7/25/2019 _SoundStrategies

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EN003

Sound Strategies

Numerous ways to reinforce meaning through sound:

1) onomatopeia: words whose sound in some degree suggests their meaning; words that

sound like what they mean; ex. Hiss, snap, bang, buzz, pow

2) phonetic intensives: words whose sound suggests their meaning in a less obvious way

a. fl-- often associated with idea of moving light; ex. Flame, flare, flash, flicker

b. gl-- also frequently accompanies idea of light; ex. Glare, gleam, glint, glow,

glisten

c. sl-- introduces words meaning “slickly wet;” ex. Slippery, slick, slide, slime,

slop, slosh

d. st-- often suggests strength; staunch, stalwart, sturdy, stable, steady, strong, steel

e. short –i- goes with idea of smallness; ex. Inch, imp, bit, slim, chip, sliver, whit,

snipf. long –o- or –oo-  suggests melancholy or sorrow; ex. Moan, groan, woe, mourn,

forlorn, gloom, doom, moody

g. medial –att-  suggests particled movement; ex. Spatter, scatter, shatter, splatter,

chatter, rattle, clatter

h. final –er and –le  indicate repetition; ex. Glitter, flutter, shimmer, whisper,

 jabber, ripple, bubble, sparkle, ramble

 None of these associations are invariable; but enough to suggest an

intrinsic if obscure relationship between sounds and meanings.

3) Poet can reinforce meaning thru sound by controlling speed and movement of lines by:

a. Choice and use of meteri. Accented syllables together – slows reader down

ii. Unaccented syllables grouped together – speeds reader up

b. Choice and arrangement of vowel and consonant sounds

i. Short (fast) vs. long (slow) vowels

ii. Consonants – how easily do words run together?

c. Disposition of pauses – grammatical (with punctuation) or rhetorical

4) Also may control both sound and meter in such a way as to put emphasis on important

words; words can be marked out by:

a. Alliteration – repetition at close intervals of initial consonant sounds of

accented syllables or important words

i. Important words beginning with vowels may be said to alliterate in as

much as they lack initial consonant sound (“Inebriate of air am I”)b. Assonance – repetition at close intervals of vowel sounds of accented syllables

or important words (hat/ran/amber)

c. Consonance – repetition at close intervals of final consonant sounds  of

accented syllables or important words (book/plaque/thicker)

d. Rime: repetition of accented vowel sound and all succeeding sounds in

important or importantly positioned words (old/cold, vain/reign)

e. Placing words before an obvious pause

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f. Placing or displacing them in metrical arrangement