Syllable: the word for the beat in the word. However, nothing is that simple. Some syllables stamp, some just touch down and lift off. There are strong ones and weak ones, stressed and unstressed ones. \u2018Syllable\u2019 has 3 syllables: \u2018syll\u2019 stamps firmly, while \u2018ab\u2019 and \u2018le\u2019 tread lightly. Counting syllables is good for haiku, (the three line, 17 syllable Japanese poetic form), but it\u2019s a bad way to measure the beat in a poem.<\/p>\n
Listen to this verse taken from a chant made up by a group of children visiting an ancient burial mound by the sea:<\/p>\n
\u2018River, ripple, shiver, quiver,
\nApron of the giantess.
\nRock, tomb, jag, knife,
\nChamber of a thousand bones.\u2019<\/p><\/blockquote>\nThat\u2019s 8 syllables in the first line, then 7, then 4, then 7. However, there are four stressed beats in every line. The children stamped the floor 4 times for each line as they chanted it. In \u2018River, ripple, shiver, quiver\u2019, they stamped only the first syllable of each word. In \u2018Rock, tomb, jag, knife\u2019 they stamped all 4 syllables even harder.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Syllable: the word for the beat in the word. However, nothing is that simple. Some syllables stamp, some just touch down and lift off. There are strong ones and weak ones, stressed and unstressed ones. \u2018Syllable\u2019 has 3 syllables: \u2018syll\u2019 stamps firmly, while \u2018ab\u2019 and \u2018le\u2019 tread lightly. Counting syllables is good for haiku, (the… Continue reading Syllables<\/span>