Re: A soothing advertisement (Spoiler)

On 5/24/2025 12:03 AM, Jeff Barnett wrote:

Many years ago, I would drive by the Los Angeles International airport
on the my way to work. Near there, visible from the freeway, was a
billboard advertisement for some SUV or pickup truck - I don't remember
which or the manufacturer. It caught my attention with these three
simple lines:

    Climb mountains
    Carry plywood
    Comb beaches (a play on beachcomber)

It has stuck in my mind like a little poem. I present it to you all as a
simple puzzle on what makes it coherent. I'll post my observation after
a while. BTW, I assume that many or most of the regulars in these groups
will catch on more quickly than I did.

It seems that the Hen was the only one curious about this. It took me a
while to become conscious of a phone trick: The place of articulation of
the first phonemes of the first words of each of the three lines is
velar; The place of articulation of the first phonemes of the second
words of each of the three lines is bilabial.

I think that when one says those three lines, the phone-likeness
enforces a rhythm on the utterance, i.e., the time-length of each line
is the same and the time allocated to each first word is the same. Some
poetry is perceived as such because of rhythm, not rhyme. I'm wondering
if the above is an example of phone patterns that naturally cause a
rhythm in pronunciation. All I know is it worked that way for me many
years ago.

As to the Hen's question "is the 3rd line... like a punch line?" I'd say
no. However it is somewhat contrived which suggested that the copywriter
had to search for something somewhat relevant that followed the pattern.
--
Jeff Barnett