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D. Chisholm, Phonological patterning in German verse,Computers and the Humanities 10 (1976) 5–20.
The following editions were used: C. Brentano, Werke (Hanser, München; 1968) Vol. 1, pp. 69–75.Das Deutsche Sonett, Ed. J.-U. Fechner (Fink, München; 1969) pp. 131–135. J.W. Goethe,Werke (Chr. Wegner, Hamburg; 1962) vol. 1, pp. 245, 294–98. H. Heine,Sämtliche Werke (Winkler, München; 1969) vol. 1, pp. 94–98. E. Mörike,Sämtliche Werke (Hanser, München; 1954) pp. 100, 115–16, 122–24, 246. C.F. Meyer,Sämtliche Werke (Benteli, Bern; 1963) vol. 1, pp. 57, 82, 102, 113, 142, 169, 186, 212, 326, 374. G. Keller,Sämtliche Werke und ausgewählte Briefe (Hanser, München; 1958) pp. 69–75. R.M. Rilke,Sämtliche Werke (Insel, Frankfurt; 1955) vol. 1, pp. 499–501, 731–33, 753, 769f. G. Heym,Dichtungen und Schriften (Ellermann, Hamburg; 1964) vol. 1, pp. 8–10, 13, 23–27. B. Brecht,Gesammelte Gedichte (Suhrkamp, Frankfurt; 1967) vol. 1, p. 313 and vol. 2, pp. 536–40, 608–11.
K. Magnuson, ‘Phonological investigations into the structure of German verse, Ph. D. dissertation, University of Michigan (1966).
Positionallynon-parallel repetitions — e.g. wirdreisen,Tag vergeht — could easily be identified through a minor modification of the Phonological Frame Program. In that case, such chiastic equivalences would have to be sharply distinguished from the more significant positionally parallel equivalence considered here.
W. Moulton,The Sounds of English and German (Univ. of Chicago Press, Chicago; 1962) p. 69.
O. Werner,Phonemik des Deutschen (Metzler, Stuttgart; 1972) p. 31.
In computing the number of slots in iambic pentameter verse, the extrametrical unstressed syllable at the end of eleven-syllable lines is excluded from consideration.
The size of the gap over which a phonological equivalence is perceived as such probably varies from person to person. The length of the allowable span of intervening linguistic material depends to a great extent on the length (measured in phonemes and syllables) of the equivalence. The convention of end-rhyme (in which the equivalence usually consists of two or more phonemes) normally allows an intervening gap of one, two or three lines, while arefrain (in which the equivalence consists of a whole line) may be separated by a much larger number of lines.
These verse and prose samples were taken from the following edition: J.W. Goethe,Werke (Chr. Wegner, Hamburg) Vol. 13 (Entwurf einer Farbenlehre) vol. 1 (sonnets and free verse), and vol. 5 (Iphigenie). The titles of the sonnets are: “Das Sonett”, “Natur und Kunst...”, Mächtiges Uberraschen”, “Freundliches Begegnen”, “Kurz und Gut”, “Das Mädchen spricht”, Wachstum”, “Reisezehrung”, “Abschied”, “Die Liebende schreibt”. The poems in free verse are: “Gesang der Geister über den Wassern”, “An Schwager Kronos” (two segments), “Ganymed”, “Grenzen der Menschheit”, “Das Göttliche” (two segments), and “Prometheus” (two segments).
The significance of the difference may be tested by applying the Chi-Square test. The difference between the free verse sample and the prose sample is highly significant at the 5% level of probability (χ2=25.54), while the difference between the prose sample and the iambic verse sample is not significant at this level (χ2=3.02).
W. Kayser, Kleine Deutsche Versschule (Francke, München; 1965) p. 64.
In nineteenth centuryEnglish verse, on the other hand, equivalence in the primary frames predominates over secondary even frames only when end-rhyme is included. If there is no end-rhyme (e.g. blank verse) or if end-rhyme is excluded from consideration, the secondary even frames show as much equivalence as the primary frames.
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Chisholm, D. Phonology and style: A computer-assisted approach to German verse. Comput Hum 15, 199–210 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02395371
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02395371