If Music be the Food of Love, Play on!

While poems can differ in style, almost all poems are meant to be read aloud and poets spend a lot of time working with the sound of words. Poetry is similar to theatre, it's meant to be performed, so it is important to read a poem out loud to hear the music of the words.

The poet puts a lot of time and energy into rhyme, alliteration, assonance (the repetition of similar vowel sounds), consonance (the repetition of consonant sounds), tone, voice, diction, euphony (a group of words with a smooth, pleasing sound), and cacophony (a group of words that sounds harsh and grating) so you're not fully appreciating a poem until you hear it read aloud.

Some poems, like our example, may not even use real words! But even reading a poem full of imaginary words can still describe a mood just by the SOUND of the words being read aloud.

Read Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky" and think of what emotions the author is trying to create with the words he uses.

Jabberwocky

'Twas brilling, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe.

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!

The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!

Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun

The frumious Bandersnatch!"

He took the vorpal sword in hand:

Long time the manxome foe he sought -

So rested he by the Tumtum tree,

And stood awhile in thought.

And, as in uffish though he stood,

The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,

Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,

And burbled as it came!

One two! One two! And through and through

The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!

He left it dead, and with its head

He went galumphing back.

"And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?

Come to my arms, my beamish boy!

Oh frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!"

He chortled in his joy.

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe.

Now that you've read Carroll's "Jabberwocky," press play and listen to someone else read the Jabberwocky aloud. Does it still carry that same emotion? Even though you may not have heard many of the words before, do you still understand the meaning of the poem?

Now, just for fun, here is the Muppet's version of "Jabberwocky"...remember what I said about poetry being similar to theatre? Here's a great example of poetry being performed!




If you would like to hear other poems read aloud, check out Poetry Out Loud!

Or listen to these podcasts from Poetry Off the Shelf!


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