Poetic devices 4: Alliteration

Hedgehogs hogging hedges! Martians munching marshmallows! Zombie zebras in the zoo! Fair is foul and foul is fair (from Macbeth by Shakespeare, of course).... What's it all about .... beyond the crazy wordplay?

The poem Astrophobos by Howard Phillips Lovecraft contains the following stanza:

Mystic waves of beauty blended
With the gorgeous golden rays;
Phantasies of bliss descended
In a myrrh’d Elysian haze;
And in lyre-born chords extended
Harmonies of Lydian lays.

What is so special about this passage of poetry? Well, there are plenty of features including allusion, and the lyrical tempo, both of which I will deal with in future posts. But you may notice that there are two instances of words with the same initial consonant sounds in close proximity - beauty blended and gorgeous golden - that add a mystical and magical quality to the work. This is known as alliteration, and is an often ignored poetic device that should attract more attention. 

There are numerous examples of alliteration in poetry, both throughout the ages. One of the most impressive recent pieces I've seen is by illustrious English spoken word artist Harry Baker (whom I saw perform live earlier this year). It's a piece that travels through the entire alphabet of alliteration, to bring a truly delightful confection of wonderful, stellar images. The poem, called The A-Z of Time and Space is performed below by Harry with copious use of his hands (some serious semaphore) and facial expressions (grimacing, grinning and gurning). See what I did there?

What does alliteration do for poetry? Well, it's a phonic technique to emphasise an idea. It relies on similar consonant sounds to help the poem flow and make sense (or not in the case of some nonsense poetry).  Used effectively, alliteration can add that extra something special to make your poetry stand out from the crowd. 

Try some alliteration in your own poetry. How could you use it to emphasise your themes, or bring additional dimension or meaning to your writing? Please post potential poems in the comments section below!

Previous posts in this series

1: Similes
2: Metaphors
3. Repetition and refrains

Steve Wheeler

Image by Emile Education