Literary Devices Literary Devices    

Lesson 6: Alliteration: The Siege of Belgrade

by Alaric Alexander Watts

Performer: Librivox - Kristin Hughes

Directions

Study the poem for one week.

Over the week:

• Read or listen to the poem.
• Review the synopsis.
• Read about the poet.
• Complete the enrichment activities.

Synopsis

Alaric Alexander Watts takes alliteration to the extreme in his poem, 'The Siege of Belgrade.' Each line corresponds to one letter in the alphabet, with the letter 'A' repeating at the end. The poem describes the 1789 siege in which the Austrian army besieged a Turkish force sheltering within the fortress of Belgrade in modern-day Serbia. After three weeks, the Turkish forces surrendered. Today, Belgrade is the capital of Serbia.

Concepts

Poets often use literary devices, defined as 'rules of thumb, convention, or structure that are employed in literature and storytelling.'

The nine literary devices we'll study include:

1. Rhyming
2. Alliteration
3. Similes
4. Metaphors
5. Personification
6. Foreshadowing
7. Allusion
8. Hyperbole
9. Onomatopoeia

Alliteration is defined as the 'repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of two or more words in a row, or at short intervals.'

1. Review the poem, 'Three Gray Geese' and its instances of alliteration.
2. Note the alliteration for the sounds of 'G,' 'R,' and 'GR' together.

Enrichment

Activity 1: Recite Poem Information

Recite the title of the poem and the name of the poet.

Activity 2: Study the Poem Picture

Study the poem picture and describe how it relates to the poem.

Activity 3: Recite the Poem

Practice reciting the poem aloud.

Activity 4: Study a Tongue Twister

Recite aloud the tongue twister.

Identify instances of first 's' and then 'sh' alliteration.

• She sells seashells by the seashore.
• The shells she sells are surely seashells.
• So if she sells shells on the seashore,
• I'm sure she sells seashore shells.

Activity 5: Identify the Rhyme Scheme

Review the poem excerpt. Does it follow a traditional (ABAB), couplet (AABB), enclosed (ABBA), or triplet (AAABBB) rhyming scheme?

• Labor low levels longest, loftiest lines;
• Men march 'mid mounds, 'mid moles, ' mid murderous mines;
• Now noxious, noisy numbers nothing, naught
• Of outward obstacles, opposing ought;

Activity 6: Map the Poem

Find the country of Serbia and its capital of Belgrade on the map of Europe.

Find the Serbian capital of Belgrade on the map of Serbia.

Activity 7: Identify Alliteration

Review the poem excerpt. Point out the instances of alliteration.

• An Austrian army, awfully arrayed,
• Boldly by battery besieged Belgrade.
• Cossack commanders cannonading come,
• Dealing destruction's devastating doom.

Activity 8: Complete Book Activities   

• Click the crayon above, and complete pages 19-21 of 'Elementary Poetry 5: Literary Devices.'

References

'Alliteration.' Wikipedia. Wikipedia.org. n.p.

'Siege of Belgrade (1789).' Wikipedia. Wikipedia.org. n.p.