Rhyme: Using and Writing

Introduction

Rhyme is a literary device where words share similar sounds, typically at the end of lines, creating a pleasing auditory effect. It enhances rhythm and adds a musical quality to poetry or prose. Rhyme can establish connections between words and ideas, aiding memorability and emphasizing key concepts.

How to Create Rhyme

Creating rhyme involves choosing words having similar sounds and then placing them in specific patterns and at specific places. Here are some steps to create a good rhyming pattern or rhyme scheme.

Step	Explanation	Practical Example
1. Choose a Rhyme Scheme	A rhyme scheme is a pattern of rhyming words in a poem, denoted by letters like ABAB or AABB. Select a scheme that fits your poetic style and theme.	Example: ABAB rhyme scheme in a love poem.
2. Select Rhyming Words	Pick words with similar sounds that align with the poem’s message and theme. A thesaurus can help find suitable words.	Using “heart” and “part” in a poem about love.
3. Place Rhyming Words	Position rhyming words according to the chosen scheme. Experiment with word order to create the desired impact.	“My heart belongs (A) to you, (B) my love so true (A).”
4. Change the Type of Rhymes	Consider using various rhymes types such as end rhyme, internal rhyme, slant rhyme, or exact rhyme to add complexity.	Using internal rhyme: “In the mists (end rhyme) of time, I find (internal rhyme) love so sublime (end rhyme).”
5. Revise and Refine	Read the poem aloud to ensure rhyming words flow naturally and enhance the poem’s rhythm and sound. Make necessary revisions.	“Upon reflection, I refined the rhyme scheme to (AABB) for a smoother flow in my poem about nature.”

Benefits of Rhymes

Rhymes have several benefits whether it is used in poetic writing or in prose. These advantages are as follows.

1. Enhancing Musicality: Rhymes or rhyme scheme makes a piece of writing more musical, attractive, engaging, and memorable. It helps create pleasing and repetitive sound patterns that the readers or listeners enjoy.
2. Emphasis: Rhymes scheme or pattern highlights certain words or phrases for emphasis on important themes, ideas, or emotions.
3. Improving Memory Retention: Rhyming phrases and lines are often easier to remember, making them useful for conveying important information such as nursery rhymes do it for children or advertising jingles or political slogans do it for the public.
4. Providing Closure: Rhymes also help bring a piece of writing to a satisfying conclusion by creating a sense of resolution or completeness though some rhymes do not intend to do so such as internal rhymes or slant rhymes.
5. Showing Creativity: Creating effective rhymes requires creativity. It demonstrates a writer’s ability to use language in unique and interesting ways.

Rhyme and Literary Theory

Rhyme is an important element of poetic writing. Therefore, they are studied and analyzed by literary theorists using various critical approaches. Here are some examples:

Literary Theory	Critique of Rhyme	Practical Critique
Formalism	Formalism views rhymes as a formal element that contributes to unity, coherence, and aesthetic pleasure in a text.	Emphasizes the importance of analyzing rhymes patterns and their impact on the overall structure and meaning of a work.
New Criticism	New Critics closely examine rhymes, revealing hidden meanings and patterns that contribute to a work’s main message.	Encourages readers to engage in close reading and explore the intricate relationships between rhymes, imagery, and symbolism to uncover deeper layers of meaning.
Structuralism	Structuralism sees rhyme as a structural element with linguistic codes that create meaning through associations.	Suggests that analyzing rhyme within the context of larger linguistic structures can provide insights into how language functions and generates meaning.
Postmodernism	Postmodernism regards rhyming pattern as subversive, disrupting traditional notions of form and meaning in fragmented texts.	Encourages the exploration of how rhyming pattern is used to challenge conventional literary norms and create ambiguity and plurality of meaning.
Feminist Theory	Feminist Theory explores how rhyming pattern reflects gender and power dynamics in language and form.	Examines how rhyming pattern reveals patriarchal biases and assumptions within traditional literary forms, and how it can be used to challenge or subvert these biases to empower marginalized voices.

These practical critiques highlight how each literary theory interprets the role of rhyme in literature and how it can be analyzed to gain a deeper understanding of the text’s meaning and cultural implications.

Suggested Readings

1. Abrams, M.H. A Glossary of Literary Terms. Cengage Learning, 2014.
2. Fussell, Paul. Poetic Meter and Poetic Form. McGraw-Hill Humanities, 1979.
3. Hollander, John. Rhyme’s Reason: A Guide to English Verse. Yale University Press, 2001.
4. Lennard, John. The Poetry Handbook: A Guide to Reading Poetry for Pleasure and Practical Criticism. Oxford University Press, 2005.
5. Oliver, Mary. A Poetry Handbook. Harcourt Brace & Company, 1994.
6. Preminger, Alex, et al. The Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics. Princeton University Press, 2012.
7. Turco, Lewis. The Book of Forms: A Handbook of Poetics. University Press of New England, 2000.
8. Vendler, Helen. Poems, Poets, Poetry: An Introduction and Anthology. Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2001.
9. Wilbur, Richard. The New Book of Forms: A Handbook of Poetics. Story Line Press, 1986.
10. Yip, Ronald. The Poet’s Manual and Rhyming Dictionary: A Concise Introduction to the Practice of Poetry. Thunder’s Mouth Press, 2006.