Poets use refrains, or repeated lines, most often placed at the end of a stanza, to reinforce the main theme or point of a poem. Though we now most often read poetry from a printed page or a computer screen, the genre arose from an oral tradition. In past times, when most people were illiterate, and before the printing press made widespread distribution of books possible, poems were recited before audiences in public or private spaces. The refrains, because they were repeated over and over, became easier for listeners to remember. This tradition has persisted to the present day. For instance, relatively modern poems use refrains, such as Dylan Thomas's "Do not go gentle into that good night," in which the speaker repeats the refrain "rage, rage against the dying of the light," advising his father and people everywhere to fight hard against dying. Even though we generally read such poems to ourselves, the refrains nevertheless lodge themselves in our memories.

Refrains are usually repetitions of a single word or phrase, even an entire stanza, for the sake of asserting its importance while enhancing the meter or rhythm of the literary work itself.

When an author really wants you to pay attention to a certain point or set of words, he/she will use a refrain to make it obvious. Refrains make reading more choral, or more musical, as the case may be.

When you add a refrain to a song, or to a poem (particularly ballads), what you are doing is repeating a word, line, verse, stanza, line, or chorus, in order to balance the rhythm of the piece and to even-out the way it sounds. It will sound more rhythmic when you add a refrain.

Check out more information in the link provided on the actual meaning of refrains and some samples of them.

What is the purpose of a refrain in literature?

A refrain is a poetic device that repeats at a regular interval. It could be a line or a set of lines that is repeated. Refrains can vary in their function, but generally speaking, they exist to create rhythm in a poem or to call specific attention to certain points. When a speaker says something like "let me repeat myself," that speaker is calling special attention to what they are saying. Poets work the same way, but this device can be especially important in poetry because, more often than not, poets are trying to convey a lot of thoughts and emotions with fewer words. A poet that repeats something means that it must be especially poignant. As an example, Robert Frost makes a nice usage of refrain in his poem "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." He repeats "And miles to go before I sleep" at the very end of the poem, and a reader can't help but ask why and discuss from there. Stephen Crane's poem "War is Kind" is another solid example of a poet making good usage of a refrain. Every other stanza repeats the "do not weep. / War is kind" lines. By the time the third refrain occurs in this poem, it is clear that the speaker is saying the lines with heavy amounts of sarcasm.

What is the purpose of a refrain in literature?

The refrain is primarily used to emphasize a key image or idea. For example, in Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven," the eponymous bird incessantly and infuriatingly repeats, "Nevermore." This is the raven's response to the speaker's questions about where the raven has come from and what it wants. It is also the raven's response to the speaker's questions about his lost love, Lenore. The line "Quoth the Raven 'Nevermore'" thus becomes the refrain of the poem.

The repetition of this one word uttered by the raven emphasizes just how infuriating the response is to the speaker. He insists on answers and is met only with "Nevermore." The idea here is that the speaker will never be with his lost love again—he will never be happy again. The refrain helps to emphasize this the horror of this idea.

Another good example of a refrain can be found in Alfred Lord Tennyson's war poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade." This is a poem which celebrates the heroism of soldiers charging into battle for their country. The refrain is "Cannon to the right of them, / Cannon to the left of them." These lines compound the image of the soldiers being completely surrounded by opposition fire and, therefore, compound the impression of the soldiers' bravery.

What is the purpose of a refrain in literature?

A refrain may serve one of several purposes. It is often used to reinforce an important thought, idea or phrase through repetition. Think of the refrain of songs.

Glory, glory, hallelujah. Glory, glory, hallelujah. Glory, Glory, hallelujah. His truth is marching on.

A refrain may also help to establish the rhythmic pattern or mark the end of each stanza of a piece. In Robert Frost's poem The Pasture, the refrain is the last line of each stanza.

I'm going to clean the pasture spring;

I'll only stop to rake the leaves away

(And wait to watch the water clear away, I may):

I shan't be gone long. - You come too.

I'm going out to fetch the little calf

That's standing by the mother. It's so young,

It totters when she licks it with her tongue.

I shan't be gone long. - You come too.

Refrains may also simply be nonsense syllables used to fill out a metric pattern or as a break in the story. Think of all the Christmas carols that use meaningless syllables as part of the lyrics.

Deck the halls with boughs of holly!

Fa la la la la, la la la la.