Rhyme Scheme

1. Rhyme Scheme Rhyme scheme is the pattern of END RHYME in a poem.

2. How to determine rhyme scheme: • Underline the LAST WORD ONLY in each line of the poem: MY PAPA’S WALTZ The whiskey on your breath Could make a small boy dizzy; But I hung on like death: Such waltzing was not easy. We romped until the pans Slid from the kitchen shelf; My mother's countenance Could not unfrownitself. The hand that held my wrist Was battered on one knuckle; At every step you missed My right ear scraped a buckle. You beat time on my head With a palm caked hard by dirt, Then waltzed me off to bed Still clinging to your shirt.

3. Beginning with line one (1), you will label each line with a lower-case letter. • Label the first line with the letter “a”. Every underlined word that rhymes with that line should also be labeled with the letter “a”. • Move to the next UNLABELED line. That line becomes “b”. Every underlined word that rhymes with that line is also labeled “b” MY PAPA’S WALTZ The whiskey on your breath a Could make a small boy dizzy; b But I hung on like death: a Such waltzing was not easy. b

4. Continue with this process until you have labeled ALL of the end rhyme in the lines: MY PAPA’S WALTZ The whiskey on your breath a Could make a small boy dizzy; b But I hung on like death: a Such waltzing was not easy. b We romped until the pans c Slid from the kitchen shelf; d My mother's countenance c Could not unfrownitself. d The hand that held my wrist e Was battered on one knuckle; f At every step you missed e My right ear scraped a buckle. f You beat time on my head g With a palm caked hard by dirt, h Then waltzed me off to bed g Still clinging to your shirt. h

5. If any lines are remaining that don’t use end rhyme, write an “x” at the back of those lines. • In the rare cases that you run out of letters, begin again with double letters (aa, bb, cc, dd, etc.).

6. Repetition • Sometimes, an ENTIRE line will repeat throughout the poem. In this case, you follow the same rules, but… • You turn the lower-case letter into an upper-case. • You label it with a special number called a “superscript.”

7. First, determine rhyme scheme: My house is warm, a My love is strong b I’ll survive the storm. a My house is warm, a The night is long; b I’ll survive the storm. a

8. Second, identify the repeating lines and number each one in order: My house is warm, First line that repeats = A¹ My love is strong b I’ll survive the storm. Second line that repeats = A² My house is warm, First line that repeats = A¹ The night is long; b I’ll survive the storm. Second line that repeats = A²

9. This is what it should look like: My house is warm, A¹ My love is strong b I’ll survive the storm. A² My house is warm, A¹ The night is long; b I’ll survive the storm. A²

10. If another letter repeats, the number starts over at “1”. See the example: My house is warm, A¹ My love is strong B¹ I’ll survive the storm. A² Through pounding rain,c My love is strong; B¹ I’ll survive the pain. c My house is warm, A¹ The night is long; b I’ll survive the storm. A²