I recently took out from the library a dictionary of poetic forms, one put together by Lewis Turco. I had an idea of running through the book, writing at least one example of each.
Well, that idea didn't last. There are a lot of verse forms. Some of them just don't interest me. Others I could read but didn't feel confident writing.
Still, others hold a great deal of interest for me. One cool one is the cinquain, developed by Adelaide Crapsey and made up of very short lines. It's sort of the American answer to haiku. Well, that and pro wrestling.
Well, that idea didn't last. There are a lot of verse forms. Some of them just don't interest me. Others I could read but didn't feel confident writing.
Still, others hold a great deal of interest for me. One cool one is the cinquain, developed by Adelaide Crapsey and made up of very short lines. It's sort of the American answer to haiku. Well, that and pro wrestling.
2 comments:
I'd never heard of Adelaide Crapsey until now so I looked her up. How very sad she died so young - and knew for a long time an early death would be her fate. The poems of hers I read are exquisite. I particularly like one called Amaze:
I know
Not these my hands
And yet I think there was
A woman like me once had hands
Like these.
The one strong resemblance between me and my mother was our hands.
Yep, pro wrestling is very American and very unlike sumo.
Hands, the way yours might resemble one of your parents, is a detail most people won't catch, but you can't miss it.
I get it. This one is lovely as well, "Snow."
Look up…
From bleakening hills
Blows down the light, first breath
Of wintry wind…look up, and scent
The snow!
Japan is still the only country where sumo is practiced professionally. Odd, given the way everything else seems to travel.
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