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Assonance – how to understand it

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Definition

Assonance is a figure of speech featuring the repetition of vowel sounds.

The repetitions are usually close together, to create a euphonious effect.

Examples

‘The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain.’
‘We love to spoon ‘neath the moon in June.’
On either side the river lie
Long fields of barley and of rye
[TENNYSON - 'The Lady of Shalott']

Use

You can see from these examples that the device is used a lot in song lyrics and poetry.

Because the vowels are ‘open’ sounds, it creates a generally soothing effect.

The repeated sound also makes the text easy to memorise.

It is also popular in advertising, for the same reasons.

NB! This device can easily become cloying.

The repetition of vowel sounds creates rhyme and a generally soothing effect.

Phonologically, it is interesting to note that the same sound may be represented by different combinations of letters:

On either side the river lie
Long fields of barley and of rye

The same sound here is produced by /ei/, /i/, /ie/, and /ye/.

Self-assessment quiz follows …

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