SOUND AND MEANING

The function of poetry is to convey

not only sounds, but meaning or
experience through sounds. In
good poetry, sound doesn’t exist
for its own sake, or for decoration,
but to enhance meaning. Its
function is to enhance the leading
player (meaning) and NOT to steal
the show (with sound)
How does sound create meaning?

1. Poet chooses words whose sound in

some degree suggests their meaning.
Ie: onomatopoeia, phonetic intensives
(fl= flame, or moving light)

1. Poet chooses words that have pleasing

(euphonious) or harsh (cacophonous)
sounds.
 How does sound create meaning?
3. Poets control the speed and movement of
the lines by the choice and use of meter,
the arrangement of vowel and consonant
sounds, and the addition of pauses. (long
vs. short vowels)

For example, it takes longer to say “Watch

dogs catch much meat” than to say, “My
aunt is away”, though the number of
syllables is the same.
How does sound create meaning?

4. Poets control both sound and meter in

such a way as to emphasize words that
are important in meaning.

For example, poets highlight words

through alliteration, assonance,
consonance, or rhyme.
Phonetic Intensive
 Phonetic Intensive
A word, whose sound, to some degree, connects with its
meaning.
An initial fl sound is often associated with moving light.
Flicker, flame, flash, flare
An initial gl sound is often associated with unmoving
light.
Glare, glint, gleam, glow, glisten, glimmer
An initial sl sound is often associated with slippery &
wet.
Slush, slime, sloppy, slobber, slide, slick
An initial st is often associated with strength.
Stout, staunch, sturdy, steady, stable, stocky
A short i is often associated with smallness.
Little, sip, kid, inch, imp, thin, chip,
pigmy, mini, bit, snip
A long o is often associated with melancholy.
Moan, groan, mourn, toll, doom, gloom,
moody, forlorn, woe

There seems to be enough of an association

between some sounds of certain words and their
corresponding meanings or ideas to suggest an
intrinsic relationship. A word like “flicker”,
through its sound, suggests its meaning (moving
Other examples
long -o- = melancholy or sorrow (moan,
groan, woe, mourn, forlorn, toll, doom,
gloom, moody)

Final –are = big light or noise (flare, glare,

stare, blare)

medial –att = particled movement (spatter,

scatter, shatter, chatter, rattle)

final–er and –le = repetition (glitter, flutter,

shimmer, whisper, jabber, chatter, clatter,
sputter, flicker, twitter, mutter, ripple,
bubble, twinkle, sparkle, jiggle)
Euphonious
and
Cacophonous
Another way poets can reinforce
meaning through sound is to choose
sounds and group them so that the
effect is smooth –euphonious- (U-
phone-e-us) or rough and harsh
sounding- cacophonous (Ca caw phun
ous). Vowels are generally more
pleasing sounding than consonants. A
line with more vowel sounds in
proportion to consonant sounds will be
more melodious.
Some consonants are mellifluous
(muh-LIF-loo-us) sometimes called
“liquids”: L, M, N, R, F, V
Some are harsher, such as the
“plosives”: B,D,G,K,P,T
These differences in sound are the
poets materials, or equipment.
Poets will use euphony and
cacophony as they are appropriate
to the content.
Euphony: smooth and pleasant
sounding syllables
“So smooth, so sweet, so silvery is thy
voice.”

Cacophony: rough and harsh sounding.

“As, could they hear, the Damned would
make no noise,”
Euphony
 Thequality of being pleasing to
the ear, especially through a
harmonious combination words

 Inother words, words or phrases

that sound pleasing to the ear
Euphony
The literary device euphony is derived
from the Greek word “euphonos” that
means sweet-voiced. It can be defined as
the use of words and phrases that are
distinguished as having a wide range of
noteworthy melody or loveliness in the
sounds they create. It gives pleasing and
soothing effects to the ears due to
repeated vowels and smooth consonants.
Euphony
It can be used with other literary
devices like alliteration, assonance and rh
yme to create more melodic effects.
Examples of euphony are commonly
found in poetry and literary prose.
Features of Euphony
Euphony involves the use of long vowels
that are more melodious than consonants.

Euphony involves the use of harmonious

consonants such as “l, m, n, r” and soft “f”
and “v” sounds.

Euphony uses soft consonants or semi-

vowels “w”, “s”, “y” and “th” or “wh”
extensively to create more pleasant
sounds.
Functions of Euphony
The purpose of using euphony is to bring
about peaceful and pleasant feelings in a piece
of literary work. The readers enjoy reading such
pieces of literature or poems. The long vowels
create more melodious effects than short
vowels and consonants, making the sounds
harmonious and soothing. The pronunciation
and enunciation become agreeable and easy.
Furthermore, euphony is used in poetry and
speeches to convey messages effectively to
the audience and the readers.
Cacophony
A harsh, discordant mixture of
sounds

 In other words, words or

phrases that sound harsh or
unpleasant to the hear
What is Cacophony?

Cacophony is the use of a combination

of words with loud, harsh sounds—in
reality as well as literature.  In literary
studies, this combination of words with
rough or unharmonious sounds are used
for a noisy or jarring poetic effect.
Cacophony is considered the opposite of
euphony which is the use of beautiful,
melodious-sounding words.
What is Cacophony?

If we speak literally, cacophony points to

a situation where there is a mixture of
harsh and inharmonious sounds. In
literature, however, the term refers to the
use of words with sharp, harsh, hissing
and unmelodious sounds primarily those
of consonants to achieve desired results.
Function of Cacophony

Writers use cacophony as a tool to

describe a discordant situation using
discordant words. The use of such
words allows readers to picture and
feel the unpleasantness of the
situation the writer has described
through words.
The Importance of Using Cacophony

Despite its harshness, cacophony is

used for musicality in writing. It makes
use of connotative sounds to create
disgust, frustration, or interest in the
reader with loudness, noisiness, and
energy in hard consonant sounds.
Cacophony creates interesting poems,
emotive prose, and playful songs.
What do Euphony and
Cacophony have in
common?
Sound Devices
Elements of literature
and poetry that
emphasize sound.
Alliteration 
It is the repetition of consonant sounds in
consecutive or neighboring words - usually
at the beginning of words. 

This device is used to enhance sound in the

poem. 

"So your chimney's I sweep, and in soot I

sleep,"
The repetition of identical consonant
sounds that begin syllables in close
patterns
Example: "While pensive poets painful
vigils keep"
Examples

Peter and Andrew patted the pony at Ascot

BETTER BE A BETTER BOY before you bother
 betting that you'll bring her back home again.
 Try to treat her like you treat a tender lady.
 Tell her truthfully that you'll make amends.
 She'll be upset for a while.
 But you can win with the smile. -Mick Terry
Assonance 
Assonance is the repetition of the same
or similar vowel sounds, especially in
stressed syllables. This device can also
enrich a poem. 

"Many a morning on the moorland did we

hear the copses ring[...]"

"Fleet feet sweep by sleeping geese." 

Assonance

The repetition of identical vowel sounds in

different words.
Example: "swift Camilla skims"
 Assonance: repetition of internal vowel sounds
Assonance differs from RHYME in that RHYME is a
similarity of vowel and consonant.
Rhyme: Lake, Fake
Assonance: Lake, fate

Poets may employ assonance

to enhance the musicality of the
poem, or to create mood and
tone.
Rhyme
In addition to alliteration and assonance, poets create
sound patterns with RHYME. 

Rhyme is the use of matching sounds in two or

more words : "tight" and "might"; "born" and
"horn"; "sleep and "deep". 

Perfect Rhyme: final vowel and consonant sounds

must be the same, as they are in each of the
preceding examples. 

Imperfect Rhyme : occurs when the final consonant

sounds in two words are the same but vowel
sounds are different. 
"Learn/ barn"  /  "pads/ lids". 
Rhyme can also be classified
according to the position of the
rhyming syllables in a line of verse. 
End Rhyme: occurs at the end of a line 
"Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forest of the night." 

Internal Rhyme: occurs within a line 

"The sun came up upon the left,
Out of the sea came he!
And he shone bright and on the right 
Went down into the sea." 
 
Beginning Rhyme: occurs at the
beginning of a line:
Red River, red river,
Slow flow heat is silence
No will is still as a river
Still. Will heat move. " 
 Onomatopoeia: the use of
words, which, at least
supposedly, sound like what
they mean
Onomatopoeia: A blend of consonant and vowel
sounds designed to imitate or suggest a
situation or action.
Example: "buzz"
Onomatopoeia doesn’t only
have to express the sounds of
animals (such as you learned
in middle school like hiss,
cock-a-doodle-do, and bow-
wow) but to express the
sounds and movements of
actions.
“The harness jingles”
“the mourners creak”
Consonance
The repetition of the same
consonant sound in neighboring
words
The consonant sound is not just in
the beginning but in the beginning
and middle or in the middle and
middle or in the middle and end or
in the beginning and middle and
middle and end
Consonance: the repetition of final
consonant sounds or sounds following
different vowel sounds in proximate words
(made/wood)
Odds and ends
First and last
Short and sweet
A stroke of luck
Euphony or Cacophony?
Euphony or Cacophony?
Euphony or Cacophony?
Euphony or Cacophony?
Euphony or Cacophony?
Cause with the lyrics I'll be aiming it right
I won't stop till my name's in lights
At stadium heights with Damien Rice
On red carpets, now I'm on Arabian Nights
Because I'm young and all my brothers
gonna give me advice
Long nighter, short height and I gone hyper
Never be anything but a singer-songwriter
The game's over but now I'm on a new level
Watch how I step on the track without a loop
pedal