The Power of Repetition in Poetry
- A chapter from How To Write Evocative Poetry -
Extending on the previous section, the repetition of words, rhymes, sounds, meanings, and symbolism can make a piece pop. Experiment with groups of three as they tend to sound extra enticing.
In Seed I repeatedly use the dual rhyme endings of ‘eed’ and ‘urt’, the symbolism of seeds and pain, as well as the use of the same words in the penultimate paragraph in a different context from their first mention to evoke an alternative meaning. Finally, I also ‘tie the loop’ with a reintroduction of ‘seed’ at the end.
Seed
Sometimes,
I feel like a seed.
A potential inert,
A possibility to succeed.
So just put me in the dirt
And give me what I need.
How else can I avert?
How else can I exceed?Other times,
I feel hurt.
Just a societal weed.
A potential victim on alert,
Nurtured only when I bleed.
I don’t mean to be curt,
How else can I plead?
How else can I divert?
How else can I be freed?I am the hurt seed, the weed that’s only freed by the blood that it bleeds. Put into the dirt just wishing to exceed. Inert without encouragement, unable to succeed. Thus, I plead; Be alert to my need. Don’t divert or think me curt, I just want to succeed.
So just bury me
And perhaps this seed
Will grow
Into a weed.
In ‘A Moment Fragmented’ I use many repetitions of the same words, ‘Forever’, ‘Another’, and ‘Just’, as well as employ the rule of 3 by using alliteration with ‘Replayed, rewound, and reworked’.
A Moment Fragmented
A moment fragmented
Against a lifetime
Of similar momentsA life shattered
Well before it’s timeThose moments
Replayed, rewound, and reworkedThose moments reconstructed
Into a tolerable shadowForever following
Forever protecting
Forever warningForever recalling
Those moments
Where life was fragmentedForever forestalling
Advancement and growthForever focusing
Upon the past
And everything it implies about the futureAnother moment
Another fragmentation
Another destruction
Another shadow
Another protection
Another warning
Another followerJust more weight
To carry into the future
Just more weight
To hold me in place
Just more weight
To rememberJust more
Just anotherJust me
Reliving a momentAll those moments
Again
Finally, in I Took It For Granted, I take the concept of repetition and the rule of 3 to the extreme with multiple examples of each.
I Took It For Granted
My body was broken,
before I realised it was my own.I took it for granted,
while it was slowly being taken.I used it without thought,
I used it without comprehension,
I used it without appreciation.Now it’s just used.
I got old,
before I realised I was ageing.I squandered what I had,
while worrying about what I would become.I wasted my time,
I wasted my energy,
I wasted my opportunity.Now I’m just wasted.
My life was over,
before I realised I was living it.I ignored reality,
but reality kept
a watch on me.
I spent my time,
I spent my money,
I spent my soul.Now I’m just spent.
Once you start looking for repetition of threes in writing you won’t be able to stop noticing them, they are everywhere, and for good reason – they enhance writing. Obviously it is a matter of preference, but take a look at the above poems again, and remove one instance of a three (or add one to make it four). Would that change make the poem better? Personally, I don’t think so.
Summary
Repetition, particularly in groups of three, can enhance poetry and your writing in general.
This chapter is from the book How To Write Evocative Poetry
