Consonance is a literary device that repeats consonants in sequence and is often confused with alliteration. It provides varied hearing range, emphasizes words, and creates an almost hypnotic rhythm. Consonance gives a “bounce” to a poem and creates an auditory journey for the reader. It also provides greater depth and texture to words, pointing out a closer semantic link between them.
Consonance, the repetition of consonants within two or more words in sequence, is a popular and multifaceted literary device. It is often confused with alliteration, which is a type of consonance. Consonance performs many functions similar to alliteration, as well as special functions of its own. In general, consonance in poetry provides a varied hearing range.
Modern poems use consonance as an oblique or nearly oblique rhyme. This consonance in inclination or quasi-rhyme allows the writer greater creative freedom when creating his poem. Consonance in poetry also emphasizes the words forcing the audience to pause and think more deeply about the “rhyming” words. This is because it disrupts the public’s expectations of traditional rhyme.
A consonance stream is intended to draw the audience into the words. This happens through the measured rhythm that takes on the consonance, just like the beats in rap music. Consonance in poetry can take on an almost hypnotic rhythm that captivates the audience without being as obvious as alliteration. Using different types of consonance within a poem also prevents it from sounding like a nursery rhyme, unlike a poetic device like alliteration.
The use of consonance in poetry, just like other poetic devices such as assonance and alliteration, is said to give a “bounce” to a poem. The repeated consonant is always on the stressed syllable, which creates an even more stressed sound on consonant words. When mixed with other words within the phrase that have consonance, one’s voice naturally rises and falls, creating a “bouncy” sound. This sound naturally excites the ears and brain.
Attention to the many parts of each word and phrase combined with the excitement that consonance brings serves as a leitmotif that carries the audience through the poem. These components act as a satisfying activity and even an auditory journey for the reader or listener. It makes the reader anticipate the upcoming lines within the poem and feel the desire to continue to the end. The poem therefore has the potential to become almost like a game to the audience if the poet so chooses to use consonance in this way.
Consonance can also provide greater depth and texture to words. This is because when certain words use consonance, especially double consonance or pararima, it points out that there may be a closer semantic link between the words and the emotion being conveyed within the poem. This consonance function is often used by both modern poets and novelists.
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