The pantoum is four stanzas of four lines each, integrating eight repeated lines in a specific order. (In other words, the pantoum we are exploring is 16 lines long.) Note there are variations. We are using a classic form. Here, is the pattern of the repeated lines are Line A through Line H:
Stanza 1
Line A
Line B
Line C
Line D
Stanza 2
Line B
Line E
Line D
Line F
Stanza 3
Line E
Line G
Line F
Line H
Stanza 4
Line G
Line C
Line H
Line A
The glossary listing of pantoums from the Academy of American Poets is helpful in understanding the effect of the form:
An incantation is created by a pantoum’s interlocking pattern of rhyme and repetition; as lines reverberate between stanzas, they fill the poem with echoes. This intense repetition also slows the poem down, halting its advancement.
I put the word “repetition” in bold. As you will notice in the examples of pantoums on this site that replay dramatic events, the repetition is what give the pantoum its power. While creating sestinas, you repeated end words. While creating pantoums, you repeat entire lines. Some more complex patterns of pantoums also use rhyming end words, but this is not always necessary. We’ll keep it “simple.”
There is also a good description from the Philadelphia Writer’s Workshop, if you need or want further clarification:
