Chapter II: ACCENTS AND RHYTHM.—The regular recurrence of accents in a verse

gives it its rhythmical character. The rhythmical divisions of a Spanish verse are, as a rule, either dissyllabic or trisyllabic. When dissyllabic and accented on the first syllable, they are called trochaic:

Dìme | puès, pas|tòr ga|rrìdo.

When dissyllabic and accented on the second syllable, they are iambic:

¿A dón|de vàs, | perdì|da?

When trisyllabic and accented on the first syllable, they are dactylic; Moratín:

Sùban al|cèrco d[e O]limpo lu|ciènte.

When trisyllabic and accented on the second syllable, they are amphibrachs; Mena:

Con crìnes | tendìdos | ardèr los | comètas.

When trisyllabic and accented on the third syllable, they are anapæsts; Iriarte:

De sus hì|jos la tòr|pe avutàr|da.

The terms given marked in Latin a quantitative division into feet, while in Spanish they denote only accentual conditions.

A syllable may be lacking at the end of a verse (then called catalectic); trochaic:

Yà los | càmpos | òrn[a A]|bril;

in one of amphibrachs:

Derràma | su páli|da lùz;

dactylic:

Hìnche los | àires ce|lèst[e a]rmo|nía;

dactylic with two syllables lacking:

S[è o]ye á lo | lèjos tre|mèndo fra|gòr.

In an iambic or an anapæstic verse, there may be one or two unaccented syllables in excess; in a verse of trochees or amphibrachs, one:

¿A dón|de vàs | perdì|da?
Suspì|r[a e]l blàn|do cé|firo.
Sacudièn|do las sèl|vas el á|brego.
Tiènde el | mànto | nòche | lóbre|ga.
El nìdo | desièrto | de míse|ra tórto|la.

But all verses are not subjected rigorously to rhythmical division according to the types explained. In trochaic and iambic verses not exceeding eight syllables in length and not intended for singing, no accent is obligatory except that of the last division (or foot). The rhythmical nature of the composition then depends upon the regular recurrence of this final accent.

Not all accents satisfy the rhythmical requirements in a verse. Insufficient accents are those of the prepositions that have one (_contra_, _para_, etc.), those of the demonstratives before their nouns, those of the forms of the indefinite article (the definite article has none), those of monosyllabic adverbs before the words that they modify (_bien alojado_, etc.). Moreover, the verse is impaired when a strong, accidental accent precedes immediately a necessary accent, as in _Mis ruegos cruèl òye_.

*Cæsura.*—In the longer verses, a necessary pause or break in a determined place is called the cæsura. The cæsura requires a strong accent on the word preceding it, and does not prevent synalœpha; Garcilaso:

¿Ves el furor | del animoso viento
Embravecid[o | e]n la fragosa sierra?

*The different kinds of verse.*—N.B. In naming Spanish verse forms, all syllables, even those after the final accent, are taken into account.

The longest *trochaic* verse is the octosyllabic. In its typical form it has four accents, viz., on the first, third, fifth and seventh syllables:

Bràma, | bùf[a, e]s|càrba, | huèle.

But only one of the rhythmical accents is necessary, viz., that on the seventh syllable; Heredia:

Ya tu familia gozòsa
Se prepara, amado pàdre.

For the purposes of singing, the third syllable should be stressed as well as the seventh.

Compositions in six-syllabled verses, with the accent on the fifth syllable (hexasyllables), may have the trochaic metre, but are likely to intermingle the trochees with amphibrachs; e.g., Espronceda:

Músicas lejànas; \ _Trochees._
De enlutado pàrche /
Redòble monótono; \ _Amphibrachs._
Cercàno huracán. /

Four-syllabled (tetrasyllabic) trochaic lines may accent the first and third syllables, but only the accent on the third syllable is requisite; Iriarte:

A una mòna
Muy taimàda
Dìjo un día
Cièrta urràca.

When it alternates with other longer verses, the four-syllabled trochaic is called the _verso quebrado_.

*Iambics.*—The longest iambic verse is the alexandrine of the French type. It has thirteen syllables and a central cæsura dividing it into hemistichs. The first hemistich may end in a stressed vowel or have an unaccented vowel after the stress, but in the latter case synalœpha must join the unaccented vowel to the following hemistich; Iriarte:

En cierta catedral | una campana había
Que sólo se tocab[a | a]lgún solemne día.
Con el más recio son, | con pausado compás,
Cuatro golpes ó tres | solía dar no más.

N.B.—When both hemistichs end in an accented vowel, the line has but twelve syllables. Sometimes the alexandrine adapts itself to the anapæstic metre, as in Iriarte:

Que despàcio y muy rèc[io | e]l dichòso esquilón.

At all events, the only necessary rhythmical accents are those on the sixth and the twelfth syllable. An older form of the alexandrine also existed (see below).

The eleven-syllabled iambic line is called the heroic verse, from its use in epics, or the hendecasyllable (see below).

The nine-syllabled iambic verse is of French origin. The perfect type, with accents on the second, fourth, sixth and eighth syllables, is seen in

No dè jamás mi dùlce pàtria
La nòble frènte al yùgo vìl.

Only the accent on the eighth syllable is necessary; e.g., Iriarte:

Tú, manguito, en invierno sìrves,
En verano vas á un rincón.

But in songs the fourth syllable should also be stressed.

The seven-syllabled iambic (the heptasyllabic or anacreontic verse) has a necessary accent on the sixth syllable; Villegas:

Quiero cantar de Càdmo.

The perfect type is seen in Villegas:

Las cuèrdas mùd[o a]prìsa.

In songs the fourth syllable is also stressed. Sometimes the anapæst supplants the iambic, e.g., Villegas:

Sólo cànta mi lìra.

In older Spanish, the alexandrine often consisted of two seven-syllabled iambic verses or half-lines, separated by the cæsura. There might be one or two unaccented syllables after the stressed sixth, and the unaccented syllables did not coalesce with the second half-line, since hiatus, rather than synalœpha, prevailed in Old Spanish; e.g., Berceo:

En esta romería | habemos un buen prado.
El fruto de los árbores | era dulze sabrìdo.

Some modern poets have imitated this alexandrine, avoiding the hiatus, however.

The five-syllabled (pentasyllabic) iambic verse has a necessary stress on the fourth syllable. In this line the iambics easily yield to dactyls; e.g., Moratín:

El que inocente
La vìda pàsa
No necesìta
Morìsca lànza,
. . . . . .
Arcos ni aljàba
Llèna de flèchas.

Here, verses 2 and 4 are typical iambic pentasyllables, 1 and 3 have only the requisite accent on the fourth syllable, 5 and 6 are dactylic.

*Dactylic verses.*—There are examples of a dactylic hendecasyllable; Iriarte:

Cièrta criàda la càsa barría.

The dactylic octosyllable accents the first, fourth and seventh syllables:

Vuèlve la pàz á los hòmbres.

The trochaic octosyllable with the necessary accent of the seventh syllable often becomes dactylic; Meléndez:

Tòd[o o]s adòr[a e]n silèncio.

On the dactylic pentasyllable or adonic verse, see below.

*Amphibrachs.*—Of a single foot are these verses of Espronceda:

Suspìra
La lìra
Que hirió
En blàndo
Concènto, _etc._

But Bello objects to considering these short lines as individual verses.

Twelve-syllabled (dodecasyllabic) amphibrachs were formerly of much use and were called _versos de arte mayor_; e.g., Mena:

El cònd[e y] | los sùyos | tomàron | la tièrra
Que estàb[a e]n|tre el àgua | [y e]l bòrde | del mùro.

A cæsura divides the line into hemistichs. Properly there should be four accents, viz., on the second, fifth, eighth and eleventh syllables; but the accents of the second and eighth syllables may be lacking.

The cæsura may come immediately after the accented syllable; Mena:

Entràndo tras él | por el àgua decían,

and it may permit of two unaccented syllables before it, though in this case the second hemistich has only five syllables; Mena:

Ni sàle la fúlica | de la marìna.

This and the further fact that synalœpha may occur between the hemistichs; Mena:

Con mùcha gran gènt[e | e]n la màr anegàdo,

prove that the two hemistichs really form one verse and not two verses. Still, at times, the cæsura marked an absolute break in the verse, e.g., with hiatus; Mena:

Ya puès, si se dèbe | en èste gran làgo
Guiarse la flota.

Again the first syllable may be lacking in the first amphibrach; Mena:

Mièntras morían | y mièntras matàban.

The nine-syllabled amphibrach is illustrated in Espronceda’s _Estudiante de Salamanca_:

Y luègo el estrépito crèce
Confùso y cambiàdo en un sòn, _etc._

The six-syllabled amphibrach accents the second and fifth syllables in its perfect type; Moratín:

Ropàjes sutìles
Adòrno le sòn,
Y en èllos duplìca
Sus lùces el sòl.

But in pieces of more familiar import, the first accent may be lacking; e.g., Samaniego:

Plumas, sombrerètes,
Lunàres y rìzos
Jamás en s[u a]dòrno
Fueron admitìdos.

Here the first and fourth verses have only the accent of the fifth syllable.

*Anapæsts.*—These are most common in the verse of ten syllables, with three necessary accents; Iriarte:

Escondìdo en el trònco d[e u]n árbol.

Anapæsts are found also in the verse of seven syllables, though this is usually iambic; Meléndez Valdés:

Yo también soy cautìvo;
También yò, si tuvièra
Tu piquìt[o a]gradàble,
Te diría mis pènas.

*The iambic hendecasyllable or heroic verse.*—This ordinarily has eleven syllables, but it may end in an accented syllable and have only ten (_verso agudo_), or it may have two unaccented syllables at the end, and in such a case will have twelve syllables (_verso esdrújulo_). The latter two forms are always introduced into a composition according to some design. The typical form with five accents is rare:

Cayó, [y e]l sòn tremènd[o a]l bòsque atruèna.

All these accents are not necessary, but one of two main schemes of accentuation must be followed; viz., the accents must come on the sixth and tenth syllables, or else on the fourth, eighth and tenth; Rioja:

Campos de soledàd, | mustio collàdo.

Mora:

Sube cual àura | d[e o]loròso inciènso.

In the second scheme the cæsura properly comes after the stressed fourth or the unstressed fifth syllable.

*Sapphic verse.*—The sapphic is a hendecasyllable which requires that certain accents be present and that certain syllables be short. The full requirements are:

(1) accents on the fourth, eighth and tenth syllables as in a heroic of the second scheme;

(2) an accent on the first syllable;

(3) that the second and third syllables be short;

(4) that the sixth, seventh and ninth syllables be short;

(5) that the first hemistich end in a word stressed on the penult;

(6) that there be no synalœpha at the cæsura; e.g., Villegas:

Dùlcĕ vĕcìno | dĕ lă vèrdĕ sèlva.

Requirements 1, 4 and 5 must be met; the others may occasionally be neglected, thus the accent of the first syllable is lacking in Villegas:

Vital aliènto | dĕ lă màdrĕ Vènus.

Every sapphic is a good heroic hendecasyllable, but not all heroic hendecasyllables are good sapphics, since the latter are heroics subjected to certain conditions.

*Adonic verse.*—This is a five-syllabled (pentasyllabic) line of dactyls, in which it is required that the first and fourth syllables be accented, and that the second and third be short; cf. p. 177:

Céfĭrŏ blàndo.
Dìlĕ quĕ muèro.

It is really the first hemistich of a sapphic, and in strophic arrangement the two are always associated; cf. the ode of Villegas, p. 177. The strict laws of the sapphic and adonic are sometimes infringed.