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Echoic repetition

Sound
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

The repeating of sounds or words that mimic echoes within verse—producing a sense of reverberation, distance, or memory; it creates auditory texture and suggests voice bouncing off walls or through time.

Detailed Definition
Echoic repetition is the strategic reuse of sounds, words, or phrases to simulate auditory echoes within a poem, reinforcing themes of memory, haunting, or cyclical time; it differs from simple refrain by its mimetic, spatially suggestive quality.
Example
Example in poetry:
Echoic repetition: "The bells! The bells!—Poe’s obsessive tolling"; "Sea, sea, sea—waves of repeated noun"; "Whitman: 'I sing the body electric, / The armies of those I love engirth me' (anaphora)"; "Repetition mimics heartbeat, drum, or chant"; "Sound echoes meaning: 'murmur, murmur, murmur'"
Additional Notes
The deliberate recurrence of sounds, words, or phrases to create echo-like effects throughout a poem. More controlled than simple repetition; emphasizes acoustic mirroring. Related to anaphora and epistrophe but focuses on echo quality.
Also Known As
Sound repetition Acoustic echo Mimetic reiteration Sonic duplication mimetic repetition
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