Poetic devices 8: Rhythm and Tempo

If you're asked about tempo or rhythm in poetry it's likely you'll think about Rap. Appropriate really, because RAP stands for Rhythm And Poetry. Dig down into the history of Rap and you'll see it has its roots in the nightclub scene of 1970s New York City. MCs - or DJs - would talk rhythmically in between songs against a beat backdrop. From this, the idea of creating rhythmic spoken word came into being. 

Arguably, Rap goes back even further... and certainly there is a long history of the spoken word set to a beat. Listen for example to the political poetry of Gil Scott-Heron in the 60s, and try to tell me it didn't have an influence on Rap. 

Here's an example...it's from 1969 and it's called Whitey on the Moon

Rhythm in poetry is not limited to Rap, of course. In a previous post I argued that certain poetic devices can create a rhythm in a poem because of the sounds they produce, either when spoken out loud, or via internal self-vocalisation when reading the text. It's all about the beat, and the pace of the poem. For example, in the written word there are stressed syllables (long sounding) and unstressed syllables (short sounding). An iamb such as Today is a two syllable word where the first is unstressed (short) followed by the second stressed syllable (long): toDAY. 

Sonnets derive their rhythm from iambic pentameter (an iamb is a two syllable phrase) - words that are stressed and unstressed in pentameter - five beats or steps per line. Shakespeare knew how to do this:

[shall I] [comPARE] [thee TO] [a SUM][mer's DAY]

You get the idea how it works. Change the stress of the syllables - and the beat and pace of the poem changes. 

Have a go at creating different rhythms in your poetry by using different steps within your stanzas and lines. You can read up more about rhythm and metre in poetry at this link.

Steve Wheeler

Other posts in the Poetic Devices Series:

1. Simile

2. Metaphor

3. Repetition and refrains

4. Alliteration

5. Assonance

6. End Rhymes

7. Internal Rhymes

Poetic devices 6: End rhymes

What was the first poem you ever read? Bet you can't remember. Neither can I. Chances are it would have included end rhymes. Nursery rhymes are for children and this is usually their first exposure. It will probably have included the simplest end rhyme scheme like this:

Baa baa black sheep
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir
Three bags full

Or maybe something a little more complex like an AABAAB end rhyme scheme:

Jack and Jill
went up the hill
to fetch a pail of water
Jack fell down
and broke his crown
and Jill came tumbling after

The Cow Jumped Over the Moon, Jack Spratt and several other well-known nursery rhymes feature the exact same format.

The end rhyme adds to the attraction of the verse, and helps us all to remember the story. Plenty of adult poetry is also composed of end rhymes, sometimes in a more complicated pattern such as a Villanelle, Limerick or Sonnet. And yet, when people first start out writing poetry for themselves, they usually default to ABAB rhyme schemes, often in the shape of a 4 line quatrain. 

There's nothing wrong with this of course. We all have to learn somehow. But it's no co-incidence that Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT also default to this same format when asked to write a poem. It's a telltale sign if you are trying to detect poetry generated by AI. 

Tyger, Tyger by the English poet William Blake is a classic example of an AABB end rhyme quatrain:

Tyger, Tyger burning bright
in the forests of the night;
what immortal hand or eye,
could frame thy fearful symmetry?

It's simple but incredibly effective in setting the scene for an atmospheric poem full of imagery. 

But here's a caveat - although end rhyme poetry is something just about every poet gravitates toward, it can also be a trap. Poets can spend hours agonising over how they are going to get their poetry to rhyme. Some end up sacrificing meaning and credibility by coming up with trite and banal end rhymes that detract from the beauty of the poem. 

You know what I'm talking about. It's a trap best avoided. If you are writing poetry with end rhymes, do make sure that the poem doesn't lose its sense or purpose because of a silly little end rhyme that matches sonically, but actually damages your poetry. 

Steve Wheeler

Image from Wikimedia Commons

Other posts in the Poetic Devices Series:

1. Simile

2. Metaphor

3. Repetition and refrains

4. Alliteration

5. Assonance