HANOI UNIVERSITY

ENGLISH DEPARTMENT

RHYTHM IN ENGLISH VERSE AND

POETRY

Lecturer: Duong Minh Hoang

Group 8
Dinh Thi Hong Ngoc: 5A17 (100%)
Nguyen Thi Thu Ha: 5A17 (100%)
Ha Phuong Thao: 5A17 (100%)
Cao Thi Truong: 5A17 (100%)

Hanoi, 2019
1. Definition and key metrical units.

1.1. Definition:

The Oxford Learner’s Dictionary defines rhythm as ‘a strong regular

repeated pattern of sounds or movements’. The word rhythm comes from
the Greek term ‘rhythmos’, which means the ‘measured motion’ (Literary
Devices, n.d.) Simply put, according to Literary Devices, rhythm is a
literary tool used to demonstrate the patterns of sounds through the
stressed and unstressed syllables, especially in verse form.

1.2. Key metrical units

Rhythm is influenced by three key metrical units, namely syllable, stress

and foot.

1.2.1. Syllable

According to Strachan and Terry (2011), a syllable is ‘a word, or portion of

a word, made by a single effort of the organs of speech. It either forms a
word or is an element of a longer word’. Similar to any sort of language in
use, a line of verse can split into syllables. It can contain almost any
practical number of syllables up to eighteen. However, lines in English
poetry most commonly contain eight or ten syllables.

1.2.2. Stress

Stress is a term in phonetics to refer to the degree of force used in

producing a syllable (Crystal, 2019). In poetry, stress is, simply enough,
the emphasis placed upon a given syllable in the reading of a line.
Another way of thinking about stress is to think of the stressed syllables in
a verse line as the place where the beat falls.

1.2.3. Foot

Syllables gathered together in twos and threes form metrical units called
‘feet’. (Strachan & Terry, 2011). In fact, a foot is not restricted in the
boundary of a word. It can be formed by two or even three words. Feet are
gathered together in various numbers, but most commonly in groups of
four or five, to form ‘lines’. The foot (usually) starts with a stressed
syllable and continues up to, but not including, the next stressed syllable
form ‘lines’.  

2. Types of Rhythm 

2.1. Iamb
There are seven types of rhythm in English poetry, namely iamb, trochee,
dactyl, anapaest, spondee, pyrrhic and amphibrach in which the first four
types provide the base for entire poems. The first one, iambic meter, is
most commonly used in poems and verses. In Poetry (2011), Strachan and
Terry defined that an iambic meter is formed by one unstressed syllable
followed by one stressed syllable. Iambic tetrameter is considered as the
most particular kind written by many poets. This iambic stanza in a poem
written by Marlowe is a great example: 

Come live with me and be my love

And we will all the pleasures prove,

That hills and valleys, dales and fields,

And all the craggy mountains yields.

William Shakespeare is very famous for using iambic meter in his plays
and poems, especially iambic pentameter which consists of five iambic
feet per line. This famous Shakespeare’s The Rape of Lucrece is one of the
most typical poems written in iambic pentameter: 

But she hath lost a dearer thing than life,

And he hath won what he would lose again.

This forced league doth force a further strife,

This momentary joy breeds months of pain;

This hot desire converts to cold disdain.

2.2. Trochee

Trochaic meter, another type of rhythm, is the opposite of iamb with one
accented syllable followed by one unaccented syllable (Strachan & Terry,
2011). It is regularly used in moving, inspiring poetry and anthems 

Land of hope and glory, Mother of the Free,

How shall we extol thee, who are born of thee?

(A. C. Benson, 1902)

Like the iambic tetrameter, trochaic tetrameter is also popular in English

verses. William Blake took great advantage of trochaic tetrameter spirit in
his poem ‘The Tyger’ (1794):
 Tyger Tyger, burning bright, 

In the forests of the night; 

What immortal hand or eye, 

Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

2.3. Dactyl

“A dactyl is a foot where a stressed syllable is followed, like an engine

pulling two coaches, by two unstressed ones” (Strachan & Terry, 2011) as
in the words ANimal and DIFferent. An example of an English sentence
having dactyl pattern is “There ONCE was a BOY from ChiCAgo”. A poem
written by a number of dactyl meters often has a musical quality, such as
in a limerick. The famous poem “The Charge of the Light Brigade” by
Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1854) contains perfect examples of dactyl pattern.

Cannon to / right of them,

Cannon to / left of them,

Cannon in / front of them

Volleyed and / thundered;

Stormed at with / shot and shell

The most essential purpose of dactylic rhythm is creating smooth

movement and a break in each line. Moreover, it makes poems sound
more pleasing and delightful by using stressed and unstressed patterns
(Cushman & Greene, 2016).

2.4. Anapest

“An anapest is a metrical foot which consists of three syllables, with two
unstressed syllables followed by a stressed one”  (Strachan & Terry, 2011)
as in the words souvenIR or underSTAND. An example of an English
sentence having anapest pattern is “He must FInish his HOMEwork
aLONE”. In fact, anapestic words are more commonly found in other
languages, such as French, rather than in English. In “The Wordsworth
Book of Limericks” (1998) selected by Linda Marsh having some poems
using anapest meter:

There was / a young wife / from Peoria

Who checked in/to the Waldorf Astoria

 Where she stayed / for a week

With two Swedes / and a Greek

In a state / of near-to/tal euphoria

The stressed syllable at the end of an anapest creates strong rhyming

lines, which contributes to music quality in poems. Thanks to anapest foot,
the words can flow freely and artistic lines can be created, making this
type a perfect metrical foot for light-hearted poems like limericks and
children's stories (Cushman & Greene, 2016).

3. Effects of using rhythm in poetry

It is undeniable that rhythm has powerful effects on poetry. Firstly, rhythm

can make poems different from normal speech and easier to remember.
Obviously, we can not remember exactly the speech we said or an essay
we read last year, last month or even an hour before but we can easily
recite a poem that we heard a long time ago. The reason is that poet
usually uses regular rhythms throughout the poem, which can create a
rhythmic pattern (Karen, n.d.). Many modern poems that do not adhere to
rigid rhythms are still easier to remember than other speeches because
the rhythm in these poems contributes to the feeling of readers (Karen,
n.d.). Moreover, rhythm has traditionally been a device to strengthen the
expression of meaning and contribute to the presentation of the
messages (Amittai, 1994). Different rhythms can have different effects on
readers in each particular poem. Below is a part of a poem named “The
Soldier” by Rupert Brooke (2009): 

If I should die, think only this of me:

That there's some corner of a foreign field

That is forever England. There shall be

In that rich earth a richer dust concealed.

The rhythm in The Soldier sounds like soldiers marching to war. When we
read this poem loudly, we can imagine an image including soldiers, the
severity of the war and even the feelings of the poet. Thanks to using
rhythm, the poem is almost like an epistolary. 

“Monotone” (1916) is another poem in which Sandburg used special

rhythm to help the readers get to experience the sound of rain while they
are reading. This is the beginning part of “Monotone”:    
 The monotone of the rain is beautiful,

And the sudden rise and slow relapse

Of the long multitudinous rain.

In this poem, the poet creates a feeling of peace and calmness (Laura,
2006). Only by using words with rhythm ingeniously does Sandburg bring
the messages and ideas of the poem closer to readers.

4. Conclusion

In conclusion, rhythm always plays an important role in poetry. Through

the rhythm, readers can catch the messages easier and understand what
the poet wants to express more thoroughly. Knowing what rhythm is and
how rhythm affects the poem content can help us analyze English
literature better. In order to understand the meaning of the literary works
deeply, we not only analyze the content but also other elements,
especially rhythm.

 
 References

Amittai, F. A. (1994). Telling Rhythm: Body and Meaning in Poetry. USA:

University of Michigan Press.
Crystal, D. (2019). The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language
(3rd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Cushman, S., & Greene, R. (2016). The Princeton Handbook of Poetic
Terms (3rd ed.). New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
Karen, F. (n.d.). Why Are Rhythm & Rhyme Important in Poems? Retrieved
December 10, 2019, from https: //education.seattlepi.com/rhyme-
important-poems-6546.html 
Laura, J. N. (2006). Listening to the Rhythm and Tone of Poetry to
Increase Comprehension. Retrieved December 12, 2019, from
http://teachersinstitute.yale.edu/curriculum/units/2011/3/11.03.06.x.h
tml
Literary Devices (n.d.). Rhythm. Retrieved December 8, 2019, from
https://literarydevices.net/rhythm/
Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries. Retrieved December 8, 2019,
from https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/
Strachan, J., & Terry, R. (2011). Poetry. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University
Press.