Legends, Tales and Poems. Bécquer Gustavo Adolfo
are called feminine, if the rhyme words end in a vowel.
Rhymes are called masculine, if the rhyme words end in a consonant.
NOTE: Final s and final n, especially in the plural of nouns and in verbs, do not count. Therefore, penas and arenas would form a feminine rhyme.
There are two kinds of rhyme: Consonance and Assonance.
Consonantal rhyme is one in which all the letters, vowels and consonants, are the same from the accented syllable to the end of the word, e.g. bruma—espuma; flor—amor.
In consonantal rhyme both consonants and vowels should agree exactly (sonante—errante); b and v can, however, rhyme together, since they represent the same sound, e.g. estaba—esclava; haba—clava.
The following are a few general rules for consonantal rhyme.
1. A word should not rhyme with itself. Sometimes, however, a simple word rhymes with a derivative (menor—pormenor) or two derivatives with each other (menosprecio—desprecio).
2. The tenses of verbs which end in -aba, -ando, -áis, -éis; the present and past participles of regular verbs; adverbs with the termination -mente; verbal nouns ending in -miento, -ción, and other similar endings,—should not rhyme together.
3. Words similar in sound and form but distinct in meaning may rhyme.
son ('sound')—son ('are')
4. If an unaccented weak vowel (i, u) precedes or follows a strong vowel in the same syllable of a word, it is absorbed by the strong vowel, and does not count in the rhyme. Therefore, vuelo and cielo rhyme; also muestra and diestra.
When the vowels from the accented syllable to the end of the word are the same, but the consonants are different, the rhyme is called assonance. Therefore, inflaman and pasa assonate in á-a; negros and creo in e-o.
1. In words accented on the last syllable (agudas), the assonance is that of the last syllable only, e.g. perdón—espiró; azul—tú.
2. In words accented on the antepenult (esdrújulas) or on a preceding syllable, only the accented syllable and the final syllable count for purposes of assonance. Therefore, fábula and lágrimas assonate in á-a; trémulo and vértigo assonate in é-o.
3. Words accented on the last syllable (agudas) cannot assonate with words accented on the penult (llanas), or with those accented on the antepenult (esdrújulas) or upon any preceding syllable.
4. In words llanas or esdrújulas the assonance is of two vowels only. In diphthongs the accented vowel only is considered if the diphthong occur in an accented syllable. Therefore, verte and duermes assonate in e-e; baile and parte assonate in a-e.
5. Words llanas may assonate with words accented on the antepenult (esdrújulas). Therefore, pórtico and olmos assonate in ó-o.
6. For purposes of assonance little use is made of words accented on a syllable preceding the antepenult.
7. In a final accented or unaccented syllable u and i are absorbed, for purposes of assonance, by a preceding or following a, o, or e. Therefore, sabia and gratia assonate in á-a; igual and mar assonate in a, pleita and pliega assonate in é-a.
8. If in assonance a weak vowel is united in a diphthong with a strong vowel, the assonance is called compound assonance, e.g. guarda—fatua.
9. Assonance between two single vowels is called simple assonance, e.g. sangre—trae.
This distinction is of little value, however, for verses in simple and compound assonance alternate constantly.
10. In the case of two strong vowels forming a diphthong after an accented syllable, the following rules apply.
a. a in a final unaccented syllable predominates over a preceding or succeeding o in the same syllable. Therefore, Astárloa and Dánao assonate in á-a.
b. a in a final unaccented syllable predominates over a preceding or following e in the same syllable. Therefore, corpórea and rósea assonate in ó-a.
c. o in a final unaccented syllable predominates over a preceding e in the same syllable. Therefore, óleo and erróneo assonate in ó-o; but o in a final unaccented syllable is dominated by a following e in the same syllable, and the e counts in the assonance. Therefore, héroe and veces assonate in é-e.
11. When two weak vowels (i, u) are united in a diphthong, the second predominates. Thus triunfo and chulo assonate in ú-o; cuido and bendito assonate in i-o.
12. There are twenty possible assonances in Spanish: á, ó, é, i, ú, á-a, á-e, á-o, é-a, é-e, é-o, ó-a, ó-e, ó-o, i-a, i-e, i-o, ú-a, ú-e, ú-o.
13. Words that have in the final unaccented syllable i or u, not in diphthongs, are considered for purposes of assonance as if ending in e or o respectively. Therefore, fácil and nave assonate in á-e; espíritu and líquido, in i-o.
14. If ai occurs in a syllable after an a in the accented syllable, the i rather than the a of the diphthong counts in the assonance. Therefore, cantares and trocabais assonate in á-e. If the accented vowel is not a, the a of ai counts in the assonance. Therefore, Vicenta and quisierais assonate in é-a.
15. Consonantal rhyme should not be introduced in compositions written in assonance. This rule is not always observed (see pp. 183–184, LIII).
16. The assonance of alternate lines (the even numbers) is the rule in modern Spanish. If the composition is short the same assonance may be kept throughout.
Blank Verse.—Verses which lack both consonantal rhyme and assonance occur in Spanish, and are called versos sueltos (or libres). Compositions in blank verse are, however, extremely difficult to write in Spanish, and are therefore comparatively rare.
STROPHES
The strophe is frequently of arbitrary length, yet when the poet has once fixed the measure of his strophe he is supposed to preserve the same measure throughout. The following are some of the strophic arrangements in Spanish.
1. Pareados are pairs of contiguous verses of the same number of syllables, which rhyme[1] together in pairs.
[Footnote 1: By rhyme hereafter shall be understood consonantal rhyme, unless otherwise indicated.]
2. Tercetos are a series of strophes, in the first of which the first verse rhymes with the third, and, from the second strophe on, the first and third verse of each successive strophe rhyme with the middle verse of the preceding strophe. This form of verse is known in Italian as terza rima. The composition ends with a serventesio (see below), of which the first and third verses rhyme with the middle verse of the preceding strophe. The rhyme-scheme, then, would be a b a, b c b, c d c, etc., d e d e.
3. Cuartetas, properly so called, are strophes of four eight-syllable verses, of which the second verse rhymes (or is in assonance) with the fourth. Cuarteta is likewise a general name given to strophes of four verses.
Serventesios are strophes of four hendecasyllables, of which the first rhymes or assonates with the third, and the second with the fourth.
4. Redondillas are strophes of four eight-syllable (or sometimes six-syllable) verses which rhyme as follows: a b b a.
5. Cuartetos are strophes of four hendecasyllables with the rhyme-scheme a b b a. It is not customary to put a final word that is aguda in the uneven verses of compositions written in hendecasyllables, or in verses that rhyme with them. Sometimes the four verses are esdrújulos.
6. Romances, which are the most used