In "The Poet at Seven," there is an eye rhyme at the end with the words "come" and "home." How can I tie the words to the poem?

An "eye rhyme" occurs when two words look like they should rhyme because of the way they are spelled, but they don't actually rhyme when they are pronounced. In this poem, the words "come," which ends line 13, and "home," which ends line 14, are eye rhymes. "Come" has a short /u/ sound when spoken, while "home" has a long /o/ sound. The effect of this eye rhyme is significant, especially since all the other...

An "eye rhyme" occurs when two words look like they should rhyme because of the way they are spelled, but they don't actually rhyme when they are pronounced. In this poem, the words "come," which ends line 13, and "home," which ends line 14, are eye rhymes. "Come" has a short /u/ sound when spoken, while "home" has a long /o/ sound. The effect of this eye rhyme is significant, especially since all the other rhymes in the poem are strong, actual rhymes; this is the only eye rhyme in the poem. Using an eye rhyme rather than a true rhyme, especially at the very end of the poem, creates a wavering uncertainty in the poem rather than a strong conclusion. The uncertainty in the rhyme reflects the uncertain mood of the boy in the poem. He has left his own yard to hide in the "foul weeds" of the vacant lot, but he really wants someone to find him, even if it means his mother or father will "whip him down the street, but gently." The little boy is experimenting with independence and being naughty, but he really wants his parents to rein him in, which will show him how much he is loved and wanted by them. Using the eye rhyme plays into the wavering thoughts that are in the seven-year-old's mind.