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Opening citation

Structure
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

A quoted passage used to begin a poem or section, often setting tone or theme.

Detailed Definition
An epigraph, prefatory quotation, or borrowed passage beginning a poem to establish context or enter dialogue with tradition. Creates intertextual relationship between works across time. T.S. Eliot frequently used opening citations from Dante, Shakespeare, or other sources to frame his poems. Can remain in original language or be translated, immediately situating work within broader literary conversations. Functions as threshold between reader's world and poem's world, providing interpretive lens or thematic preparation for what follows.
Example
Example in poetry:
Opening citation: T.S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land” begins with a Latin epigraph from Petronius; Claudia Rankine’s “Citizen” opens with a second-person vignette functioning as citational frame; Derek Walcott’s “Omeros” quotes Homer in Greek; contemporary poet Solmaz Sharif uses military dictionary definitions as opening citations in “Look”; opening citations establish intertextual dialogue or thematic lens; they may be literary, historical, or bureaucratic.
Additional Notes
An epigraph, prefatory quotation, or borrowed line beginning a poem. Establishes context, theme, or enters dialogue with tradition. T.S. Eliot used opening citations extensively. Can be translated or left in original language. Creates intertextual relationship between poems and poets across time.
Also Known As
epigraph prefatory quote opening inscription heading citation Introductory quotation
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