Question

complete the rhyme scheme.
a a a b b
how i adore you, you happy things, you dears
riding the air and carrying all the time
your little lanterns behind you: it cheers
my heart to see you settling and trying to climb
the cornstalks, tipping with fire their spears.
from d. h. lawrence, \fireflies in the corn\

Explanation:

To determine the rhyme scheme, we look at the end - sounds of each line.

• The first line ends with "dears".
• The second line ends with "time".
• The third line ends with "cheers". "Dears" and "cheers" have a similar vowel sound (the "ear" sound in "dears" and the "eer" sound in "cheers" are close enough for a rhyme in a simple rhyme - scheme analysis).
• The fourth line ends with "climb".
• The fifth line ends with "spears". "Time" and "climb" have a similar vowel sound (the long "i" sound), and "dears" and "cheers" have a similar vowel sound.

Answer:

A, B, A, B, B