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The rule of three is a
writing Writing is a medium of human communication which involves the representation of a language through a system of physically inscribed, mechanically transferred, or digitally represented symbols. Writing systems do not themselves constitute h ...
principle that suggests that a trio of entities such as events or characters is more humorous, satisfying, or effective than other numbers. The audience of this form of text is also thereby more likely to remember the information conveyed because having
three 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * '' Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 ...
entities combines both brevity and rhythm with having the smallest amount of information to create a pattern. Slogans, film titles, and a variety of other things have been structured in threes, a tradition that grew out of oral storytelling. Examples include the
Three Little Pigs "The Three Little Pigs" is a fable about three pigs who build three houses of different materials. A Big Bad Wolf blows down the first two pigs' houses which made of straw and sticks respectively, but is unable to destroy the third pig's house t ...
,
Three Billy Goats Gruff "Three Billy Goats Gruff" ( no, De tre bukkene Bruse) is a Norwegian fairy tale collected by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe in their '' Norske Folkeeventyr'', first published between 1841 and 1844. It has an Aarne-Thompson type of 1 ...
,
Goldilocks and the Three Bears "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" (originally titled "The Story of the Three Bears") is a 19th-century English fairy tale of which three versions exist. The original version of the tale tells of an obscene old woman who enters the forest home ...
, and the
Three Musketeers 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * '' Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 ...
. Similarly, adjectives are often grouped in threes to emphasize an idea.


Meaning

The rule of three can refer to a collection of three words, phrases, sentences, lines, paragraphs/stanzas, chapters/sections of writing and even whole books. The three elements together are known as a triad. The technique is used not just in prose, but also in
poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek '' poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meani ...
, oral storytelling, films, and
advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...
. In photography, the
rule of thirds The rule of thirds is a "rule of thumb" for composing visual images such as designs, films, paintings, and photographs. The guideline proposes that an image should be imagined as divided into nine equal parts by two equally spaced horizontal lin ...
produces a similar effect by dividing an image into three vertically and horizontally. A
tricolon Isocolon is a rhetorical scheme in which parallel elements possess the same number of words or syllables. As in any form of parallelism, the pairs or series must enumerate like things to achieve symmetry. The scheme is called bicolon, tricolon, ...
is a more specific use of the rule of three where three words or phrases are equal in length and grammatical form. A hendiatris is a figure of speech where three successive words are used to express a single central idea. As a slogan or motto, this is known as a tripartite motto.


Slogans and catchphrases

Many advertising campaigns and public information slogans use the technique to create a catchy, memorable way of displaying information. In marketing theory, American advertising and sales pioneer St. Elmo Lewis laid out his three chief copywriting principles, which he felt were crucial for effective advertising:
The mission of an advertisement is to attract a reader so that he will look at the advertisement and start to read it; then to interest him, so that he will continue to read it; then to convince him, so that when he has read it he will believe it. If an advertisement contains these three qualities of success, it is a successful advertisement.
Better-known examples include: *
Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" is a well-known phrase from the United States Declaration of Independence. Scanned image of the Jefferson's "original Rough draught" of the Declaration of Independence, written in June 1776, including ...
– Rights outlined in the ''U.S. Declaration of Independence'' *
Liberté, égalité, fraternité ''Liberté, égalité, fraternité'' (), French for "liberty, equality, fraternity", is the national motto of France and the Republic of Haiti, and is an example of a tripartite motto. Although it finds its origins in the French Revolution, i ...
– The slogan of the
French Republic France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
predating 1790 * Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit – Opening line of
German National Anthem The "" (; "Song of Germany"), officially titled "" (; "The Song of the Germans"), has been the national anthem of Germany either wholly or in part since 1922, except for a seven-year gap following World War II in West Germany. In East Germ ...
* A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play –
Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...
advertising slogan since 1959 * Stop, Look and Listen – A public road and level crossing safety slogan *
Stop, Drop and Roll Stop, drop and roll is a simple fire safety technique taught to children, emergency service personnel and industrial workers as a component of health and safety training in English-speaking North America, and most other English-speaking countries ...
– A fire safety slogan listing the steps to take if one's clothing has caught fire * Faster, Higher, Stronger – The
Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...
motto; a translation of the Latin ''Citius, Altius, Fortius'' * '' Veni, vidi, vici'' – A triad translated from Latin as "I came, I saw, I conquered", popularly attributed to
Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, an ...
of Rome. *
Slip-Slop-Slap ''Slip-Slop-Slap'' (originally ''Slip! Slop! Slap!'') is a mnemonic slogan for reducing unhealthy sun exposure by ''slipping'' on a shirt or rash guard, ''slopping'' on sunblock, and ''slapping'' on a sun hat. It was prominent in Australia an ...
– Australian sun protection (anti-skin-cancer) campaign. *
Three wise monkeys The three wise monkeys are a Japanese pictorial maxim, embodying the proverbial principle "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil". The three monkeys are * Mizaru, who sees no evil, covering his eyes * Kikazaru, who hears no evil, covering ...
– "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil". *
Turn on, tune in, drop out "Turn on, tune in, drop out" is a counterculture-era phrase popularized by Timothy Leary in 1966. In 1967, Leary spoke at the Human Be-In, a gathering of 30,000 hippies in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco and phrased the famous words, "Turn on, ...
– 1960s counterculture-era phrase popularized by
Timothy Leary Timothy Francis Leary (October 22, 1920 – May 31, 1996) was an American psychologist and author known for his strong advocacy of psychedelic drugs. Evaluations of Leary are polarized, ranging from bold oracle to publicity hound. He was "a her ...
. *
Snap, Crackle and Pop Snap, Crackle and Pop are the cartoon mascots of Rice Krispies, a brand of breakfast cereal marketed by Kellogg's. History The gnome characters were originally designed by illustrator Vernon Grant in the early 1930s. The names are onomatopoeia ...
-
Cartoon A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently animated, in an unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved over time, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or series of imag ...
mascots of
Rice Krispies Rice Krispies (known as Rice Bubbles in Australia and New Zealand) is a breakfast cereal, marketed by Kellogg's in 1927 and released to the public in 1928. Rice Krispies are made of crisped rice (rice and sugar paste that is formed into rice ...
.


Comedy

In comedy, the rule of three is also called a ''comic triple'' and is one of the many
comedic device Comedic device refers to a kind of device used to make a statement more humorous. In layman's terms, it is what makes things funny. List of comedic devices Repetition Repetition is the essential comedic device and is often used in combination with ...
s regularly used by humorists,
writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, ...
s, and
comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolish (as in slapstick), or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audienc ...
s. The third element of the triple is often used to create an effect of surprise with the audience, and is frequently the
punch line A punch line (a. k. a. punch-line or punchline) concludes a joke; it is intended to make people laugh. It is the third and final part of the typical joke structure. It follows the introductory framing of the joke and the narrative which sets up ...
of the joke itself. For instance, jokes might feature three stereotyped individuals—such as
an Englishman, an Irishman and a Scotsman "An Englishman, an Irishman and a Scotsman" is the opening line of a category of joke cycle popular in Ireland and the United Kingdom. The nationalities involved may vary, though they are usually restricted to those within Ireland and the UK, and ...
; or a blonde, a brunette, and a redhead—where the surprise or punch line of the joke comes from the third character. The comedic rule of three is often paired with quick timing, ensuring that viewers have less time to catch on to the pattern before the punch line hits. As a whole, the comedic rule of threes relies on setting up a pattern of two items and then subverting viewer expectations by breaking that pattern with the third item. One particularly notable example comes from ''
The Dick Van Dyke Show ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' is an American television sitcom created by Carl Reiner that initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961 to June 1, 1966, with a total of 158 half-hour episodes spanning five seasons. It was produced by Calvada Prod ...
'' – "Can I get you anything? Cup of coffee? Doughnut? Toupee?" Just like most comedic writing, the rule of threes in comedy relies on building tension to a comedic release. In the case of the rule of threes, tension is built with the first two items in the pattern and then released with the final item, which should be the funniest of the three. Most triples are short in length, often only two or three sentences, but the rule can also be implemented effectively at longer length as long as base formula is still followed.


Storytelling and folklore

In
storytelling Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own stories or narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cultural pr ...
, authors often create triplets or structures in three parts. In the rule's simplest form, this is merely ''beginning, middle, and end'', as expressed in
Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of ...
's
Poetics Poetics is the theory of structure, form, and discourse within literature, and, in particular, within poetry. History The term ''poetics'' derives from the Ancient Greek ποιητικός ''poietikos'' "pertaining to poetry"; also "creative" an ...
.
Vladimir Propp Vladimir Yakovlevich Propp (russian: Владимир Яковлевич Пропп; – 22 August 1970) was a Soviet folklorist and scholar who analysed the basic structural elements of Russian folk tales to identify their simplest irredu ...
, in his ''Morphology of the Folk Tale'', concluded that any of the elements in a folktale could be negated twice so that it would repeat thrice. This is common not only in the Russian tales he studied but throughout folk tales and
fairy tale A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic, enchantments, and mythical or fanciful beings. In most cult ...
s: most commonly, perhaps, in that the
youngest son The youngest son is a stock character in fairy tales, where he features as the hero. He is usually the third son, but sometimes there are more brothers, and sometimes he has only one; usually, they have no sisters. In a family of many daught ...
is usually the third, although fairy tales often display the rule of three in the most blatant form. A small sample of the latter includes: *
Rumpelstiltskin "Rumpelstiltskin" ( ; german: Rumpelstilzchen) is a German fairy tale. It was collected by the Brothers Grimm in the 1812 edition of '' Children's and Household Tales''. The story is about a little imp who spins straw into gold in exchange for a ...
spins thrice for the heroine and lets her guess his name thrice over a period of three days. * In ''
East of the Sun and West of the Moon "East of the Sun and West of the Moon" ( no, Østenfor sol og vestenfor måne) is a Norwegian fairy tale. It was included by Andrew Lang in ''The Blue Fairy Book'' (1890). "East of the Sun and West of the Moon" was collected by Peter Christen ...
'', the heroine receives three gifts while searching for her lost husband; when she finds where he is held prisoner, she must use them to thrice bribe her way to the hero (the first two times she was unable to tell her story because he lay in a drugged sleep). * In ''
Brother and Sister "Brother and Sister" (also "Little Sister and Little Brother"; German: ''Brüderchen und Schwesterchen'') is a European fairy tale which was, among others, written down by the Brothers Grimm (KHM 11). It is a tale of Aarne–Thompson Type 450. In ...
'', Brother is transformed into a deer when he drinks from the third stream that their wicked stepmother enchanted, and when Sister is killed by the same stepmother, she visits her child's room thrice, being caught and restored the third time. * In '' The Dancing Water, the Singing Apple, and the Speaking Bird'', a woman says she will bear the king three marvelous children; when they reappear, their envious aunts attempt to kill them by sending them on three quests, after the three marvelous things of the title. * In '' The Silent Princess'', a prince breaks a peasant woman's pitcher thrice, and is cursed; when he finds the title princess, he must persuade her to speak thrice. * In ''
The Love for Three Oranges ''The Love for Three Oranges'', Op. 33, also known by its French language title ' (russian: Любовь к трём апельсинам, links=no, ''Lyubov' k tryom apel'sinam''), is a satirical opera by Sergei Prokofiev. Its French librett ...
'', the hero picks three magical oranges, and only with the third is he able to keep the woman who springs out of it.


Literature

* In
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
's ''
A Christmas Carol ''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. ''A Christmas ...
'', Marley's Ghost tells
Ebenezer Scrooge Ebenezer Scrooge () is the protagonist of Charles Dickens's 1843 novella '' A Christmas Carol''. At the beginning of the novella, Scrooge is a cold-hearted miser who despises Christmas. The tale of his redemption by three spirits (the Ghos ...
he will receive visits from three spirits:
The Ghost of Christmas Past The Ghost of Christmas Past is a fictional character in Charles Dickens' 1843 novella ''A Christmas Carol''. The Ghost is one of three spirits which appear to miser Ebenezer Scrooge to offer him a chance of redemption. Following a visit from ...
,
The Ghost of Christmas Present The Ghost of Christmas Present is a fictional character in Charles Dickens' 1843 novella ''A Christmas Carol''. The Ghost is one of three spirits which appear to miser Ebenezer Scrooge to offer him a chance of redemption. Following a visit fro ...
, and finally The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, to which Scrooge says, "Spirit, I fear you most of all." * In the musical ''
Fiddler on the Roof ''Fiddler on the Roof'' is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on ''Tevye and his Daughters'' (or ''Tevye the ...
'', Tevye must give his three eldest daughters away, one after another. Each match progressively challenges his faith, as represented by a monologue in which he argues with himself using the phrase "on the other hand" to play the devil's advocate and convince himself to side with his daughters. This is subverted with the youngest daughter who wishes to marry a
Gentile Gentile () is a word that usually means "someone who is not a Jew". Other groups that claim Israelite heritage, notably Mormons, sometimes use the term ''gentile'' to describe outsiders. More rarely, the term is generally used as a synonym fo ...
, for which Tevye concludes that "No, there is no other hand." * In
Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
's ''
Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, an ...
'',
Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the au ...
starts his speech by using the rule of three:
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears" is the first line of a speech by Mark Antony in the play ''Julius Caesar'', by William Shakespeare. Occurring in Act III, scene II, it is one of the most famous lines in all of Shakespeare's works ...
, to which the commoners start to listen.


Rhetoric and public speaking

The use of a series of three elements is also a well-known feature of public oratory.
Max Atkinson Max Atkinson is a British academic and author. He has worked with a number of politicians and business leaders and is known for his research on speech writing and presentation skills in the fields of political speeches, courtroom language and con ...
, in his book on oratory entitled ''Our Masters' Voices'', gives examples of how public speakers use three-part phrases to generate what he calls 'claptraps', evoking audience applause.
Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
, the civil rights activist and preacher, was known for his uses of tripling and the rule of three throughout his many influential speeches. For example, the speech "Non-Violence and Racial Justice" contained a binary opposition made up of the rule of three: "insult, injustice and exploitation", followed a few lines later by "justice, good will, and brotherhood". Conversely, segregationist Alabama governor
George Wallace George Corley Wallace Jr. (August 25, 1919 – September 13, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Alabama for four terms. A member of the Democratic Party, he is best remembered for his staunch segregationist a ...
inveighed: "segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever" during his 1963 inaugural address. The appeal of the three-fold pattern is also illustrated by the transformation of
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...
's reference to "
blood, toil, tears and sweat The phrase "blood, toil, tears and sweat" became famous in a speech given by Winston Churchill to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom on 13 May 1940. The speech is sometimes known by that name. Background This was Ch ...
" (echoing
Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as ''Gioxeppe Gaibado''. In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as ''Jousé'' or ''Josep''. 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, pat ...
and
Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
) in popular recollection to "blood, sweat and tears".


See also

*
Equivalence relation In mathematics, an equivalence relation is a binary relation that is reflexive, symmetric and transitive. The equipollence relation between line segments in geometry is a common example of an equivalence relation. Each equivalence relatio ...
&
Partition of a set In mathematics, a partition of a set is a grouping of its elements into non-empty subsets, in such a way that every element is included in exactly one subset. Every equivalence relation on a set defines a partition of this set, and every part ...
abstraction of concept * Hendiatris (or ''tripartite motto'') *
Rule of thirds The rule of thirds is a "rule of thumb" for composing visual images such as designs, films, paintings, and photographs. The guideline proposes that an image should be imagined as divided into nine equal parts by two equally spaced horizontal lin ...
; a similar concept applied to visual art *
Tricolon Isocolon is a rhetorical scheme in which parallel elements possess the same number of words or syllables. As in any form of parallelism, the pairs or series must enumerate like things to achieve symmetry. The scheme is called bicolon, tricolon, ...
* The Three Classic Laws of thought * Triads *
Triple deity A triple deity is a deity with three apparent forms that function as a singular whole. Such deities may sometimes be referred to as threefold, tripled, triplicate, tripartite, triune, triadic, or as a trinity. The number three has a long history ...


References

{{Reflist, 30em Narratology Recurrent elements in fairy tales