Assonance is a type of figure of speech, called a figure of sound or harmony. It is characterized by the harmonic repetition of vowel sounds (vowels) in a sentence.
It is a stylistic resource widely used in literature, music and popular proverbs. It offers greater expressiveness to the text through the intensification of musicality and rhythm.
In addition to assonance, the most important figures of sound are: alliteration, paronomasia, onomatopoeia.
Examples
Check out two examples of assonance in music below:
"I swear I don't believeHey, I find you strangeHey/ I lean overHey about your body and I doubtHey/ And drag meHey and scratch youHey/ and grab meHey in your hair” (Atrás da Porta – Chico Buarque) – repetition of the vowels “hey”.
“My love/What will you dowas going/ If you only had this dwas going?/If the world were to end/Tell me what you'll dowas going” (What would you do – Lenin) – repetition of vowels “ia”.
Alliteration and Assonance
As for sound figures, there are two that generate more confusion. They are alliteration and assonance.
While assonance is the repetition of vowels, the alliteration is the repetition of consonants. To clarify further, see the examples below:
- Alliteration: "O PThetO PThetandtThe Pintor the caneco” (Vinícius de Moraes) – repetition of the consonants “p” and “t”.
- Assonance: “My mouth of Iguaçu/Pole suthere my azul/Light of feeling nu (Djavan) – repetition of the vowel “u”.
There are many cases where they are used in the same verse or phrase, for example:
“In the endthat, what andnlourece, andtrainece whatandrmthat…/The sun, celestial sunflower, andsmorece…/And the singsongs of serene gentle sounds/Fogem fliquids, fliquiding to fina flord of fenos…” (Eugênio de Castro)
In the example above we notice the use of both sound pictures. The alliteration of the “ss” and “c” phonemes, in addition to the repetition of the “f” consonants. Assonance is marked by the repetition of stressed vowels “e”.
Paronomasia
Another widely used sound picture is called the paronomasia. It receives this name because it uses paronyms as its main stylistic elements.
Remember that paronyms are terms that are similar in spelling and pronunciation, but differ in meaning, for example:
- Length (extension) and fulfillment (greeting)
- Emigrate (leave a country) and immigrate (enter a country)
- Flagrant (evident) and fragrant (fragrant)
- Inflation (high prices) and infringement (violation)
- Traffic (transit) and trafficking (illegal trade)
Check the definition of Homonyms and Paronyms.
Paronomasia is often used in colloquial language. In popular proverbs it occurs through puns and wordplay. Check out some examples of paronomasia below:
- After recreating, he went to recreate his world. (recreate - have fun; recreate - create again)
- I hear my bone creaking. (bone - part of the body; hear - verb hear)
- I ate so much that I do not need your pantry. (dismissal - act of dispensing; pantry - place where food is stored)
Onomatopoeia
This figure of sound is often used to give more expressiveness to texts. THE Onomatopoeia is marked by imitating the real sounds of animals, objects or people, for example:
- meow! The kitten in front of the house complained of hunger.
- O TIC Tac of the clock can be a torment.
Exercises
In the examples below, which sound pictures were used?
a) Alana was very sick and only the cough-chuff was heard.
b) For the boss, Pedro Pereira Pinto was ready.
c) The rocking of the sea animates the lover's soul.
d) The instruments of the choir were made of leather.
e) My heart vibrated with the balloon of St. John.
a) onomatopoeia
b) alliteration
c) assonance
d) paronomasia
e) assonance
Learn more about the topic by reading the articles:
- Figures of Language
- Thought Figures
- Word Pictures
- Syntax figures
- Sound Figures