Elements of Poetry
Rhyme
When people are asked to define poetry, they often say, "Lines that rhyme." It is true that poems can rhyme, but you should be very careful when trying to make a poem rhyme. One mistake that beginning poets make is to start with one line, and then simply brainstorm rhyming words to shape the next line. Instead, you should come up with the poem first, and then revise to include rhyme. That way, you make sure that the message is what shapes the poem and it doesn't go off course because you had to choose a word that rhymed but didn't make sense.
Although I always warn my students against using rhyme, there are some benefits to it. How many of you can finish the next two lines from this poem, "'Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house....." Most of you remember quite a few lines from this classic because of the rhyme: it makes it easy to remember what comes next. Go back to the books you read or your parents read to you as a small child. How many of them rhyme? Which of the other sound devices can you pick out? These make literature especially appealing to children, and part of us never loses that attraction to literature that sounds good.
There are different kinds of rhymes, and poetic license makes it okay for writers to use any of these types and maintain a rhyme scheme.
True rhyme: words that rhyme with all ending sounds: Example: trouble and bubble.
Slant rhyme: words that are very similar on the end but do not truly rhyme. Example: quick and look; dizzy and easy
Sight rhyme: words that look alike but do not rhyme. Example: though and bough; good and food
End rhyme: words that rhyme and occur at the ends of different lines of poetry
Internal rhyme: two words that rhyme within one line of poetry
Rhyme Scheme: the pattern of rhyme in a poem. To get the rhyme scheme, each line in the poem is assigned a letter. The first line gets an "A". If the next line rhymes with the first, give it an "A" also. If not, give it a "B". Continue throughout the poem, following the same rules: if the end word rhymes with anything before, match that letter. If not, give it the next unused letter of the alphabet.
If you do choose to use rhyme, use a rhyming dictionary to open up your choices. You can get hard copies of these, or link to some through the resources link on this site. Also, don't rely only on rhyme to give a pleasing sound to your poem. Experiment with the other sounds devices as well.