The differences between assonant and consonant rhyme.

Two of the most important elements of lyric and poetry construction.

Poetry is one of the most prolific arts throughout history throughout history and in which the greatest transmission of emotions and feelings are reflected through words. In fact, it involves putting into words what a person is feeling or feels about a particular subject. Lorca, Unamuno, Rubén Darío, Machado, Neruda, Rosalía de Castro or Bécquer are just some of the relatively modern Spanish exponents of this art. Within poetry, a great multitude of literary resources can be used. One of them is rhyme, which, although not essential, is often used in poetry as well as in music.

But not all rhymes are the same, and they can be classified according to different classifications. Among the two best known categories we find the assonant rhyme and the consonant rhyme, the differences of which we will talk about throughout this article.

The concept of rhyme

Before distinguishing between assonant and consonant rhyme, it is advisable to briefly review the concept of rhyme. Rhyming is understood as the fact of using a series of sounds or words with repeated or similar elements in two separate sentences, in such a way that a certain resonance is generated between them. This resonance is merely at an aesthetic level, and does not have to have anyIt is not necessarily related to grammar or lexicon.

As we have mentioned, it is a technique widely used in poetry and the use of language in verse, as well as in music. It is part of every elaboration created in verse, making up the lyrical genre.. Even the absence of rhyme is considered a type of rhyme, the white or free rhyme. Its main purpose is to produce a cadence or rhythm that contributes to make the message sent more beautiful and melodic.

As we have said, there are many types of rhyme depending on characteristics such as the rhymed or repeated elements, their presence or absence or the way in which the different verses are chained together. But of all of them, two are the main ones: assonant and consonant rhyme.

Assonant rhyme

It is understood by assonant rhyme the one that occurs between words of different verses in which are repeated, from the tonic syllable (specifically of its last vowel), the vowels of the last word of both verses. The consonants present in these words can vary enormously.The consonants present in them can vary enormously, not requiring any relation between those present in both words and assuming the use of different phonemes and sounds. In this way the words of both verses do not have to end exactly the same but their similarity and resonance is due to the repetition of the vowels.

This type of rhythm allows for greater flexibility when constructing a poem or poem.. They are considered imperfect rhymes, being mainly the sonority of the words that generate it.

An example of assonant rhyme can be seen in the following fragment of a poem by Bécquer, in which the even rhymes are assonant (sea and crystal, death and eternally, crepe and love):

May the sun be eternally cloudy The sea may dry up in an instant The axis of the earth may break Like a weak crystal everything will happen! May death Cover me with its funereal crepe But the flame of your love can never be extinguished The flame of your love.

Consonant rhyme

Formerly considered perfect rhymesconsonant rhymes are those that occur when the last word of two (or more) lines of verse contain the same phonemes starting from the tonic syllable. The sounds are identical, both at the level of vowels and consonants. Thus, the last word of rhyming lines has an identical ending.

It is important to note, however, that a rhyme can be consonant without the need for consonants in the word in question: it is only a matter of the sound being identical in its entirety. It should also be noted that we have said that we are talking about sounds and not letters. we are talking about sounds and not lettersThe exact same letter may not exist in both verses as long as it sounds the same way.

An example of consonant rhyme can be seen in the following fragment of a poem, in this case by Federico García Lorca (in which we can see how the endings -igo and -ores are repeated):

*I want to cry my sorrow and I tell you so. for you to love me and cry for me in an evening of nightingales with a dagger, with kisses and with you

I want to kill the only witness for the murder of my flowers and turn my weeping and my sweating into an eternal heap of hard wheat.

Similarities and differences

The similarities and differences between assonant rhyme and consonant rhyme are quite evident. are quite evident. In both cases we are before a literary resource used with great frequency in the lyric genre and even in other genres and arts. In both cases, vowels are also used as an element to generate rhythm and melody within the work.

On the other hand, the main difference is that in the case of assonant rhyme there is no complete overlapping of the sounds emitted between the rhyming verses, while this does happen with consonant rhyme. It can also be more difficult to generate a consonant rhyme because of the need to adapt the same sounds, although on the other hand, the assonant rhyme involves being clear about which specific sounds are to be repeated.