Made for Dept of English, Faculty of Arts, Jazan University, Ministry of Higher Education, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

2. We have to consider the age and level of
the students. Students of different ages and
levels attended my class.
 In my class this semester, for instance, there
was a great interest in learning the subject
coupled with a general lack of knowledge
of even basic English in some students.
Potential and ability are high but the
foundation is poor. Thus things have to be
pitched at a level where the odd „gifted‟
learner does not feel left out and the
weakest one is not at a loss too.


3. Alliteration:
“Alliteration is the use of the same consonant
sound (or vowel sound) in words that are near
each other. It is the sound, not the letter, that is
important: therefore 'city' and 'code' do not
alliterate, but 'kitchen' and 'code' do. So does
“Indian inside” and “one veil.” Strictly
speaking, it is alliteration when these same
sounds come at the start of the words, or at the
start of their first stressed syllable(Middle
English); it becomes consonance when similar
consonant sounds are found in other places
within the word.”


4. Alliteration can be
 Consonance of first sound
 Assonance of first sound
 Sameness of first accented syllable in
two neighbouring words.
 A general term used for alliteration,
consonance and assonance – as in: “The
poet uses alliteration.”


5. What a consonant is. “In articulatory
phonetics, a consonant is a speech sound
that is articulated with
complete or partial closure of the vocal
tract.” For ease: Sounds that are not
vowels, in the alphabet, and their phonetic
variations. (b,c,d...etc., till z)
 Give an example of alliteration and
consonants (please note that I mean
consonants, and not consonance.
 “around the con rock
the ragged rascal ran“.


6. “Consonance is a poetic device
characterized by the repetition of the same
consonant two or more times in short
succession, as in "pitter patter" - Wikipedia.
 "The repetition of final consonant sounds, as
in 'First and last,' 'odds and ends,' 'short and
sweet,' 'a stroke of luck,' or Shakespeare's
'struts and frets' is CONSONANCE."
(Laurence Perrine, Literature:
Structure, Sound, and
Sense, Harcourt, 1978)


7. ”Assonance is the repetition
of vowel sounds in words appearing
after their first syllables.” (a,e,i,o,u and its
variants, phonetically speaking.)
 Eg:-“But he grew old -This knight so bold”
– Poe/El Dorado


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Exercise:
Read the following poem‟s first four lines.
Underline the alliterative words in each line.
Circle the assonantal words in each line.
Capitalize consonance.
Hint: Sometimes two words can
be alliterative, consonantal and/or assonantal.
My Puppy Punched Me In the Eye
My puppy punched me in the eye.
My rabbit whacked my ear.
My ferret gave a frightful cry
and roundhouse kicked my rear.
–Kenn Nesbitt

9. Line 1: Alliteration and assonance
 Line 2:
Alliteration, consonance, assonance.
 Line 3. Alliteration, consonance and
assonance
 Line 4. Alliteration, consonance and
assonance.
 The point is there is room for more than
one answer.


10. Since we get many answers in such
lines, we must try to be simple and clear
at level 5 and not teach as if the
students are in level 8.
 What is important is comprehension of
the definitions, not memorization of the
same, bringing in no or minimal
confusion, clear and good examples
and finally as my learning objective the
performance of understanding.


11. 
Beyond teaching the definitions and giving
examples and making students spot or identify
these things in the poems the aim of the lessons
must be to make the students ask why the poet
uses such devices and how (functional analysis)
and to what effect. Unless this kind of analysis is
reached at and the student gives sensible answers,
out of a simple and clear understanding and
enjoyment and appreciation of the beauty of
poetry, the teacher cannot be happy.

12. The aim must be to help students to love
language and literature and of course,
the subset poetry, and not to get lost in
these dry and boring technicalities
 Thank you.


13. Wikipedia
 Various other sources on the internet and
elsewhere…mainly Googled.
