ENGL210-4
Spring 2009
Instructor: Lily Rabinoff-Goldman 
Poem #4

Formal Verse

You will either write ONE sonnet (see choices below) OR FIVE haikus, OR ONE Sestina, or ONE Villanelle.  Do not feel compelled to write about anything other than what makes sense to your poetic voice.  Feel free to follow in the footsteps of Bishop, Berryman, Ashbery, and Ginsberg in applying traditional forms to modern ideas.  This is a challenging assignment, and I don’t expect perfection – that’s what revision is for!
 
Option 1: The Sonnet (14 lines, “x” syllables per line, rhyme scheme)
1.	Shakespearean: 14 lines, 10 syllables per line, rhyme scheme = abab cdcd efef gg
2.	Fixed syllables with rhyme scheme:  14 lines, 8-12 syllables (i.e., your first line must be between 8-12 syllables, all subsequent lines must match the syllable count in the first line), fixed rhyme scheme (abba cddc effe aa; OR aabb ccdd eeff gg; OR abc abc abc abc; or some other discernable pattern of your creation)
3.	Fixed syllables with NO rhyme scheme: 14 lines, 8-12 syllables (i.e., your first line must be between 8-12 syllables, all subsequent lines must match the syllable count in the first line), no discernable rhyme scheme.
Option 2: Haiku (5-7-5 syllables, describes a single idea or image; if you choose this option, you are choosing to write 5 short poems)
•	Choose any combination of the following characteristics of haiku cycles:
o	5-7-5 syllable scheme (no more than 20 syllables per haiku)
o	Nature theme
o	Deal with a single image/metaphor/idea in each haiku
Option 3: Sestina (39 lines, six chosen end-words in set pattern)
•	If you choose to write a sestina, please consider using the sestina worksheet below to help you organize your poem!
Option 4: Villanelle (19 lines, with two refrains and two repeated rhymes)
•	If you choose to write a villanelle, please consider using the villanelle worksheet below to help you organize your poem!
  
PLEASE DO NOT HAND IN ONE OF EACH!!  IF YOU DO MORE THAN ONE TYPE OF POEM, PICK THE ONE YOU LIKE THE MOST AND HAND THAT ONE IN.

Sestina Worksheet
Step 1:  Choose your six end-words:
1. 					2.					3.		
4.					5.					6.

Step 2:  Fill the end-words into your poem in the following pattern, then fill in the full lines:

Stanza 1
Line 1: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (1)
Line 2: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (2)
Line 3: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (3)
Line 4: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (4)
Line 5: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (5)
Line 6: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (6)

Stanza 2
Line 1: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (6)
Line 2: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (1)
Line 3: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (5)
Line 4: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (2)
Line 5: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (4)
Line 6: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (3)

Stanza 3
Line 1: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (3)
Line 2: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (6)
Line 3: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (4)
Line 4: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (1)
Line 5: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (2)
Line 6: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (5)

Stanza 4
Line 1: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (5)
Line 2: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (3)
Line 3: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (2)
Line 4: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (6)
Line 5: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (1)
Line 6: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (4)

Stanza 5:
Line 1: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (4)
Line 2: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (5)
Line 3: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (1)
Line 4: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (3)
Line 5: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (6)
Line 6: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (2)

Stanza 6:
Line 1: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (2)
Line 2: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (4)
Line 3: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (6)
Line 4: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (5)
Line 5: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (3)
Line 6: ________________________________________________________ ____________ (1)

Envoy
Line 1: _____________________________________________________ ____________ (1 or 5)
Line 2: _____________________________________________________ ____________ (3)
Line 3: _____________________________________________________ ____________ (5 or 1)

Villanelle Worksheet

Step 1:  Choose your two refrains (the lines that will repeat throughout your poem)
A1: __________________________________________________________________________
A2: __________________________________________________________________________

Step 2: Choose your two repeating rhymes (the words that will end your non-refrain lines)
a: 					b.

Step 2:  Fill in your poem using this pattern:

Stanza 1:
A1: __________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________end with word b_________ A2: __________________________________________________________________________

Stanza 2:
________________________________________________________ end with word a________ _______________________________________________________ end with word b _________ A1: __________________________________________________________________________

Stanza 3:
________________________________________________________ end with word a________ _______________________________________________________ end with word b _________ A2: __________________________________________________________________________
 
Stanza 4:
________________________________________________________ end with word a________ _______________________________________________________ end with word b _________ A1: __________________________________________________________________________

Stanza 5:
________________________________________________________ end with word a________ _______________________________________________________ end with word b _________ A2: __________________________________________________________________________

Stanza 6:
________________________________________________________ end with word a________ _______________________________________________________ end with word b _________ A1: __________________________________________________________________________
A2: __________________________________________________________________________