Rhythm and rhyme are the primary defining characteristics of both poetry and songwriting.
Poetry does not have to have a definite rhythmic or rhyming pattern in order to be called a poem.
These patterns (of which there are many) mostly come from the older formal styles of poetry, although there are some newer patterns too.
'Free verse', with its deliberate departure from noticeable patterns, has been popular for some decades now.
Just because free verse is more recent does not mean it is necessarily better (or worse) than poems with the old patterns, however.
There are advantages and disadvantages to each.
Free verse may be more adventurous, provocative and fun.
It is also often much harder to read - especially if you weren't its author.
Both rhythm and rhyming patterns of old don't only appeal to use because of their association with childhood verses.
The musical quality of many rhyming poems appeals to us on a deeper level.
Rhythm depends on a beat, as in music.
It is created by whole words, syllables, punctuation and spaces; carefully put together to a pleasing pattern.
Remember that pauses, such as those created by commas, influence the beat just as much as the words themselves.
The measurement unit is called the foot (or feet, in plural.
) Rhythm is obtained by using the various sounds in words - such as soft and loud syllables, and even the silences between them - in regular, discernible patterns.
There should be stressed beats - such as you may get from accented syllables - and there should be off-beats, from syllables that aren't accented.
For example, the word 'determine' has an accented beat in the middle syllable, but the last syllable is not accented.
The beat pattern you set in your first stanza (or half-dozen lines or so), is likely to be the rhythm your readers will expect to find through the rest of the poem, so keep to it unless you have good reason to change.
The length of words, and especially the number of syllables, with influence the rhythm 's speed.
If you use mostly one-syllable words, you will have a faster rhythm than if you have longer words.
Rhyme: Rhyme can be meticulous, with words that have exactly the same sound; or it can be less strict, with words that are very close in rhyme, but not exactly the same.
There are well-known rhyming patterns, such as ABAB, or AABBAn ABAB pattern is when the end of the 1st and 3rd verses (lines) of a stanza rhyme with each other, and the 2nd and 4th rhyme with each other, but the 2nd and 4th do not rhyme with each other.
An AABB pattern is when the first two verses rhyme, and so do the 3rd and 4th, but 1st and 2nd verses don't rhyme with the 3rd and 4th.
There are many other rhyming patterns that may be used too.
True rhyming words have the same sound, regardless of spelling.
Words that are not true rhymes, but are sometimes used when a strict adherence to rules is required include: 1) Words that look the same but don't sound the same.
(eg tough and cough) 2) Words that have different numbers of syllables (eg.
Invent and bent) 3) Words with the same final consonants or consonant blends (e.
g.
depth and faith) 4) Words with similar vowel sounds but different consonant sounds.
(e.
g.
pain and fame).
In most poetry, if the last word contains more than one syllable, its last syllable should be accented, in order to obtain the best effect of the rhyme.
A rhyming pattern, once set, will be expected by your reader for the rest of the poem.
Try not to force a rhyme, because it will feel strained.
If a word doesn't seem to quite fit, look for a better word.
Rhythmic patterns don't just occur in poetry; but when found in prose, they are called 'cadence'.
Poetical patterns add 'music' to the words we hear or read, and thus can add to the value of our lives.