ALLITERATION. Over the cobbles he clattered and clashed in the dark innyard.

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Bridget Skinner
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1 ALLITERATION Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds. Alliteration in poetry is pleasing to the ear and emphasizes the words in which it occurs. It can be used to create special effects. For example, in "The Highwayman" Alfred Noyes used the hard "k".sound to suggest the hard sound of a horse's hooves. Over the cobbles he clattered and clashed in the dark innyard. William Wordsworth used alliteration in both of these lines from "Lucy Gray." Write a short serious poem using alliteration. And sings a solitary song That whistles in the wind. If too much alliteration is used, we get a ridiculous sound, as in a tongue-twister. Example: Stuart Stevens rode astride his stallion down the sandy seashore. Seeing surfers, sailors, sunbathers, and swimmers, he stopped. Stuart stood and stared at the scene. Stripping down to his swimsuit, he slipped into the sea. 1

2 Now you write a tongue-twister. He has built some bulging biceps so these barbells won t be a burden. 2

3 ONOMATOPEIA When you want to use a word to imitate a sound, you use onomatopoeia. What does a person scream when he or she sees a mouse? "EEKI" Comic books make excellent use of onomatopoeia with words such as zap, blam, zoom. Onomatopoeia is a sound device that is used not only for humour and fun but also for special effects. YOUR TURN For example, Tennyson's line:. Clang battleaxe, and clash brand! Let the king reign. Another example is found in Dirge by Shelly: Rough wind, that moanest loud Pick a familiar place and tune your ear into sounds heard there. Then write a poem using onomatopoeia. Put it in the following form: I hear Classroom the screech of chalk on the board. the grinding of a pencil in the sharpener. the tapping of fingers on the desk. the hush of students taking a test. Now write an onomatopoetic poem about your place. I hear 3

4 Analyzing the Use of Sound in a Poem Assonance (Latin, 'to answer with the same sound'): the rhyming of a word with another in one or more of their accented vowels, but not in their consonants; sometimes called vowel rhyme The repetition of vowel SOUNDS (not vowels!) in close proximity in a poem. For example, And every fair from fair sometimes declines" Consonance These hard "i" sounds are different from the silent "i" in "fair" and the soft "i" in a word like "him" a resemblance in sound between two words based on shared consonant sounds, whether in sequence ("bud" and "bad") or reversed ("bud" and "dab") The repetition of consonant SOUNDS (not consonants!) in close proximity in a poem Alliteration For example: "Sometimes too hot the eye of heaven shines" Repetition of the hard "t" sound - Notice that the "t" in "the" is not highlighted; it doesn't make the same sound as the consonant in the other three words. Repetition of the same consonant OR vowel sound at the beginning of a word in a phrase or verse line Words like "train" and "terrific" alliterate YOUR TURN: 4

5 Using the poem, "Daffodils" by William Wordsworth, provide examples of the following by citing the entire line and line number; highlight or underline the consonants or vowels you are using as your examples: Assonance: 1) 2) Consonance: 1) 2) Alliteration: 1) 2) Daffodils I wandered lonely as a cloud That floats on high o'er vales and hills, When all at once I saw a crowd, A host, of golden daffodils; Beside the lake, beneath the trees, Fluttering and dancing in the breeze. Continuous as the stars that shine And twinkle on the milky way, They stretched in never-ending line Along the margin of a bay: Ten thousand saw I at a glance, Tossing their heads in sprightly dance. The waves beside them danced; but they Out-did the sparkling waves in glee: A poet could not but be gay, In such a jocund company: I gazed--and gazed--but little thought What wealth the show to me had brought: For oft, when on my couch I lie 5

6 In vacant or in pensive mood, They flash upon that inward eye Which is the bliss of solitude; And then my heart with pleasure fills, And dances with the daffodils. William Wordsworth Analyzing Poetry Read Daffodils by William Wordsworth and answer the questions below. VOCABULARY: Be sure you understand the meaning of these words in the context of the poem before trying to analyze it: (Write your definition beside each word) vales - host - margin - sprightly- jocund - Pensive - 1. What word in the first line of the poem tells us how the poet felt when he set out that day? 2. List two words the poet uses to give us a sense of the vast number of daffodils he suddenly came upon: and 3. In line 6, the poet tells us the flowers were "dancing." Is he using symbolism, personification, or alliteration in this line? 4. In lines 7-8, the poet compares the flowers to stars. Stars can traditionally symbolize the unattainable, religious faith, or goodness. Judging from the subject and mood of this poem, which of these three traditional meanings might Wordsworth have intended the stars to have? 6

7 5. Throughout the poem, Wordsworth uses words that suggest friendly gaiety when he describes the daffodils. List four words from the poem that have this connotation: i) ii) iii) iv) 6. What words in the last stanza recall the same sad and aimless mood the poet felt at the beginning of the poem? 7. Explain what you think Wordsworth means by the phrase "that inward eye." 8. The poem contains some interesting contrasts. Some images from the last stanza are listed below; next to each, list a contrasting (or opposite) image from this same stanza. IMAGE Emptiness ( vacant mood ) CONTRASTING IMAGE Fullness (my heart fills ) Lying down; lack of motion Sadness ( pensive mood ) Solitude; loneliness 7

I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD

Activity Sheets (Read the poem below) By William Wordsworth I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD I WANDERED lonely as a cloud That floats on high o'er vales and hills, When all at once I saw a crowd, A host, of