With the help of a combination of sounds, an emotional effect on a person can be exerted, which is especially perceived when reading fiction literary works. One example of a composition that profoundly impacts the reader is Dorianne Laux’s poem Kissing Again. After the first reading, one gets the impression that there is no rhyme at all in this poem. However, after spending more time reading, the subtle sound organization of the piece can be noticed.
Alliteration makes the version more euphonious, filled with emotion, and easier to remember. In turn, Meyer and Miller (2019) assert that excess of alliterations is irritating and distracts from the message of the text. However, Laux used this technique (for example, “just salt / and the liquid swells set in motion / by the moon”) quite succinctly and unobtrusively, which gives the piece a sensuality (7).
The unity of the verse is displayed at the semantic, intonation, and syntactic levels. Meyer and Miller (2019) note that it can be complemented by the unity of the phonological organization, which often forms strong connections within the verse. For this, the author used rhymes such as moon-Istanbul, spongy-tongue, feels-fields, and streams-creeks. In turn, the use of such stylistic techniques as assonance (sex -yes; kids-bills-windows; give – receive, between-coffee) and consonance (kiss – caress, swelling – reveling) presented the work with originality and expressiveness. Robinson (2018) asserts that the artistic significance of alliterations, assonances, and other means of phonics is enhanced in a poetic context because they are included in the system of symbolic means of language used in the text. Thus, the use of phonetic means in this poem made it euphonious, gave imagery to speech, improved its perception by readers, and influenced their imagination.
References
Laux, Dorianne. (2015). Kissing Again. The Writer’s Almanac. Web.
Meyer, M., & Miller, D. Q. (2019). Literature to go (4th ed.). Macmillan Higher Education.
Robinson, P. (2018). The sound sense of poetry. Cambridge University Press.