Alliteration and Rhyming

"'Well, goody gum drop,' he said." (p. 196)
"How-dee-doo."
"Pleased as punch" (p. 214)

Many times throughout this novel, O'Brien uses alliteration in the phrases uttered by the men. Perhaps these phrases are just more 'catchy' to say because of the repetition. On occasion, the author also uses alliteration in his paragraphs to create rhythm within the word structure. This seems to help the paragraphs flow more smooth and keeps the sentences from being stunted. I also noticed that O'Brien also uses a bit of rhyming in some of his paragraphs. For example:
"'How-dee-do, ' he said. One by one the others did it too." (p. 214)
Additionally, as this scene is suppossed to seem comical to most of the men, it might explain why alliteration and rhyming are used. It is an odd moment, and the rhythm the two literary devices create add to the feeling of the moment. Perhaps this will then cause the reader to re-read the sentence and find it to be as such. Overall, I just think it is interesting how O'Brien is able to use these devices to his advantage in a novel without it sounding forced or awkward.