Enjambment Meaning: Definition, Examples, and Translations

Literature

• Famous poets, including John Milton and T.S. Eliot, used enjambment to create rhythm and emotional tension in their works.
• This technique encourages readers to move quickly to the next line, enhancing the overall flow and urgency of the poem.
• In modern poetry, enjambment is often employed to reflect contemporary themes and styles, breaking traditional structures.

Psychology

• Researchers suggest enjambment may influence how readers emotionally engage with poetry, guiding feelings and interpretations.
• The break between lines can create suspense, prompting readers to ask questions and seek deeper meanings as they read.
• Engaging with enjambment stimulates cognitive processes, allowing for varied interpretations and reactions based on the reader's perspective.

Performance

• In spoken word and performance poetry, enjambment enhances dramatic effect, allowing for breath and pacing to convey emotion.
• Poets often use enjambment to create tension during performances, holding audiences in suspense until the next line is revealed.
• Enjambment can create musicality in performance, where the rhythm of the lines adds to the overall artistic expression.

Art and Expression

• Visual artists, inspired by poetic enjambment, create works that straddle boundaries, blending text and art seamlessly.
• Graphic novels sometimes use enjambment in dialogues, where speech bubbles flow into each other, mimicking poetic lines.
• Similar to enjambment in poetry, some forms of visual art break traditional forms, allowing for layered meanings and interpretations.

Main points about word origin

• The term comes from the French word 'enjambement,' meaning 'to straddle,' referring to how lines in poetry can straddle across breaks.
• Originally used in medieval French poetry, this technique gained popularity in English literature in the 17th century.
• Early examples of enjambment can be found in the works of poets like Geoffrey Chaucer, who played with line breaks.

The term 'enjambment' comes from the French word 'enjambement', which derives from the verb 'enjamb' meaning 'to straddle or to step over'. The term was first adopted in the English poetic tradition in the 19th century, although the technique itself has been employed by poets since ancient times. Historically, enjambment has been used across various poetic forms to create dynamics in pacing and emotional cadence. Its prominence grew during the Romantic and Modernist movements when poets began experimenting more freely with structure and form, breaking from traditional norms. As poetic styles evolved, enjambment became a hallmark of modern poetry, representing a shift towards more innovative and expressive uses of language.

Ranking #39,362, this word is encountered relatively rarely in everyday English. It might appear in literary works or specialized texts but isn't essential for general communication.

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