Here each word is equally significant, and a stress accordingly laid upon each:

Wolves' mouths ópe wide.

Rhythmical stress is closely allied to accent (§ 132), if not identical with it, for its chief function is to act as a support to the voice. It is also allied to emphasis (§ 136), in so far as it shifts in accordance with the assumed importance of words. But it has no further relation to emphasis. Both accent and rhythmical stress may, it is true, be made the vehicle of emphasis, but they exist independently of it. To constitute emphasis there must always be some peculiarity of meaning to be expressed. If mere stress constituted emphasis, then must half the syllables of Paradise Lost,' or of any other poem written in dissyllabic measure, be deemed emphatic; which in the sense in which we generally understand the term emphasis, is clearly untrue.

The three terms, accent, rhythmical stress, and emphasis, may be thus distinguished:

Accent distinguishes cóllect from colléct.

Rhythmical Stress distinguishes the prose sentence,

'Towards four fair nymphs ran four tall men full speed,'

from the iambic pentameter,

Towards four fair nýmphs | ran foúr | tall mén | full spéed.]

Emphasis distinguishes

from

'My father borrowed these books,'

My father borrowed these books.'

Thus in Shakspearian verse there are always five accents or rhythmical stresses, but not five emphases: Be thou | familiar bút | by nó | means vúlgar.-Hamlet, i. 3.

Hence it will be seen that while accent and rhythmical stress are a necessity, emphasis is an accident.

Even prose has its rhythmical stress, varying with the assumed importance of the words. In speaking colloquially, a speaker will lay stress upon fewer words, as in the following

EXAMPLE OF COLLOQUIAL RHYTHM.

| ¶ And | nów, |if| év er we stood in | néed of mastúre deliberá-tion and | cóunsel, the | présent juncture calls | loúdly for I them. (Example in STEELE.)

In speaking oratorically, a speaker will lay stress more frequently. The above example of colloquial rhythm may, with this difference in the application of stress, serve also as an

EXAMPLE OF ORATORICAL RHYTHM.

| ¶ And | nów,| if | éver we | stóod in | néed | ◄ of ma|túre dellíberá-tion and | coúnsel, | the | pré-sent | júnc-ture | cálls | lóud-ly | 1 fór them.|

Here we notice that several syllables take a stress which in the former reading of the same sentence were unaccentuated. In both the colloquial and the oratorical style, however, the principle of rhythm remains the same, and may be thus briefly stated:

1. The time of the several bars, as of music, is supposed to be equal.

2. Each bar begins with one, and never more than one, accented syllable; and ends with one or more unaccented syllables.

3. The place of the accented syllable, or of the unaccented syllable or syllables, may be supplied by an equivalent pause.

In the first bar of the example of colloquial rhythm, the accented syllable is absent, but its time is supplied by an equivalent pause.

In the second bar, the word now, being long by quantity (§ 147), may be allowed to occupy the whole time of a bar.

The third bar is identical with the first.

The fourth bar contains an accented syllable followed by as many as four unaccented syllables, uttered lightly and rapidly, so as to bring them within the time of that of the other bars. And so on.

The following speech of Pitt in reply to Walpole displays in parts a regularity of rhythmical stress which approaches the strictness of verse :

The atrocious | críme of | béing a | yoúng | mán, 19791 which the honourable | géntleman | hás, with | súch | spírit and | décency, charged upon me, I shall | néither at témpt to | pálliate, nor dený; 117 but con|tént myself with | wishing │171 may be | óne of those whose | fóllies | ceáse with their and | nót of | thát | númber who are | fgnorant | in of expérience.

that youth;

spíte

proach,

| Whether youth can be im|púted to |ány man as a re- | I will not as súme the | próvince of de términing: 91 but, súrely, |77| áge | 11 may be cóme | jústly con| témptible, if the opportunities which it | bríngs have| pást a way without im próvement, 171 and | více ap|péars to prevail when the | pássions have sub síded. | 117 The wrétch that, | áfter | háving | séen the | cónsequences of a | thousand érrors, 17 contínues | stíll to | blúnder, |77| and | whose áge 77 has | ónly | ádded | óbstinacy to stulpídity, 117 is surely the | óbject | of | éither abhorrence or con- | témpt; |17|7 and desérves | nót |♫ that his | gréy|héad| | Múch | móre | is | hé

should se cúre him from | ínsults. to be abhorred |-whó, | ás he has ad|vánced in | áge, has re- | céded from | vírtue, and be cómes | móre | wicked with | less temp-| tátion, who | próstitutes himself for || money which hel cánnot enljóy, |17| and | spénds the remains of his | lífe in the rúin of his country.]

| But | youth | is | nót my | ónly | críme. [77 I have been accúsed |of|ácting a the|átrical | párt. 1|

|¶A_the¦átrical | párt 1|♫ may | éither im|plý | sóme peculiárities of | gésture |17|ór a | díssimu látion of my | réal | séntiments | ánd an adoption of the opínions and | lánguage of a|nóther | mán.

In the first | sénse, the | charge is | tóo | trífling to be con fúted; || and desérves | only to be | méntioned |♫ that it may be desplísed. |17|Í am at | líberty |ľ (like |évery |óther man) | to |úse my | ówn | lánguage: |11|7 and | though I | máy |ľ per|háps | |♫ have | sóme am bítion to | pléase this | géntleman | 17 |~ I | sháll not | láy myself under ❘ ány res❘traínt,|| or | véry solícitously | cópy | hís | díction, | ór | hís | míen—|¶how|éver matúred by | áge, or | módelled by expérience. |17| Bút 7|if| ány man | sháll, |11|| by | chárging | mé|17|7 with the|átrical behaviour |11|| implý that I |útter any | séntiments but my | own, |11|♫ I shall | tréat◄| hím as a ca|lúmniator | ánd a | víllain, |17|† nor shall | ány protection | 1| shélter him from the treatment which he de sérves. | 17 || I | sháll | on | súch an oc|cásion, | ☛ with|óut | scrúple, |77| trámple upon | áll | those | fórms with which | wealth and | dígnity entrénch themselves, |77|| nor shall | ánything but | áge | restraín my resentment; 111 áge, which | álways | brings | óne | prívilege—|17| thát of being insolent and | súper|cílious | with|óut | púnishment.|

| Bút || with regard to | those | whóm I | háve of|fénded, |17| I am of o pínion | that | íf I | hád | ácted a | bórrowed | párt, 7| I should have a voíded their | cénsure.|17|~ The | héat that offénded them | is the | árdour of con|víction |17| and | thát 7| zéal |☛ for the | sérvice of my | coúntry, | which | neíther | hópe, nor | féar | shall | ínfluence me to sup préss. 1|17|7 I will | nót | sít | úncon|cérned | while my | líberty is in|váded; |17| ☛ nor | lóok in | sílence | upon | públic | róbbery. |77|₪ I will ex ért my endeavours, | at what|éver | házard, ❘ to re|pél the ag-| gréssor, 1 ¶ and | drág the | thíef to | jústice, 17 who ever may prostéct him in his | víllainy,|17|7 and whoever may par|táke of the plúnder.]

of

The rhythm of the above is produced by measures

One syllable, e.g. | mán |

Two syllables, e.g. | whéther |
Three syllables, e.g. | géntleman |

Four syllables, e.g. | próvince of de- |
Five syllables, e.g. | séntiments but my

Six syllables, e.g. | cónsequences of a | -variously intermingled.

In this irregularity in the number of syllables between each stress consists the rhythm of prose.

The regular recurrence of the same number of syllables between each stress produces the rhythm of

verse.

The details of versification, however, must be studied in books specially treating the subject.

EMPHASIS.

136. Emphasis (Gr. emphaino, 'I make clear') is the stress by means of which especial prominence is given to any word, in proportion to its significance in a sentence.

A reader may be guided in his application of emphasis

First. By the grammatical arrangement of the words.

Secondly. By the relation which the emphatic word bears to other words in the sentence.

Thirdly. By the relation of the whole sentence to the context.

For Emphasis is of three kinds :

Syntactic,

Antithetic, and
Absolute.

137. Emphasis is Syntactic when it directs attention to grammatical concord or government. It is used to obviate obscurity arising from a dispersed order of words.