What Is Repetition? Definition & Examples Of This Technique

Repetition is the process of repeating something in order to achieve a desired result.

For example, I ask:

What is repetition?

What is repetition?

What is repetition?

Sorry. Apologies for that.
 

In film, repetition can also serve as a way to help viewers understand what they just saw by giving them more information about a scene they’ve already seen.

Writers use repetition to highlight an emotion, describe an object or event, or make an object look even more important than it was before.

Repetition can also be used to show that things are changing over time with characters or objects.

Examples Of Repetition In Writing

Repetition is the use of a word or phrase more than once within a given piece of writing. Repetition, when used correctly, can have a dramatic effect on your writing, especially in persuasive essays.

Repetition gives your writing rhythm and a reason to keep reading. Even though repetition is important, there are some guidelines you should keep in mind when using this technique.

The first guideline is to always be sure you are repeating an appropriate word or phrase. If you aren’t sure what words to repeat, ask yourself if they make sense together and if they fit into the context of the sentence and paragraph.

If they do not, then you should look for another word or phrase that does make sense and fits into the context of the sentence and paragraph.

Another guideline when using repetition is to make sure that it isn’t excessive. If you use too many repetitive words or phrases in your paper, it will be like banging your head against a wall. It will give readers a headache and make them want to stop reading your paper altogether.

   

The best way to avoid this problem is to determine how many times you want to repeat the same word or phrase and stick with that number throughout your paper.

One last guideline about repetition deals with when repetition should be used in your paper.

Examples Of Repetition In Screenwriting

Lots of writers think repetition is a bad thing. They believe that having the same word or phrase appear more than once in a screenplay is a scriptwriting device to be avoided at all costs. But there are times when using repetition can lend weight and importance to the words you choose.

Versions of this article have appeared on Scriptmag, Movie Outline and the Screenwriting Goldmine blog.

The first time I remember seeing repetition used effectively in a screenplay was on the TV show, The West Wing. 

In one episode, Sam Seaborn, played by Rob Lowe, has been working for his father-in-law for some years and has become frustrated by his lack of progress within the company.

He becomes angry with President Bartlet and voices his frustration during a debate over whether to intervene militarily in an African nation. When Bartlet asks him if he’s questioning his decision, Sam replies: “I’m not questioning your decision, sir. I’m questioning my ability to defend it.”

This line is repeated later in the episode and again in further episodes during that series. It’s a great example of how repetition can be used to add emphasis to dialogue, especially when the repetition occurs at different stages within an episode or series.

Examples Of Repetition In Film

Re-using footage is a common practice for filmmakers. In this article, I will be looking at examples of repetition in film from some of the most critically acclaimed movies of all time.

Tarantino uses the same footage to tell the story twice and create a flashback sequence within the story. The audience are given a clue that something isn’t quite right in the scene when Ving Rhames star’s face appears twice on screen.

Tarantino gives the viewers another clue to help them understand what has happened when Clarence tells his fellow prisoners, “I never seen so much blood in my life.”

The footage is not just used as a way of creating flashbacks but also used to show how changes in an individual’s life can have a negative impact on them.

The character of Winston Wolf (Ving Rhames) is a criminal who has been released from jail and is struggling with the fact that he used to be an assassin. This causes him to become increasingly paranoid and leads to him having nightmares about his former career.

Fincher uses similar tactics as Tarantino by reusing footage throughout Fight Club, although Fincher doesn’t use it for flashbacks but for other purposes, such as showing how people are affected by consumerism and showing how Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) is.

Types Of Repetition In Poetry And Prose

Speech is a constant repetition of words, ideas and phrases. In poetry and prose, repetition can have many different functions. Writers use it to create rhythm and to emphasize certain aspects of the work. Repetition can draw attention to a specific element or set up a contrast between elements.

Tone is an important factor in speech. Repetition can create a specific tone or reinforce the tone an author has already created by using other techniques. This type of repetition is called functional repetition. In some cases, this type of repetition is used to lend emphasis to a certain part of the speech or text. The phrase “let us begin” is repeated in this excerpt from St. John’s “The Book of Signs” (1:1-13):

Let us begin by entering into ourselves…

In this case, the repetition emphasizes that listeners should enter into themselves, because that was what St. John had just told them to do: “Enter into yourselves.” It also creates a chant-like effect that draws attention to the words and makes the style more rhythmic than if there had been no repetition at all.

Functional repetition can be seen in “Invictus,” as well:

…It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishments.

Anadiplosis — Repetition In Successive Clauses

Anadiplosis (ˌanəˈdɪpəˈləsɪs) — repetition of the last word or words at the beginning of successive clauses or sentences.

The term is derived from the Greek ἀνά (aná, “back”) and διπλᾶν (diplán, “double”), referring to the doubling of a word. In Classical rhetoric, it was regarded as a form of parison (parismus), but in medieval rhetoric, it was considered a rhetorical figure in its own right.

It is comparable to polyptoton.

In English poetry, this figure is commonly used as a variation in anaphora. Anadiplosis is also used in Latin verse.

Anadiplotic sentence structure can be found in Hebrew poetry. Anadiplosis is a rhetorical device in which successive sentences or phrases begin with the same word or words. The repetition of a word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of successive clauses is known as anadiplosis. Its opposite is polysyndeton, where successive clauses are linked using conjunctions.

Anadiplosis can also refer to words or phrases at the end of successive clauses. This type of repetition is commonly used for dramatic effect in poetry and speeches, such as William Shakespeare’s famous speech from Act III scene iv of Julius Caesar: “Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.”

The use of anadiplosis involves a deliberate decision on the part of the writer. It should be easy to recognize because it gives a sense of balance to the sentence by emphasizing certain concepts and ideas.

Anaphora — Repetition At The Beginning Of Lines Or Clauses

The word anaphora is derived from the Greek, meaning “to return.” It can be used to describe a literary device in which words or ideas are repeated at the beginning of successive lines or clauses.

Anaphora is also sometimes called epiphora, from the same Greek root meaning “to bear,” but anaphora is more commonly used in writing and epiphora in speaking.

Linguistic repetition is not unusual; we often use a variety of repetition devices when speaking, such as alliteration (saying the same thing over again with different words) and rhyme (repetition of similar-sounding words).

But one of the most common and effective forms of anaphora occurs in writing, employing repetition at the beginning of successive phrases or sentences. Its purpose is to help hold a reader’s attention.

By repeating key ideas and phrases — especially one that is particularly striking — at the beginning of new sections, sentences or thoughts, readers know what to expect as they continue reading.

Antanaclasis — Successive Repetition Of A Word, In Which Each Use Has A Different Meaning

The word antanaclasis comes from the Greek words “anti” (meaning against) and “ana” (meaning up, back, or against).

Taken literally, an example of this rhetorical device is when a word, phrase, or expression is repeated in a text with a different meaning each time it is used. The repetition serves to emphasize the change of meaning.

Let’s look at some examples:

“Away with you! Away with you! And that way madness lies; let me tell you.” — Shakespeare

In this example, the speaker is using the phrase “away with” both literally and figuratively. On the one hand, he means to dismiss his guest. But, on the other hand, he means that his guest should be taken far away due to his madness.

“I heard the old man say: ‘Four legs good, two legs bad.’” — George Orwell

Here we have another literal-figurative example. The speaker has heard an old man say that dogs are good and people are bad. So instead of taking him literally when he says that two legs are bad, we should consider that he thinks walking on all fours is better than walking on two legs.

Symploce — Repetition At Both The Beginnings And Ends Of Clauses

For the beginning of speech, that is, for the introduction, there are three figures: protasis, apodosis, and parison. For the end of speech, there are also three figures: epistrophe, epistasis, and epanalepsis.

Tropes (or tropes of repetition) are expressions which have become so common in language that they have lost their figurative character. 

In other words, they have become cliche. Tropes are to be distinguished from schemes which are single figures of speech, hence a trope is always a scheme plus one or more additional figures.

Tropes can involve either the beginning or the ending of a sentence or clause. However, it may be better to treat them separately because some patterns involve only one part of speech (for example, adjectives) while others involve two parts of speech (for example, nouns).

Some tropes consist of just one word repeated; some consist of longer patterns involving several words. 

The word syllepsis comes from the Greek, meaning “the use of one word for another.” In rhetoric, it refers to the repetition of a single word or phrase in different parts of a sentence.

Tone: formal and authoritative. In rhetoric, symploce is a figure of speech in which words or phrases are repeated in neighboring clauses or sentences for emphasis.

What Is Repetition – Wrapping Up

What is repetition? What is repetition? What is repetition?

Just kidding.

When you write an article for the web, it’s important to consider how your readers will react to it. 

You want them to be engaged, and reading every word as they scroll down the page. They aren’t going to do that if they’re busy trying to figure out what you mean.

Repetition is a very important tool when you’re writing for the web. 

It helps your readers understand what you mean and remember what you said. Repetition can also help persuade your readers to take action as they read your articles.

Here are some examples of repetition:

• Verb – Noun – Verb – Noun – Verb-Noun

This is one of the most common types of repetition used in any form of writing, but especially on the web. This style of repetition uses a verb with two nouns attached to it.

• Repeating Keywords

This form of repetition is used primarily in articles where keywords are extremely important. Content writers often repeat keywords throughout their articles so that search engines pick up on them and index their article appropriately. This technique will help boost traffic.