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A105 Revision: Creative Writing - Chapter 4

Rhyme
1. There are a variety of rhyme forms.
  1. The most well-known rhyme form is 'end-rhyme', which only occurs at the end of a line.
  2. A 'full rhyme' is an exact rhyme.
    1. The scheme of rhyme can be described with upper-case letters.
      1. E.G. ABCB would mean the second line rhymed with the fourth and that the other two lines did not rhyme.
  3. 'Half-Rhyme' is when the words at the end are approximately the same, mostly by consonants but the vowels are varied.
    1. 'Half-Rhyme' is sometimes called slant rhyme.
    2. The vagueness of the rhyme can create a mood of dissonance and uncertainty.
    3. 'Half-Rhyme' also quietens a poem while 'full rhymes' create assertive poems.
  4. 'Near-Rhyme' is when only the final words are similar, meaning there is a rhyme suggestion but nothing more.
    1. The almost non-existent rhyming gives the poem a surprising sense of structure.
  5. 'Internal Rhymes' is when words within one line, or in one line and in another, or in one line and at the end of another, match each other as full end-rhyme does.
Repetition and Poetry
1. When writing poetry, the writer is consciously shaping language, more so than when writing prose.
2. For poets, the most important skill is repetition.
  1. One form of repetition is the formal aspect of structure, such as stanzas, also known as verses
    1. Verses is now used in song/lyrical writing terms rather than poetic nature.
  2. The repetition of a phrase/word is another common feature of repetition in poetry.
  3. The repetition of sounds can be either of vowels or of consonants which may appear throughout the poem or at specific intervals.
    1. The repetition of sounds is often called the most important repetitive device.
    2. The sound of repetition is affected by where the beat of the line falls, and if the beat falls on similar sounds, it is more noticeable.
3. Poets do not think up sound-patterns and spend time creating around them
  1. Poets frequently adjust the pattern of sound and other repetitions so they fit more comfortably.
    1. "It is a good idea to be clear about the ways in which vowels and consonants, syllables and stresses, and different kinds of rhyme might work." - Doing Things with Words (A105) P 163.
Vowels
1. The English Vowels are 'A', 'E', 'I', 'O', 'U' and sometimes 'Y'.
  1. 'Y' is either a consonant or a vowel depending on its context.
2. They are the sounds made by breath through the larynx and mouth that do not use the tongue, lips or teeth.
3. Vowels can be either long or short, and spelling alone wil not show this.
  1. Short Vowels: can, bed, tin, hot, crumb, pyramid or handy.
  2. Long Vowels: fate, swede, time, hotel, flute, duty or why.
  3. There are many other ways of combining vowels to create a longer sound.
    1. E.G. Beautiful
4. There are many instances of vowels that are changed by the (usually silent depending on dialect) consonant succeeding them.
5. The repetition of a vowel sound is called assonance.
Consonants
1. There are 21 consonants in the English alphabet, including 'Y'.
2. Some alphabetical sounds are duplicates
  1. Many consonants are no longer sounded, and there are subtle other differences.
    1. There are many consonant combinations.
      1. That means the word takes longer to say than a fewer consonant word or longer to 'hear' when reading.
    2. It can slow the line down.
      1. It is a good idea to be aware of the potential effect of consonants
3. Some consonants are 'hard' while others are 'soft', depending on the frequency and context.
  1. 'D', 'K', & 'T' are hard consonants.
    1. 'F', 'L', 'M', 'R' & 'S' are softer consonants.
      1. There is a particular word for the repetition of the 'S' sound - sibilance.
4. Consonants can thin or thicken a line, causing it to accelerate or decelerate, just as they make it more or less aggressive or more or less gentle in sound.
5. The repetition of consonantal sounds is called alliteration.
Song and Poem
1. A song in the pre-literate age would have possessed essential qualities to make it commit to memory.
  1. E.G. A large amount of repetition as well as the use of refrain
  2. As songs have developed, the use of repetition and echoes have become more subtle.
    1. "What creates the poetic voice - what marks it out - is the attention to what we might call the melody of words. This is not to suggest that a writer obsesses over every echo - sometimes echoes occur naturally in the writing, in the discovery of the subject and mood. But the drafting process in each case will have woven the echoes in more securely. Nor is it to suggest that every song or poem contains such a proliferation of echoes and repetitions. But it is to underline the way in which a poetic voice distinguishes itself from the everyday voice by the use of such devices" - Doing Things with Words (A105) P 167
  3. Contemporary poetry continues to use rhyme and repetition
    1. Repetitions in contemporary poetry gives the poems a deeply buried voice within the text.
      1. "What gives a poem its distinctive flavour is often its repetition not just of words but of sounds, in particular the sounds of vowels." - Doing Things with Words (A105) P 167
        "In effect, poems become like echo-chambers" - Doing Things with Words (A105) P 167
2. "Poetry has developed from being spoken to being written (although, of course, poems continue to be read aloud, to be recited or performed)" - Doing Things with Words (A105) P 167
  1. "Poetry is a lineal descendant of song" - Doing Things with Words (A105) P 167
Syllables and Stress
1. It is important to know the difference between syllables which are stressed and unstressed
  1. You can work out the strength of the syllable stress by reading it aloud, this can affect the place it is in the line
    1. "Even if locating the pattern of stress is sometimes a slightly inexact art, developing a sense of the rise and fall, and an idea of the pattern of emphatic and weaker syllables, is important for the creator of a poetic voice." - Doing Things with Words (A105) P 175
  2. Poetry has more musical roots than prose as its ancestry is linked to song and/or chant
    1. In 'Poetics' by Aristotle, it is written that 'melody and rhythm' is 'natural' to humans, and poetry makes the most of that tendency.
      1. "A writer uses the syllables on which the beat or stress falls to create both rhythmic and harmonic patterns" - Doing Things with Words (A105) P. 174
Tone of Poetic Voice
1. The sound patterns and the accompanying rhythm can create or dictate the mood of the poem.
  1. This can alter how the reader perceives the tone of voice.
A Variety of Voices.
1. Thoughtful
  1. Writing looser and in a clearly conversational tone.
    1. 'There is a degree of intimacy up with the reader' - Doing THings with Words (A105) P. 185
2. Jaunty
  1. Use of Up-tempo beat.
    1. The tempo makes the identity of the poetic voice.
      1. 'A jaunty voice is an enthusiastic voice, one that takes ostentatious pleasure in what it says." - Doing Things with Words (A105) P. 187
3. Angry
  1. 'Hard to manage in a poem'.' - Doing Things with Words (A105) P 188
    1. Anger which is controlled will carry a stronger voice, which will reduce the comic risk as it will be emphatic and direct.
Creating Vocies of Authority
1. The poetic voice of authority will come from the private quality of the poem rather than the public quality.
  1. 'Poetry has to be distinctive and personal' - Doing Things with Words (A105), P 191
  2. 'It will come from its intimacy and, if it is to carry any real power, from a mixture of complexity emotional honesty. An authoritative voice is one that requires you to listen, not merely to hear.' - Doing Things with Words (A105) P 191

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	Created by Louise Prior about 5 years ago