Alliteration & Anaphora

Alliteration is repeated initial sounds: "The cat crept carefully." Anaphora is repeated words at line starts: "I want / I want / I want." Both create rhythm and emphasis without being heavy.

Alliteration can be playful ("Peter Piper") or serious ("Darkness devours, darkness descends"). But don't overuse it or it becomes sing-songy. Anaphora is powerful for building intensity. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" uses anaphora to hammer the same idea deeper with each repetition.

Use these tools intentionally. If every line starts with "I," you're not emphasizing; you're annoying. The power is in restraint and purpose.