“The Kite” by Harry Behn utilizes several poetic devices to create vivid imagery and convey the emotions associated with the kite. The poetic devices contribute to the poem’s lively and imaginative portrayal of the kite’s flight, as well as the bittersweet ending where the kite becomes trapped in a tree. Here are the poetic devices used in the poem:
Poem
How bright on the blue
Is a kite when it’s new!
With a dive and a dip
It snaps its tail
Then soars like a ship
With only a sail
As over tides
Of wind it rides,
Climbs to the crest
Of a gust and pulls,
Then seems to rest
As wind falls.
When string goes slack
You wind it back
And run until
A new breeze blows
And its wings fill
And up it goes!
How bright on the blue
Is a kite when it’s new!
But a raggeder thing
You never will see
When it flaps on a string
In the top of a tree.
Poetic Devices in “The Kite”
Metaphor: The poet uses metaphors to highlight the kite’s characteristics.
In the line “With only a sail,” the kite is metaphorically described as a ship with just a sail, emphasizing its reliance on the wind for movement.
Alliteration: The poet employs alliteration, the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words, to create a pleasing rhythm and add emphasis.
Examples of alliteration in the poem include – “dive and a dip”, “soars like a ship”, “breeze blows”, “string goes slack” and “bright on the blue”.
Simile: The poet uses similes to compare the movement of the kite to other objects, creating vivid imagery.
For instance, in the line “Then soars like a ship,” the kite’s movement is likened to the graceful soaring of a ship with only a sail. This simile helps the reader imagine the kite’s majestic flight.
Repetition: The repetition of the line “How bright on the blue” at the beginning and end of the poem creates a sense of rhythm and reinforces the initial image of the kite against the blue sky. It also serves to highlight the contrast between the kite when it’s new and when it’s stuck in a tree later in the poem.
Imagery: The poet uses vivid and descriptive language to paint a visual picture of the kite’s flight. Phrases such as “With a dive and a dip,” “Over tides of wind it rides,” and “Climbs to the crest of a gust and pulls” help the reader visualize the kite’s movements and its interaction with the wind.
The poem rich visual imagery, allow readers to visualize the scenes described. The poet describes the kite’s flight, mentioning how it dives, dips, snaps its tail, and climbs to the crest of a gust. These vivid images help create a vibrant picture in the reader’s mind.
Personification: The kite is personified throughout the poem, giving it human-like qualities and actions.
For example, The lines “It snaps its tail”, “When string goes slack / You wind it back” and “Then seems to rest” when the wind falls or flapping on a string in the top of a tree” suggests that the kite is actively responding to the slack in the string and requires the assistance of the person flying it to regain its flight.
Contrast: The poem creates a contrast between the kite’s new and vibrant state and its ragged condition when it gets stuck in a tree. This contrast serves to emphasize the fleeting nature of the kite’s beauty and the potential for loss or disappointment. This contrast underscores the transience and fragility of the kite’s beauty.
Repetition: The first two lines “How bright on the blue, Is a kite when it’s new!” are repeated in the poem which creates a sense of rhythm and reinforces the initial image of the kite against the blue sky. It also serves to highlight the contrast between the kite when it’s new and when it’s stuck in a tree later in the poem.
Enjambment: The poet uses enjambment, the continuation of a sentence or thought across line breaks, to maintain the flow of the poem. For example, the phrase “Climbs to the crest / Of a gust and pulls” is split across two lines, which propels the reader forward and creates a sense of movement.
Onomatopoeia: The word “flaps” makes a sound that imitates what the kite might sound like as it struggles in the top of a tree.
These poetic devices work together to capture the joy and excitement of flying a new kite, as well as the disappointment and loss when the kite gets stuck in a tree. The contrast between the vibrant imagery of a new kite in the sky and the desolate image of a ragged kite trapped in a tree creates a powerful emotional impact in the poem.
Rhyming Scheme in “The Kite” Poem
The poem “The Kite” by Harry Behn follows a consistent rhyming scheme throughout. The rhyme scheme can be represented by assigning a different letter to each end sound in the poem. Let’s analyze the poem and label the rhyming pattern:
How bright on the blue (A)
Is a kite when it’s new! (A)
With a dive and a dip (B)
It snaps its tail (C)
Then soars like a ship (B)
With only a sail (C)
As over tides (D)
Of wind it rides, (D)
Climbs to the crest (E)
Of a gust and pulls, (F)
Then seems to rest (E)
As wind falls. (F)
When string goes slack (G)
You wind it back (G)
And run until (H)
A new breeze blows (I)
And its wings fill (H)
And up it goes! (I)
How bright on the blue (A)
Is a kite when it’s new! (A)
But a raggeder thing (J)
You never will see (J)
When it flaps on a string (K)
In the top of a tree. (K)
The rhyming scheme in this poem is primarily ABABCCDDEFFEFGGHIJJKK. The poem consists of quatrains (stanzas with four lines) and follows an alternating rhyme pattern, where the first and second lines of each quatrain rhyme (A), as do the third and fourth lines (B). The fifth and sixth lines of each quatrain also rhyme with each other (C), and so on.
The final two lines of the poem form a couplet (lines ending with the same sound), with a unique rhyme (K) different from the rest of the poem.
This consistent rhyming scheme helps create a rhythmic flow and adds a musical quality to the poem, enhancing the overall reading experience.