I've always been a fan of onomatopoetic words--words that imitate the sounds associated with certain objects or actions. For example, murmur, one of my favorite onomatopoetic words, imitates the sound a murmur makes, and whisper, another of my favorites, re-creates the sound made when someone speaks softly. Try saying any of the words I've listed above out loud, and you'll see that they all imitate the sounds associated with their meanings. (You can find two good lists of onomatopoetic words here and here.)
Onomatopoeia is wonderful literary device that can work to the writer's advantage in helping to bring stories and poems to life. Of course there's a danger, as there is with all literary devices, of going overboard, but when used thoughtfully and judiciously, onomatopoeia can be an effective writing tool.
Achoo.
Oh, excuse me.
Probably one of the most famous uses of onomatopoeia occurs in Edgar Allen Poe's "The Bells." In this poem Poe makes use of onomatopoetic language to describe the tolling of the bells he hears. Take a look at these five lines from the first stanza:
Hear the sledges with the bells--
Silver bells!
What a world of merriment their melody foretells!
How they tinkle, tinkle, tinkle,
In the icy air of night!
Silver bells!
What a world of merriment their melody foretells!
How they tinkle, tinkle, tinkle,
In the icy air of night!
Can you hear the bells tinkling? You can read the rest of the poem here. Notice how the sounds get darker and more ominous as the poem nears its conclusion.
Other poets have used this device as well. For some examples of obvious and not so obvious onomatopoeia in poetry, see this article.
Please excuse me now. I must end this post. The wind is whooshing through my open window, rustling the papers on my desk and jangling the window blinds, and the cheep and chirp and chatter of the birds urges me to take my coffee and shuffle outside to enjoy the day.
How effective do you think onomatopoeia is as a literary device? Is it distracting, or does it add something? Do you ever use onomatopoeia in your writing?
