God’s Grandeur

Sprung Rhythm

You can’t real talk about Hopkins without talking about "sprung rhythm," the name Hopkins gives to the rhythm he uses in his poetry. Instead of alternating stressed and unstressed syllables, Hopkins grouped stressed syllables together. This could create a rush, such as we experience in the line "brown brink eastward, springs," or a crisp stopping sensation, such as we get from the line "nor can foot feel" (12, 8). Keep in mind that these are just a few examples. For more on sprung rhythm, you can read this article, called "Gerard Manley Hopkins: Sprung rhythm is the most natural of things."