Use of Repetition and Parallel Structure in Eliot's Gerontion

T.S. Eliot’s use of repetition and parallel structure serves to highlight important sections of the poem. In the very first stanza, Eliot uses the repetition of statements starting with “nor”, creating a parallel structure to emphasize the contrast between the “dry month” and the “warm rain” and “salt marshes.” The description of the narrator’s dry surroundings set the tone of despair and longing for the rest of the poem. In the fourth stanza, he repeats the phrase “to be” to draw attention to the actions occurring (“ To be eaten, to be divided, to be drunk”)-attention which would otherwise be focused on the descriptions of the “depraved May.” In the fifth stanza the repetition of “gives” is tongue tying and forces the reader to slow down in order to comprehend what Eliot is trying to say about history and its role in torturing mankind with hindsight(“give too late what’s not believed in, or is still believed”). In the sixth stanza the repetition of “I” narrows the focus of the poem from the other people living in the house and general statements about humanity back to focus on the narrator and his relationship.