repetition

REPETITION

Other Literary Concepts:
Characterization | Alliteration | Point of View | Irony | Connotation | Plot | Personification

Repetition is when a sound/word/phrase/line is repeated in a poem. Poets use repetition to emphasize an idea or convey a certain feeling. For example:

Bob ate a fish,
Bob's pig flew above the fish,
Bob ate a fish

In the above example, "Bob ate a fish" is repeated for emphasis. In the course of one day, you will probably see many people use repetition to emphasize something. For example:

He ate my fish! He ate my fish!

When a sentence is repeated, the second time it is said, it is usually emphasized differently. In the above example, the second time the sentence is said, there should be an emphasis on "ate" and "fish".

Contray to a certain saying, repetition is not the death of the soul. When something is repeated, you are more likely to remember it.

Rep`e*ti"tion (r?p`?-t?sh"?n), n. [L. repetitio: cf. F. r'ep'etition. See Repeat.]

1.

The act of repeating; a doing or saying again; iteration.

I need not be barren of accusations; he hath faults, with surplus to tire in repetition. Shak.

2.

Recital from memory; rehearsal.

3. Mus.

The act of repeating, singing, playing, the same piece or part a second time; reiteration of a note.

4. Rhet.

Reiteration, or repeating the same word, or the same sense in different words, for the purpose of making a deeper impression on the audience.

5. Astron. & Surv.

The measurement of an angle by successive observations with a repeating instrument.

Syn. -- Iteration; rehearsal. See Tautology.

© Webster 1913.