The Lost Rhythm
A few notes on the MARJORIE GULLAN Method of Rhythmic Movement to Spoken Poetry.
Rhythm, as we know to-day, is universal. The vast solar system, and the minutest life upon this planet, swing- unceasingly to a rhythmic beat. Rhythm also pulses through the unseen ethers and without it nothing could continue in being.
Illness, mental and physical, is so largely a matter of broken or disturbed rhythm in the individual that it is encouraging to notice how much the attention of educationists is turning toward the need and value of rhythmic exercises of all sorts. Still more important and hopeful is the tendency through freer methods to give children an opportunity of pursuing their daily activities of work and play in such a way as to allow them unconsciously to find and maintain their own rhythm, physical, emotional, and intellectual. The various experiments in the schools of to-day, where a ” free time-table ” within the bounds of law and order is arranged, provide the children with a way of life which has as its basis the ihythmic law?that of a definite swing of events or activities, ever varying in detail according to the individual’s personal needs, or the sometimes inevitable exigencies of circumstance.
Here in the child’s daily life we see plainly the unchanging law in rhythm- freedom and variety of detail within the limits set by a recurring principle (as in the case of meals, bed, walks, etc.). In music we have the regularity of the beat, but through it there are always the melodies, the harmonies and the phrases which give individuality. In spoken poetry we have the stresses of the poetic line, with the ever-varying cadences of the speaking voice.
Poetry is of the greatest possible value in education just because it is rhythmic speech. Speech gives us that priceless gift of communication with each other and when this takes the rhythmic form called poetry, it is truly satisfying to the inner life of man. In his disorders and inharmonies, it tends to harmonise and control. In applying rhythmic movement to spoken poetry, we ask the teacher to speak a jingle, for the youngest child when listening can begin to feel the beat under the poetic line, even though the meaning of the words may be far beyond his understanding. If the teacher’s sense of rhythm is good and the words are spoken clearly and simply, that contact with the child’s psyche of which Dr Montessori speaks, can be made through his listening and later through his taking part in the rhythmic movement to the jingle.
The need of the poor child for a training in rhythm is particularly great, since his daily life knows nothing of it. lhat life is violent and harsh when it is not merely haphazard?-and is always more or less chaotic. T here is no place in it for the gradual growth and unfolding of child life. Any farmer knows that the earth cannot ” bring forth and bud, giving seed to the sower and bread to the^eater without the observance of that rhythmic law of seeding, sprouting, growing and unfolding, and yet among the vast majority of human beings no such knowledge appears to be current as to the life of the child.
Happily educationists are becoming more and more aware of the necessity for using every possible means for the re-establishment of the lost rhythm. The arts are being encouraged in our schools as never before. Pictures of real value and prints representing great sculpture are seen in our schoolrooms. Concerts?vocal and instrumental?are being given for school children. Poetry-speaking, thanks to our Festival Movement, is reaching a standard never before dreamed of. We have, however, only just begun to realise the value of spoken poetry as an art. Perhaps this is just because it is so accessible. Unlike music for which we must have access to some instrument, every human being is provided with a natural instrument?the voice?and (given the love of poetry and the necessary time for the perfecting of his instrument) is free to acquire this art.
Poetry is seldom read well, therefore it is neither appreciated nor understood by the vast majority. The Poetry lesson in school, instead of being a boon, is often a bogey, but if we can link up the joy of rhythmic movement with the speaking of simple poetry, our children will delight in it.
The aim of this method throughout is to develop the sense of rhythm in poetry, to train speech, to free the pupil at the early stages from the labour of memorising, and from the difficulties connected with the printed page, and to help him to over- come shyness and self-consciousness by sharing in the poetry game through jingles, rhythmic patterns, refrains and ” line-a-child ” work.* Vivid vigorous speech is induced by constantly speaking words to strong rhythms, and variety and flexibility of tone is the result of movements suggestive of the ideas represented by the words. This community speaking does not take the place of individual speech. It in every case leads up to it, but the constant sharing of poetry by the children, while it tends towards better solo speaking, in the way of utterance, manner and spirit, does in a great measure destroy the tendency towards the display of the star child, at the expense of his shyer but often more artistic fellow-pupil.
We are assured by those engaged in teaching the mentally deficient, that the results obtained by simple regular movements to spoken poetry have been most encouraging in the co-ordinating effect produced upon the children.
In what lay the source of our early delight when Grandfather danced us on his knee to the words of :?
Ride a cock-horse to Banbury Cross, To see a fine lady ride on a white horse, Rings on her fingers and bells on her toes, She shall make music wherever she goes.
In the fact that long before we knew the words, we felt all through our bodies the steady beat of the rhythm, where sense stress and metric stress perfectly coin- cided, added to the constant joy of anticipation connected with the tinkle of the rhymes as they fell into place Was not the rhyme word the first one which we tried to say, for that very reason?
How instinctive in the child is his desire to accompany rhythmic speech-with rhythmic movement ! And yet, how little provision has been made in the school life for the satisfaction of this deep-seated instinct. What can have happened to us adults that we have so completely forgotten in these civilised days that the primitive life from which we are sprung expressed itself continually in a variety of ways, the essence of which was rhythm?
Clearly then, the first thing is to establish, or rather to re-establish, a sense of rhythm in poetry, and for this purpose we begin with real jingles, in which the strong beats are obvious and where the words do not express any subtlety of thought. 1 his allows the child, unhampered by the need of giving expression to ‘See “Spoke i Poetry in the Schools,” by Marjorie Gullan. Methueu, 3/6. imaginative language, to concentrate on the steady beat, and later he will come to appreciate the beauties of more varied rhythms and finer words.
Begin by speaking some merry jingles to the tiny children, inviting them to make a movement to the rhythm. It matters little at this stage whether they can speak the words or not. In fact they are almost sure not to do so and it is not our chief purpose at the moment that they should. We want to help them to feel all through their bodies by clapping, stepping, 01^ dancing, the lhythm which the words convey. Be especially careful to choose a jingle not associated in the chil- dren’s minds with a song, since the musical rhythm often does not coincide with the speaking rhythm and this causes mental confusion. Choose the simplest possible words and an absolutely regular rhythm, so that the poetry game may be truly a game and nothing more. The little child learns best what it learns with delight as every teacher knows, and if we are working from so sound a basis as the child’s own instincts when at play, we need not fear the results.
In order to establish the sense of poetic rhythm we seek to give the children an opportunity of hearing easy words spoken rhythmically and also a chance of making easy but “definite movements in exact accord with such words. For this we choose a simple jingle such as ” Hot cross buns ” or Bell Hoi ses, speaking clearly and accurately but with flexibility of tone and vivacity. The children listen and if we encourage them, soon desire to speak a line or two themselves. Care must be taken to insure that they have heard correctly and that they speak such lines as they are able to enunciate well. Failing” this, it is better that they should hear constantly the good speech of the teacher until such time as it has entered more deeply into their being so that they can reproduce it with little or no effort.
It is during this early stage of assimilation through hearing that we give oui children their first opportunities of making physical movements of a very simple nature, in exact accord with the rhythm of the jingle. The four strong beats in each line in ” Hot cross buns ” and ” Bell Horses ” can be marked first by touch- ing the fingers lightly together or by beating lightly in the air. Soon a movement ?f the whole body in the form of a marching, dancing, running or skipping step can be allowed. There are many simple old jingles which lend themselves to this method and which give the children the deepest satisfaction. Gertrude N. Kerby.
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