign, but upon closer examination is not.

CLOSE READ BY SOUND DEVICES STARTERS:

• • For example, when the speaker states, “________________________” the alliterative ___ sound emphasizes the key words _______________ and _______________. The words _______________ and ________________ are important because they ___________________________________.

-The assonance of the vowel sound ___ in the lines “_____________________________” is euphonic, connects the key words ____________ and _____________, and reinforces the poem’s central message that ____________________________.

-The consonance of the _______ sound in the key words ______________ and ____________ allow these two words to stand out to the reader’s ear. These words are emphasized because ____________________________________.