Song of the Chattahoochee

How does Sidney Lanier use imagery in Song of the Chattahoochee?

Asked by
Last updated by Cat
1 Answers
Log in to answer

The musical nature of "Song of the Chattahoochee" is enhanced by the repetition of a slightly varying phrase at the beginning and end of each stanza. This phrase, or refrain, refers to the hills of Habersham and the valleys of Hall and frames the middle six lines of each stanza. These six lines describe the various natural things that the river encounters, including weeds, trees, and rocks. Lanier also uses rhyme to give the poem a musical sound. If we diagram the pattern of rhymes created by the last words in each line of the stanzas, the rhyme scheme appears as abcbcddcab. In addition to this intricate pattern, Lanier also employs internal rhyme, meaning that words within a single line rhyme with one another.