Envoi

An envoi is a short final stanza of a poem that addresses a person or the poem itself, often to send it off or sum it up.

Kipling closed his book The Seven Seas with a poem titled "L'Envoi", which begins with this line.

When Earth's last picture is painted and the tubes are twisted and dried,

Rudyard Kipling, 1896

What it is

In medieval French forms such as the ballade, the envoi is a half-length final stanza that speaks to a patron or lord and repeats the refrain. In English the word is used more loosely for any short closing section that sends the poem off.

How to spot it

Look at the very end of a poem or a sequence. If the last short stanza stops telling the story and speaks to someone, whether the reader, a patron or the poem itself, it is acting as an envoi. Words such as "go, little book" or a direct "you" are common signs. If a closing stanza only repeats the last image without a new voice or address, it is just an ending, and that is fine too.

Why it matters to a writer or editor

An envoi is a way to end a poem on a direct address, as if the poet has turned to look at the reader. It is a good tool for a book or sequence, where a short closing note can tie the whole thing together.

Frequently asked questions

How do you pronounce envoi?

Usually "EN-voy". The word is French and means a sending off. It is also spelled envoy.