Wordplay in Literature - Essay Example

This is because it allows the poet to understand how literary elements such as repetition, blank verse, and alliteration are relevant during writing. Sandra Cisnero’s poem Dulzura is a short poem that has infused different literary techniques in communicating its intended message. For example, the use of free verse is distinct in all the stanzas and it’s intended to break down the conventional structures of illustrating the persona’s anguish. Additionally, the free verse allows the persona to speak in disjointed thoughts because of the confusions and doubts that characterize her lover who is unable even to pronounce her name correctly.

This is demonstrated by the last stanza where the persona laments “Say my name. Say it/The way it’s supposed to be said (Cisneros 1).” Epic form, on the other hand, is notable in each of the three stanzas, especially the specific messages they communicate to the reader. In stanza one, the persona is pleading for love in Spanish; in stanza two she wants her lover to feel her compassion while stanza three is an affirmation of the love. However, Cisneros is also sensitive to the use of alliteration to establish a rhythmic effect as noted in the last stanza in the use of the words ‘know’ and ‘knew.’ These words are meant to illustrate struggles the persona is undergoing when recalling a past love affair.

Notably, the poet equally uses blank verse as a means of defying regulations of writing poetry and, thus, communicating her message of desolation over broken love. Blank verse, for example, is exemplified in the first stanza in the use of small letters in the last lines of that stanza, unlike the other lines. Cisneros notes that “lullabied, mi Bien/Querido, that loved” to demonstrate the futility of clinging on to a certain love affair is now gone. Imagery, however, is a testament to the need for the poet to illustrate his message using flowery and colourful words that portray the pain of the persona.

Contrastingly, this is only possible through the use of repetition to generate rhythmic effect as noted in the usage of ‘I want to expose the feelings of the persona in the poem (Cisneros 1). Overall, both repetition and imagery complement one another toward displaying the thematic concern of the poet. It, therefore, is integral to emphasize more on the poetic license of selecting only the best diction that fits a particular poem within a given context. This is because it will harmoniously narrate the intended theme as done by Cisneros when talking about a failed love affair.