The pleasure of poetic pattern - David Silverstein

譯者: Crystal Yip 審譯者: Helen Chang

Just for a moment,

只是停一停

focus on your breath.

專注於你的呼吸

In slowly.

慢慢吸氣

Out slowly.

慢慢呼氣

In slowly.

慢慢吸氣

Out.

呼氣

The same pattern repeats within every one of us

我們每一個人重覆這相同的節奏

and consider your pulse.

想想你的脈搏

The beat is built into the very fabric of our being.

這節拍嵌進我們骨子裡

Simply put, we're creatures of rhythm and repetition.

簡單來說， 我們是節奏和重覆的生物

It's central to our experience,

節奏和重覆對於我們的經驗非常重要

rhythm and repetition,

節奏和重覆

rhythm and repetition.

節奏和重覆

On, and in,

繼續，又吸入

and on, and out.

繼續，又呼出

And we delight in those aspects everyday,

我們每天享受著這些節奏

in the rhythm of a song,

歌曲的節奏

the beat of the drum,

鼓聲的節拍

the nod of your head,

你的點點頭

or in the repetition of soup cans,

或是湯罐的重覆出現

the rows of an orchard,

果園內的行列

the artistry of petals.

花瓣片片的美

Pattern can be pleasure.

模式能帶來樂趣

In language, rhythm and repetition are often used

語言中，節奏和重覆

經常用作詩的基本構成

as the building blocks for poetry.

There's the rhythm of language,

這是語言的節奏

created by syllables and their emphasis,

以音節和重音來創造

such as, "So long as men can breathe or eyes can see."

例如「 So long as men can breathe or eyes can see. 」

And there's the repetition of language at multiple levels:

而這裡有不同語言層次的重覆：

the repetition of letters,

字母的重覆

"So long lives this and this gives life to thee,"

「 So long lives this and this gives life to thee. 」

of sounds,

語音的重覆

"breathe," "see," "thee,"

「 breathe 」、「 see 」、「 thee 」

and of words.

還有字詞的重覆

With so many uses, repetition is one of the poet's most malleable

重覆的用途廣泛，是詩人最有彈性

and reliable tools.

和最可靠的工具之一

It can lift or lull the listener,

能使情感或揚或抑

amplify or diminish the line,

詩句或重或輕

unify or diversify ideas.

意念或統一或分眾

In fact, even rhythm itself,

事實上，即使節奏本身

a repeated pattern of stressed syllables,

是重音節旳重覆模式

is a form of repetition.

是一種形式的重覆

Yet for all its varied uses,

雖然它用途多樣

too much repetition can backfire.

但重覆太多則有反效果

Imagine writing the same sentence on the blackboard twenty times,

試想像在黑板寫出相同句子二十次

again, and again, and again, and again,

重覆、重覆、重覆，又重覆

or imagine a young child clamoring for her mother's attention,

或試想像幼童大吵大鬧 以獲得母親的注意

"Mom, mom, mommy, mom, mom."

「媽、媽、媽媽、媽、媽。」

Not exactly what we might call poetry.

我們並不會真的稱這些為詩

So what is poetic repetition, and why does it work?

那甚麼是詩意的重覆，為何有效？

Possibly most familiar is rhyme,

可能我們最熟悉的是押韻

the repetition of like sounds in word endings.

字尾相似語音的重覆

As with Shakespeare's example,

正如莎士比亞的例子

we often encounter rhyme at the ends of lines.

我們經常在行末遇到押韻

Repetition in this way creates an expectation.

這樣的重覆帶來期望

We begin to listen for the repetition of those similar sounds.

我們開始期待聽到這些相似語音的重覆

When we hear them, the found pattern is pleasurable.

當我們聽到押韻， 感受到的模式讓人愉快

Like finding Waldo in the visual chaos,

正如在視覺混亂中找到威利一樣

we hear the echo in the oral chatter.

正如在嘈雜環境中聽到回音一樣

Yet, rhyme need not surface solely at a line's end.

但押韻不限於行末

Notice the strong "i" sound in,

注意重音「 i 」在

"So long lives this and this gives life to thee."

「 So long lives this and this gives life to thee.」

This repetition of vowel sounds is called assonance

母音的重覆稱為諧音

and can also be heard in Eminem's "Lose Yourself."

亦可見於 Eminem 的 「 Lose Yourself 」

Notice how the "e" and "o" sounds repeat both within in

注意「 e 」和「 o 」音如何在 每行中間和行末重覆：

and at the end of each line:

"Oh, there goes gravity,

「 Oh, there goes gravity,

Oh, there goes rabbit, he choked,

Oh, there goes rabbit, he choked,

he so mad but he won't give up that easy,

he so mad but he won't give up that easy,

no, he won't have it,

no, he won't have it,

he knows his whole back's to these ropes."

he knows his whole back's to these ropes. 」

The alternating assonance creates its own rhythm,

母音交替押韻創造出節奏

and invites us to try our own voices in echoing it.

邀請我們嘗試用自己的聲音來模仿

Similarly, consonance is the repetition of like consonant sounds,

同樣地，子音韻是子音的重覆

such as the "l" and "th" in,

例如「 l 」和「 th 」在

"So long lives this and this gives life to thee."

「 So long lives this and this gives life to thee. 」

In fact, this type of specific consonance,

事實上，這種發生在字首的子音韻

which occurs at the beginning of words

may be familiar to you already.

或許你早已熟悉

It's called alliteration, or front rhyme.

稱為頭韻

Great examples include tongue twisters.

例子包括繞口令

Betty bought some butter but the butter was bitter

「 Betty bought some butter but the butter was bitter

so Betty bought some better butter to make the bitter butter better.

so Betty bought some better butter to make the bitter butter better.」

Here, the pleasure in pattern is apparent as we trip over the consonance

我們明顯會從此模式中感到樂趣

因為字首或字中子音相同而繞口

both within words and at their start.

Yet tongue twisters also reflect the need for variation in poetic repetition.

但繞口令同時反映 詩意重覆需要不同變化

While challenging to say,

雖然繞口令不容易講

they're seen by some as lesser imitations of poetry,

它們被一些人視為 詩的低等模仿或噱頭

or gimmicky because they hammer so heavily on the same sounds,

因為它們如此著重於相同語音

closer to that blackboard-style of repetition.

類近於黑板式的重覆

Ultimately, this is the poet's balancing act,

說到底，這是詩人 平衡各種技巧的工夫

learning when to repeat

學習何時重覆

and when to riff,

何時重覆小段

when to satisfy expectations,

何時滿足期望

and when to thwart them,

何時阻撓

and in that balance, it may be enough to remember

在這平衡中，或只需記得

we all live in a world of wild variation

我們都活在多姿多彩的世界中

and carry with us our own breath and beat,

各自帶著獨有的呼吸和心跳

our own repetition wherever we go.

各自獨有的重覆

無論我們走到何方