Onomatopoeia examples in poetry
OnomatopoeiaDefinition of OnomatopoeiaOnomatopoeia refers to a word that phonetically mimics or resembles the sound of the thing it describes. For example, the words we use to describe the noises that animals make are all onomatopoetic, such as a dogs bark, a cats meow, or a coos moo. Interestingly, the onomatopoetic words for animal sounds change quite a bit from one language to another, as the words must fit into the larger linguistic system. Therefore, while a pig says oink in English, it says buu in Japanese, grunz in German, knor, in Dutch, and so on. Show The definition of onomatopoeia comes from a compound Greek word for the sound/name I make. In this way, an onomatopoetic word is the sound that the thing being described makes. Common Examples of OnomatopoeiaAs noted above, almost all animal noises are examples of onomatopoeia. There are hundreds of other onomatopoeia examples in the English language, however. Here are some categories of words, along with examples of each:
There is a tradition in comic books of using onomatopoeias during fight scenes. These words, such as wham, pow, and biff, often accompany an image of a character knocking out another one to add a sense of sound effects. The comic book writer and artist Roy Crane popularized this tradition, inventing words such as ker-splash and lickety-wop to further diversify the range of sounds imitable in comic books. Significance of Onomatopoeia in LiteratureOnomatopoeia is often used in literature to create aural effects that mimic the visual thing being described. Authors sometimes use combinations of words to create an onomatopoetic effect not necessarily using words that are onomatopoetic in and of themselves. For example, in Samuel Taylor Coleridges Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Coleridge uses the phrase furrow followed free to mimic the sound of the wake left behind a ship. Examples of Onomatopoeia in LiteratureExample #1
(The Tempest by William Shakespeare) The character of Ariel in Shakespeares play The Tempest uses several examples of onomatopoeia in one short passage. The dogs bark and say bow-wow while the chanticleer cries cock-a-diddle-dow. Shakespeare is thus using the onomatopoeias of animal noises here. Example #2
(Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare) This exchange from Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet is an interesting example of onomatopoeia. The character Peter says Ill re you, Ill fa you. Do you note me? The re and fa refer to the Solfege scales, which includes the notes do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, ti, and do. Therefore his usage of two of those notes is onomatopoetic, but he always uses it as a pun by following up with Do you note me? In this question, note takes on the double entendre of meaning do you understand me? as well as referring to the musical notes. The musician to whom he is speaking picks up on the joke and uses it back at Peter. Example #3
(Ulysses by James Joyce) Some authors love to create new words; both William Shakespeare and James Joyce were well-known for doing so. In this excerpt from his famously dense novel Ulysses, Joyce creates a nonce word tattarrattat for the sound of knocking at a door (a nonce word is a word that is created only for a special case). He combines other onomatopoetic words for knocking at a door, like rap and tap into one long word. After Joyce created this word, it is now listed as the longest palindrome in the English language. Example #4
(The Bells by Edgar Allen Poe) Edgar Allen Poes famous poem The Bells is one of the most onomatopoetic works of literature in history. He describes four different types of bells, including the loud alarum bells from these excerpts, as well as the silver bells on sledges, the mellow golden bells of weddings, and iron bells. In each stanza, Poe uses vastly different onomatopoetic words to mimic the sounds of the different bells. The silver bells, for example, jingle and tinkle in a world of merriment. The jingle and tinkle are light-sounding words, connoting joy and ease. The mellow wedding bells produce a gush of euphony that swells. Meanwhile the iron bells toll and, as Poe writes, every sound that floats / From the rust within their throats /Is a groan. These noisesthe toll and groanmimic the sound of anguish and solemnity. Finally, the loud alarum bells, as shown in this excerpt, produced such an effect on Poe that they warranted two stanzas. We see words like shriek, clang, clash, roar, twanging, and clanging, all words that Poe uses to make the turbulent and alarming sounds. Example #5
(I heard a Fly buzz when I died by Emily Dickinson) Emily Dickinson describes the sounds she hears as shes dying in her poem I heard a Fly buzz when I died . The sound of the buzz is an onomatopoetic word. She also describes a stillness in the room. The use of onomatopoeia to begin her poem creates an auditory landscape, which she then fills with other imagery. Example #6
(Onomatopoeia by Todd Rundgren) This fun poem by Todd Rundgren uses many different examples of onomatopoeia to describe the ineffable feeling he gets in his heart when seeing a love interest. This is another good use of onomatopoeiawhen there arent better words to get the reader to understand, sometimes creating a feeling through onomatopoeia can better get across the point. Test Your Knowledge of Onomatopoeia1. Which of the following statements is the correct onomatopoeia definition?
2. Which of the words in the following excerpt from Ernest Hemingways For Whom the Bell Tolls is an example of onomatopoeia?
A. Nothing
3. Which of the following excerpts from Robert Frosts poem Birches contains examples of onomatopoeia? A.
B.
C.
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