Chain rhyme is a

rhyme scheme A rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhymes at the end of each line of a poem or song. It is usually referred to by using letters to indicate which lines rhyme; lines designated with the same letter all rhyme with each other. An example of the ABAB rh ...

that links

stanza In poetry, a stanza (; from Italian ''stanza'', ; ) is a group of lines within a poem, usually set off from others by a blank line or indentation. Stanzas can have regular rhyme and metrical schemes, but they are not required to have either. ...

s by repeating a

rhyme A rhyme is a repetition of similar sounds (usually the exact same phonemes) in the final Stress (linguistics), stressed syllables and any following syllables of two or more words. Most often, this kind of rhyming (''perfect rhyming'') is consciou ...

in two stanzas. Chain rhyme are an integral part of many verse forms. One such is ''

terza rima ''Terza rima '' (, also , ; ) is a rhyming verse form, in which the poem, or each poem-section, consists of tercets (three-line stanzas) with an interlocking three-line rhyme scheme: The last word of the second line in one tercet provides the rh ...

'', which is written in

tercet A tercet is composed of three lines of poetry, forming a stanza or a complete poem. Examples of tercet forms English-language haiku is an example of an unrhymed tercet poem. A poetic triplet is a tercet in which all three lines follow the same r ...

s with a rhyming pattern ABA BCB CDC. Another is the ''

virelai ancien A ''virelai'' is a form of medieval French verse used often in poetry and music. It is one of the three ''formes fixes'' (the others were the ballade and the rondeau) and was one of the most common verse forms set to music in Europe from the l ...

'', which rhymes AABAAB BBCBBC CCDCCD.

Quatrain A quatrain is a type of stanza, or a complete poem, consisting of four Line (poetry), lines. Existing in a variety of forms, the quatrain appears in poems from the poetic traditions of various ancient civilizations including Persia, Ancient India ...

s can be written to the following pattern: AABA BBCB CCDC. A few well-known examples of chain rhyme appear in world literature. In

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

, chain rhyme is devoted to the poetic form of the Rubaiyat: a

poem Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

that makes use of

quatrains A quatrain is a type of stanza, or a complete poem, consisting of four lines. Existing in a variety of forms, the quatrain appears in poems from the poetic traditions of various ancient civilizations including Persia, Ancient India, Ancient Gree ...

with the rhyme scheme AABA. Though not necessarily chain rhyme, the Rubiyat form has been mimicked throughout the world.

Robert Frost Robert Lee Frost (March26, 1874January29, 1963) was an American poet. Known for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American Colloquialism, colloquial speech, Frost frequently wrote about settings from rural life in New E ...

made use of Rubaiyat in chain rhyme form in his poem, "

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" is a poem by Robert Frost, written in 1922, and published in 1923 in his ''New Hampshire'' volume. Imagery, personification, and repetition are prominent in the work. In a letter to Louis Untermeyer ...

." Chain rhyme is also known as “chain verse" or "interlocking rhyme". In chain verse the poet repeats the last syllable of a line as the first syllable of the following line. Although the syllable is repeated, it carries a different meaning.

Examples

Two examples of chained verse from William T. Dobson ''Poetical ingenuities and eccentricities'', London, 1882:

"Truth" (Anonymous)

''Nerve thy soul with doctrines noble,''
''Noble in the walks of time,''
''Time that leads to an eternal,''
''An eternal life sublime.''
''Life sublime in moral beauty,''
''Beauty that shall never be;''
''Ever be to lure thee onward,''
''Onward to the fountain free.''
''Free to every earnest seeker,''
''Seeker for the fount of youth;''
''Youth exultant in its beauty,''
''Beauty of the living truth.''
Quoted as an example of chained verse in

George Lansing Raymond George Lansing Raymond, (September 11, 1839–July 11, 1929) was a prominent professor of Aesthetic Criticism at Princeton University from 1881 to 1905, and author of a new system of esthetics. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature ...

’s ''Rhythm and Harmony in Poetry and Music''.

"Untitled" (John Byrom)

''My spirit longeth for thee''
''Within my troubled breast,''
''Although I be unworthy''
''Of so divine a guest.''
''Of so divine a guest,''
''Unworthy though I be''
''Yet has my heart no rest,''
''Unless it comes from thee.''
''Unless it comes from thee''
''In vain I look around,''
''In all that I can see,''
''No rest is to be found.''
''No rest is to be found''
''But in thy blessed love,''
''Oh let my wish be crowned,''
''And send it from above.''

Sources

{{reflist *Bradley, A. (2009). Book of rhymes: The poetics of hip hop. New York: Basic civitas books pp 75–78. *Preminger, A. & Warnke, F.J. & Hardison, O.B. (1965). Princeton encyclopedia of poetry and poetics. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. *George Lansing Raymond (2008). Rhythm and harmony in poetry and music. Dyson Press. *William T. Dobson ''Poetical ingenuities and eccentricities'', London, 1882 *James C. Parsons ''English versification for the use of students'', Boston, 1891 Rhyme