Edgar Allen Poe

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Edgar Allen Poes Use of Poetic Sound Devices

• American Literature
• Unit 1 The Literary Style of Edgar Allen Poe

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Poes Poetry

• Poe said that The death of a beautiful woman is
  unquestionably the most poetical topic in the
  world
• Death is a common theme in his poetry and fiction

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Poes Poetry

• Poe said, I would define, in brief, the poetry
  of words as the rhythmical creation of Beauty
• In other words, Poe believed that poetry was the
  creation of beauty in rhythm.

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Poes Poetry

• To create rhythm, Poe used sound devices such as
  rhyme, alliteration, and assonance
• Rhyme Poe used not just end rhyme (rhyme at the
  end of lines) but internal rhyme

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Internal Rhyme

• Internal rhyme is rhyme within a single line of
  poetry
• Examples
• Now Im in the limelight cuz I rhyme tight
  (Notorious B.I.G.)
• Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered
  weak and weary (The Raven, E.A. Poe)
• For the moon never beams without bringing me
  dreams (Annabel Lee, E.A. Poe)

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Alliteration

• Alliteration is the repetition of consonant
  sounds at the beginning of words
• Examples
• Every Saturday Rap Attack, Mr. Magic, Marley
  Marl (Notorious B.I.G)
• And as the decibels of this disenchanting
  discourse continue to dampen the day (Live,
  White Discussion)
• They paved paradise, and put up a parking lot
  (Joni Mitchel, Big Yellow Taxi)
• Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered
  weak and weary (E.A. Poe, The Raven)

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Assonance

• Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds
  within words
• Examples
• A little old lady got mutilated late last night
  (Warren Zevon, Werewolves of London)
• What other sound technique is this an example of?
• Strips of tinfoil winking like people (Sylvia
  Plath, The Bee Meeting)
• Hear the mellow wedding bells (E.A. Poe,
  Bells)

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Repetition Makes Rhythm

• Any beat or rhythm is created by some kind of
  repetition
• The sound devices of rhyme, alliteration, and
  assonance all help to add pleasing rhythm to
  poetry
• Poe defined poetry as the rhythmical creation of
  beauty

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• TURN TO PAGE 198

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Review Practice Quiz

• 1. The death of a ________ ________ is
  unquestionably the most poetical topic in the
  world

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• 2. ________ _______ is rhyme within a single line
  of poetry
• 3. _____________ is the repetition of consonant
  sounds at the beginning of words
• 4. _____________ is the repetition of vowel
  sounds within words

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In your notebooks, write the words in each line
that are examples of internal rhyme.

• 5. Now Im in the limelight cuz I rhyme tight
  (Notorious B.I.G.)
• -light, tight
• 6. Once upon a midnight dreary, while I
  pondered weak and weary (The Raven, E.A. Poe)
• 7. For the moon never beams without bringing me
  dreams (Annabel Lee, E.A. Poe)

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Write the words that are an example of assonance,
and underline the letter or letters that make the
repeated sound.

• 8. A little old lady got mutilated late last
  night (Warren Zevon, Werewolves of London)
• 9. Strips of tinfoil winking like people
  (Sylvia Plath, The Bee Meeting)
• 10. Hear the mellow wedding bells (E.A. Poe,
  Bells)

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Write the words that are an example of
alliteration, and underline the letter or letters
that make the repeated sound.

• 11. Every Saturday Rap Attack, Mr. Magic, Marley
  Marl (Notorious B.I.G)
• 12. And as the decibels of this disenchanting
  discourse continue to dampen the day (Live,
  White Discussion)
• 13. They paved paradise, and put up a parking
  lot (Joni Mitchel, Big Yellow Taxi)
• 14. Once upon a midnight dreary, while I
  pondered weak and weary (E.A. Poe, The Raven)
• 15. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled
  peppers