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Difficulty: EasyAnalysis of Poetic Form, Structure, and Rhyme Scheme

Read the following stanza carefully:

The evening shadows gently fall,
Across the quiet, sleeping hill,
I hear the distant night-bird call,
While all the world is calm and still.

What is the rhyme scheme of the stanza above?

  1. ababAnswer
  2. B
    abba
  3. C
    aabb
  4. D
    abcb

Answer

abab
The end words of the first and third lines ('fall' and 'call') share the same sound ('a'), while the end words of the second and fourth lines ('hill' and 'still') share a second distinct sound ('b'). This creates the alternating pattern abab.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Examine the final word of each line in the stanza
Line 1 ends with 'fall', Line 2 ends with 'hill', Line 3 ends with 'call', Line 4 ends with 'still'.
Rhyme scheme is calculated by analyzing the end-rhymes of poetic lines.
2
Assign letters to matching end sounds sequentially
Assign 'a' to 'fall'. 'hill' does not rhyme with 'fall', so assign 'b'. 'call' rhymes with 'fall', so assign 'a'. 'still' rhymes with 'hill', so assign 'b'.
Identical end sounds receive identical letter designations.
3
Combine the letter sequence to form the rhyme scheme pattern
The sequence is a-b-a-b (abab).
Pattern mapping reveals an alternating rhyme scheme.

Key Concept

Identifying End-Rhyme Schemes in Unseen Poetry
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Topics

Analysis of Poetic Form, Structure, and Rhyme Scheme

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