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Autogenic rhythm

Meter
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Rhythm that appears to generate itself organically from the poem's content rather than imposed pattern

Detailed Definition
Autogenic rhythm is a self-generating metrical pattern that evolves organically from the poem’s internal logic rather than external rules, often emerging from breath, thought, or emotional pulse; this approach prioritizes authenticity over convention, as in Charles Olson’s “projective verse” or Beat spontaneity.
Example
Example in poetry:
Autogenic rhythm: In Allen Ginsberg’s “Howl,” the long lines build through internal repetition and breath (“who poverty and tatters and hollow-eyed and high sat up smoking…”), creating autogenic rhythm—self-generating through syntactic accumulation.
Additional Notes
Autogenic rhythm: A rhythm that generates itself organically from the poem’s content rather than imposed meter; central to free verse theory (e.g., Williams’ "variable foot").
Also Known As
Self-generating rhythm spontaneous meter organic cadence natural rhythm
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