Bref Double

Bref Double

Type:	Structure, Rhyme Scheme Requirement, Isosyllabic
Description:	A fourteen-line French form. Like many French forms, the rules are a bit complex. It is composed of three quatrains and a couplet, all isosyllabic. It has three rhymes: a, b, and c. It has five lines that are not part of the rhyme scheme. The c rhyme ends each quatrain. The a and b rhymes are found twice each somewhere within the three quatrains and once in the couplet.
Impressions:	Have fun; it's French.
Origin:	French
Schematic:	Some sample rhyme schemes would be: abxc abxc xxxc ab, xaxc xbxc xbac ba, xabc xaxc xbxc ab, etc.
Rhythm/Stanza Length:	4
Line/Poem Length:	14

Pasted from <http://www.poetrybase.info/forms/000/25.shtml>

My thanks to Charles L. Weatherford for his fine Poetrybase resource.

My example poem

A Merchant Mariner     (Bref Double)

A soliloquy mumbled while aboard a ship

addressed issues encountered by conscripted men:

the comforts found in surroundings I'd known, no thoughts

of danger real or imagined- not everyday.

With thoughts of carnality, adventure, hardship,

rewards of sharing bounty, succeeding and then

returning home after I've traveled, unraveled

the wonderful mystr'ies that might hold me in sway.

The captain, querulous, demands most constant yield

from every man. The old first  mate so hates the king

he wrings more than mere duty from men on his watch.

The nation we're helping will repay us some day.

I came home a hero. It was quite a long trip.

But now that those days are passed, I'd do it again.

© Lawrencealot - April 18, 2014

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Dansa

Dansa

The dansa is an Occitan verse form i.e. it's from the troubadour territory of southern France. All the verses except the first are the same: they rhyme aabb with the last line a repeated refrain. The first verse has five lines, and consists of the refrain followed by four lines similar to all the other verses. No particular metre is essential, but Skelton says six-syllable lines are common in Occitan verse, so that's what I used.

A Load of Rot

Mulching is the future!

Let those clippings lie there,

Proving how much you care.

For lawns needing nurture,

Mulching is the future.

Don’t clear up that cut grass!

Lie down; let the urge pass.

Be at one with nature -

Mulching is the future.

You need no-one’s pardon;

This is your own garden.

For your private pasture,

Mulching is the future.

Your leisure is well-earned.

Relax; don’t be concerned.

Look, see the big picture:

Mulching is the future.

What you leave will decay.

It will provide one day

Nutrients and moisture.

Mulching is the future.

Don’t get up; better far

To stay right where you are.

As with any creature,

Mulching is your future.

I saw a lawnmower on sale with the slogan "Mulching is the future". I found it a catchy slogan but a depressing thought. Still, there had to be a poem in it... It was just a question of finding a suitable verse form. I think the dansa was a fair choice.

I cheated slightly by altering one word in the final repetition of the refrain.  Poetic licence.

Pasted from <http://volecentral.co.uk/vf/dansa.htm>

Thanks to Bob Newman for his wonderful Volecentral resource site.

My example poem-

Since Bob used a slogan, I did too.

Intrigue     (Dansa)

Does she? Or doesn't she?

If you but only knew.

Instead you have no clue.

So what is it to be?

Does she? Or doesn't she?

A guy, you can just ask,

it's such a simple task

It can't sound like a plea,

Does she? Or doesn't she?

Why should you really care

what color is her hair.

But when it comes to me,

Does she? Or doesn't she?

© Lawrencealot - April 12, 2014

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Rimas Dissolutas

This was originally a French form

 The form is isosyllabic  (all lines have the same number of syllables)

There is no metric requirement

There is no line length requirement

There is no stanza length requirement

There is no rhyming permitted within a stanza

Each stanza must be like each other stanza

(same number of syllables, meter if any ,line length)

Line n in each stanza must rhyme with the same line in each other stanza. (External Rhyme)  

Other sources:**************************************************

The Rimas Dissolutas is a French troubadouric verse (12th-13th centuries) in which unrhymed stanzas rhyme line by line with all of the other stanzas. This was a departure from the strict rhyme schemes of the day. The rhyme is there but it is more subtle.

The Rimas Dissolutas is:

• stanzaic, written in any # of uniform length stanzas, all quatrains or all tercets or all sixains etc.
• in keeping with most old French forms the verse is syllabic. One site suggests it is isosyllabic meaning all lines have the same number syllables, number of syllables at the discretion of the poet.
• unrhymed lines within the stanza.
• rhymed lines between stanzas.
• sometimes written with an envoi which would be half the number of lines of the stanzas using the rhyme of the later lines of the stanzas.
  
  If the poem was written in sixains the rhyme would look like this:
  

Stanza 1 x x x x x a x x x x x b x x x x x c x x x x x d x x x x x e

Add'l Stanzas x x x x x a x x x x x b x x x x x c x x x x x d x x x x x e

Envoi... x x x x x c  x x x x x d

Pasted from <http://www.poetrymagnumopus.com/index.php?showtopic=687>

Thanks to Ms.  Van Gorder for the find PMO resorce.

Rimas Dissolutas (Troubadouric song)

I was delighted to discover recently that this was recognised - in some quarters, anyway - as a standard form, and had a name. In rimas dissolutas, the stanzas are all similar, and all use the same rhymes. The first lines all rhyme with each other, the second lines all rhyme with each other, and so on. These are all external rhymes; there are no rhymes between lines in the same stanza. 

The blessed Malcovati calls this form the troubadouric song, giving it as the only member of a category of open forms he calls coblas unissonantis (a Provençal term which he assures us is in common use). It is normal, he tells us, for there to be an envoi, shorter than the other stanzas but rhyming with the latter part of them.

Pasted from <http://volecentral.co.uk/vf/rimas_dissolutas.htm>

Thanks to Bob Newman for the Wonderful Resource Site.

Example Poem

Groceries    (Rimas  Dissolutas)

We touch and kiss and hold and hug,

and work to earn our daily bread.

Our foodstuff's ready in the store -

our meat our milk our wines our cake.

A small bird looking for a bug

about to be a meal instead

we breed to fatten, kill, and more

are we more proper than the snake?

© Lawrencealot - February 7, 2014

Picture credit: google images, rights belong to photographer.

Her is a visual template that just happened to choose

Iambic tetrameter quatrains.

Double Refrain Kyrielle

Type: Structure, Metrical Requirement, Repetitive Requirement, Rhyme Scheme Requirement, Isosyllabic, Stanzaic
Description:
This is a kyrielle with two rhyming refrains in the second and fourth lines of each stanza. It has has octosyllabic lines.
Attributed to: “The Dread Poet Roberts”
Origin: French
Schematic:
aB1aB2 cB1cB2 dB1dB2 eB1eB2 fB1fB2, etc.
Rhythm/Stanza Length: 4

Copyright © 2001-2013 by Charles L. Weatherford. All rights reserved.
Pasted from http://www.poetrybase.info/forms/000/96.shtml

My Thanks to Charles for his fine poetrybase resouce.


Example Poem

Hanging Around     (Double Refrain Kyrielle)

I'm getting used to hanging 'round;

I seem to have out-lived my friends

Some friends were shot and some were drowned

I'm hanging on until the end.

In youth we lived a rapid pace-

I seem to have out-lived my friends

Some died in war but with God's grace

I'm hanging on until the end.

Some friends led not such honest lives.

I seem to have out-lived my friends

They did not find themselves good wives.

I'm hanging on until the end.

Some thought that acquisitions won-

I seem to have out-lived my friends

they are all through but I'm not done.

I'm hanging on until the end.

© Lawrencealot - January 26, 2014

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Chanso

Chanso Type: Structure, Metrical Requirement, Repetitive Requirement, Rhyme Scheme Requirement, Other Requirement, Isosyllabic Description: Another French isosyllabic form of either five or six stanzas plus an envoy. A Chanso must be very regular in structure. The same number of syllables in each line, the stanzas all the same, the envoy being like the last half of a stanza, the rhyme scheme the same, but beyond that, you get to make it up. The double ballade and double ballade supreme would both be considered to fit this form. So would any number of other variations. Origin French

Copyright © 2001-2013 by Charles L. Weatherford. All rights reserved.

Pasted from <http://www.poetrybase.info/forms/000/36.shtml>

__________________

Canso, Chanso, Chanson French, Occitan and Provincial love songs, made popular in 12th century Europe by the troubadours which constantly strove for originality and perfection of form. The lines between the 3 terms is blurred. The Chanson is believed to be the inspiration for the ItalianCanzone. The verse often exalted a lady love. Courtly Compliment is a sub genre of the Chanson.

The Canso, Chanso or Chanson are:

• stanzaic, usually 5 or 6 nonce stanzas of identical pattern.
• expected to be original in form. The metric length of the line, the number of lines in a stanza, the rhyme scheme was expected to be different from anything that had gone before.
• often ended by an envoy or tornada structured in the same pattern as the last half of the previous stanzas. (The Occitan tornada is a dedication to a patron or friend added at the end of verse while the French envoy is a summation of the theme added to the end of the verse. )

Pasted from <http://www.poetrymagnumopus.com/index.php?/topic/683-canso-chanso-chanson-courtly-compliment-salut-d-Related forms: Ballade, Ballade Stanza, Ballade Supreme, Double Ballade,  Chanso, Double Ballade Supreme, Double Refrain Ballade, Double Refrain Ballade Supreme, Grand Ballade or Chant Royal.

My thanks to Mr. Weatherford, and to Ms.  Van Gorder for their fine resouces.

Example Poem

Cold-cuts      (Chanso)

I planned to lunch at home today

and get away from office noise.

A hot pastrami sounds so good,

I know I would enjoy it much

and then a nap would sound okay.

I stacked thin slices pretty high

I don't know why but thinner works;

I slathered mustard on the meat

then set the heat at one-oh-one.

It smelled so good on fresh warm rye.

I was about with great delight

to take a bite when cell-phone chimes

demanded my reluctant ear

a financier it seems was keen

to cure my future's fiscal plight.

He was informed and spoke at length

of safety, strength ,and asset growth,

with fortune favoring the bold;

my sandwich cold he said good-bye

for like I said he spoke at length.

I heated up my meal once more

then at the door there came a knock

(a lady looking for my wife),

who for the life of me I know

I didn't know, I stalled therefore.

Two more phone calls and one more knock,

by then the clock showed time to get

me back to join the working fold

and eat my cold repast at last-

warm lunch at home  is such a crock!

© Lawrencealot - January 22, 2014

Visual Template

This is simply a template relating to the poem above. 

A poet can use any line length or meter he wants, so their can be no "correct template."

In this case I used iambic tetrameter, interlaced rhyme, and a unique rhyme scheme.

Note.  The specifications at the top call for repetition which I have not employed.

Double Ballade Supreme

Double Ballade Supreme Type: Structure, Metrical Requirement, Repetitive Requirement, Rhyme Scheme Requirement, Isosyllabic Description: This reminds me of the name of a pie at Bakers Square, but is actually a 60 or 65 line poem. It is like a ballade supreme with three extra verses that may not have the envoy. In short, it will have six verses of ababbccdcD  where the rhymes are consistent throughout and a possible envoy of ccdcD with D being a repeated refrain. Like the ballade, double ballade, and ballade supreme, it is strictly syllabic verse of any one length. I’m sure the French preference would be alexandrines. Origin: French Schematic: ababbccdcD ababbccdcD ababbccdcD ababbccdcD ababbccdcD ababbccdcD ccdcD

Copyright © 2001-2013 by Charles L. Weatherford. All rights reserved.

My Thanks to Charles for his wonderful resource at PoetryBase.

Related forms: Ballade, Ballade Stanza, Ballade Supreme, Double Ballade,  Chanso, Double Ballade Supreme, Double Refrain Ballade, Double Refrain Ballade Supreme, Grand Ballade or Chant Royal.

Example Poem

The Earth was Deemed Flat  ( Double Ballade Supreme)

For twenty-something years he worked at Palomar

as staff astronomer, and published works of note: *

The Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies went far

and gained repute through-out the field.  His peers denote

some galaxies by numbers from that book and vote

thereby for his significance.  "They are a clue",

said Arp, "these galaxies give us a means to hue

our theories of formation by what we see". 

For some entrenched, his notions were a bitter brew

for Alton Harp displayed what science ought to be.

The astrophysicists have classified a star

as artifacts of gravity alone and dote

on math based models which grow more and more bizarre.

Though Alp did not attack the fact that math hath smote

down common sense, his questions surely rocked the boat.

Institutional dogma had professed things true.

when they accepted so much math as things we "knew".

His observations shakes today's cosmology

His arguments required no formulas that grew

for Alton Harp displayed what science ought to be.

When Edwin Hubble's claimed that galaxies all are

receding faster when afar, his was the quote,

the key allowing the Big Bang to be the Star.

A Doppler "Red Shift" let that theory stay afloat

for now expansion could be measured so they wrote,

and thus defined the Universe's birth- in their view.

Though later Hubble wrote of doubts, I will tell you

It came too late; the "Law" was a fait accompli.

And only now are new tools convincing a few

for Alton Harp displayed what science ought to be.

At Palomar his 'scope-time was completely barred

so those involved in relevance might well promote

projects that fit. Arp soon bid them an au revoir.

As others now pick up the cause and they devote

themselves to validation, common sense and denote

"experimental observation", there'll accrue

an ever larger group that knows Big Bang is through.

That stars are nuclear was ever but theory

and models never worked; the EU theory grew

for Alton Harp displayed what science ought to be.

The standard model, grows noetic and bizarre

as better tools disprove assumptions made. They bloat

their models with new constants and reset the bar

as though inventiveness conveys the right to gloat.

The established names hold true science by the throat

but human history keeps me from being blue,

they sought to block ideas of Galileo too

and Arp's experience repeats that history.

They're ticketed to ride on notions now untrue

for Alton Harp displayed what science ought to be.

Since plasma actions can be seen in a Bell-jar

and gravity's known force is weak and so remote

some looked to other forces to create a star.

At ten to the thirty-ninth, (and that is no misquote),

times stronger than the force of G, where G denotes

the gravity's know force, it's easy to construe

an magnetic role* shown a model to review.

The Birkland currents fill the gap satisfactorily.

Free-thinkers deem those forces lie in their purview

for Alton Harp displayed what science ought to be.

The geocentric folks took plenty time to stew

and time will pass before Big Bangers all come to.

Since faith's replaced deduction, truth's now a decree

but that will change; there'll be an academic coup,

for Alton Harp displayed what science ought to be.

© Lawrencealot - January 29, 2014

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Lai

Lai

The lai is a form of French origin, even more ancien than the virelai ancien (which evolved from it). It is not to be confused with the Breton lay,  a quite different form of which Chaucer's Franklin's Tale is an example; or the lay, a term sometimes used for a short historical ballad, such Sir Walter Scott's Lay of the Last Minstrel; or with the word lay used simply to mean a song. 

Having ensured your total lack of confusion, let me tell you what the lai actually is. It's like a slimmed-down virelai ancien, with the stanzas not linked by rhyme. Here's one:

Lai of the Cow

The praises I sing
Of that wondrous thing
The cow.
Let the rafters ring!
My Muse shall take wing,
I vow.
Foods our cattle bring
Are fit for a king,
And how!

As white as can be,
The smooth quality
Of silk,
The epitome
Of maternity,
Its milk.
You have to agree
You never will see
Its ilk.

For an honoured guest
Save the very best:
The cream.
While those not so blest
Make do with the rest,
And dream.
So nice to digest,
That when it’s suppressed,
Folk scream!

You can churn milk, so
It becomes yellow
Butter.
What could beat that? Oh,
Don’t scoff in that low
Mutter!
I will not forgo
Such pleasure; I’m no
Nutter.

Or you cheddar it.
Thus you make a bit
Of cheese,
A prerequisite
For one exquisite
Good wheeze:
Let’s get the grill lit
And make Welsh rarebit.
Yes please!

Our bovine-sourced feast,
Has it still not ceased?
Good grief!
No, last but not least,
Its flesh when deceased:
The beef.
The worth of this beast
Could not be increased,
In brief.

The syllable count in each triplet of lines is 5, 5, 2, and each triplet rhymes aab. The number of such triplets must be the same in each stanza, and at least two. To assert my virility, I chose to use three. According to the definition I have used, all the triplets within a stanza must use the same rhymes - so in this example the rhyming scheme for each stanza is aabaabaab. 

However, I have in front of me a poem by Paul Verlaine - it's called Chanson d'Automne - which has lines the right length for a lai, but stanzas that rhyme aabccb. So is it a lai? I don't know, but it's a far better poem than mine, which is the important thing. 

As with many of these old forms, the effort involved in writing one is usually out of all proportion to the worth of the finished poem. But don't let me talk you out of it!

Pasted from <http://www.volecentral.co.uk/vf/lai.htm#virelai> 

Thanks to Bob Newman, for the above.  His site is a wonderful and reliable resource.

Example Poem

Lai Mistletoe About

Hang the mistletoe

tie it with a bow

then wait.

You aware, I know

You just use it though

for bait.

It's most apropro

how it works, with no

debate.

© Lawrencealot - November  21, 2013

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Rondel

A rondel is a verse form originating in French lyrical poetry, later used in the verse of other languages as well, such as English and Romanian. It is a variation of the rondeau consisting of two quatrains followed by a quintet (13 lines total) or a sestet (14 lines total). The rondel was invented in the 14th century, and is arguably better suited to the French language than to English. It is not to be confused with the roundel, a similar verse form with repeating refrain.

The first two lines of the first stanza are refrains, repeating as the last two lines of the second stanza and the third stanza. (Alternately, only the first line is repeated at the end of the final stanza). For instance, if A and B are the refrains, a rondel will have a rhyme scheme of ABba abAB abbaA(B)

The meter is open, but typically has eight syllables.

Pasted from <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rondel_(poem)>

A French form consisting of 13 lines: two quatrains and a quintet,**

rhyming as follows: ABba abAB abbaA. The capital letters are the refrains, or repeats.

Pasted from <http://www.shadowpoetry.com/resources/wip/rondel.html>

**Author's note or two quatrains and a SESTET if the two refrain option is chosen.

Visual Template  -  Tetrameter Option

Rondelet

The Rondelet (or roundelay) is a brief French form of poetry. It consists of one stanza, made up of seven lines. It contains a refrain, a strict rhyme scheme and a distinct meter pattern.

The word is the diminutive of rondel, a similar, longer verse form. This is the basic structure:

Line 1 :: A—four syllables

Line 2 :: b—eight syllables

Line 3 :: A—repeat of line one

Line 4 :: a—eight syllables

Line 5 :: b—eight syllables

Line 6 :: b—eight syllables

Line 7 :: A—repeat of line one

The refrained lines should contain the same words, however substitution or different use of punctuation on the lines has been common.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:  I Take exception to Wikipeia's inclusion of "Roundelay" as a synonym.

It is a completely different form to be documented in this blog.

Pasted from <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rondelet>

The Rondelet is a French form consisting of a single septet with two rhymes and one refrain: AbAabbA. The capital letters are the refrains, or repeats. The refrain is written in tetra-syllabic or dimeter and the other lines are twice as long - octasyllabic or tetrameter.

Pasted from <http://www.shadowpoetry.com/resources/wip/rondelet.html>

Note the SP allows line-length variance.

The Rondelet  is a brief French form of poetry. It consists of one stanza, made up of seven lines. It contains a refrain, a strict rhyme scheme and a distinct meter pattern.

The word is the diminutive of rondel, a similar, longer verse form. This is the basic structure:

Syllabic    4/8/4/8/8/8/4

Rhymed  A  b A a  b  b  A

Where A is the refrain

The refrained lines should contain the same words, however substitution or different use of punctuation on the lines has been common.

Visual Template

Retourne

Like so many other French forms, the Retourne 

is all about repetition. It contains four quatrains and each line has eight syllables. 

The trick is that the first stanza's second line must also be the second stanza's first line,

the first stanza's third line is the third stanza's first, 

and the first stanza's fourth line is the fourth stanza's first. 

Retournes do not have to rhyme.

Example Poem

Abandoned

I'd loved her only all my life.

She found another to her taste.

She left me-- I now have no wife.

New city, no friends; joys erased. 

She found another to her taste.

I begged, pleaded, asked her to stay 

"I miss you, come back! what a waste, 

keeping your lover is okay." 

She left me-- I now have no wife.

Anquish bestirred me. I tried drink. 

But quit to give my boys a life.

Work, feed the boys, cry, try to think.

New city, no friends; joys erased. 

It took a long while, 'ere I tried 

to date-- I was feeling disgraced

How could I ever lose my bride?

© Lawrencealot - April, 2012

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Dizain

Summary: Two accepted forms:

Eight lines:    Rhyming  a - b - a - b - c - d - c - d

or Ten Lines:  Rhyming  a - b - a - b - b - c - c - d - c - d

METER:  Not required; Classic meter customary.

A French form popular in the 15th and 16th centuries, it is a single 

stanza of 8 or 10 lines (10 being more common), with 8 or 10 syllables 

in each line (each line being of the same length). A classic meter is 

normally used, e.g. iambic pentameter. 

The rhyme scheme is ababcdcd, or ababbccdcd.

Below is an 8 stanza iambic tetrameter example.

Example Poem

Nighttime Magic

Dark dandy finely cloaked does walk

with daunting cold disdain for some

at night presuming he can shock

and render still those thieves so dumb

as to try force against this man.

His staff benevolent, it's said,

in daytime will foil nighttime plan

against him;  leaving fools quite dead.

© Lawrencealot - April 2, 2012

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Chant Royal

Chant Royal:http://www.volecentral.co.uk/vf/chantroyal.htm

see also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chant_royal

and http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/105857/chant-royal

A French poetic form and variation of the ballad form,

it consists of five (or three) 11-line stanzas

(there are variations, and some sources allow 8-16 lines)

and an envoi of 5 or 7 lines. The meter is not determined.

Each line should be of the same length. The form uses a refrain

at the end of each stanza and the end of the envoi. The rhyme scheme is

 ababccddedE with ccddedE or ddedE for the envoi.

The poet may aim to avoid repeating a rhyme word throughout

the poem's length. The form is traditionally used for

stately or heroic subjects.

The envoi  traditionally addresses a "Prince". 

Have seen in both in Tetrameter and Pentameter so take your choice.

The Template below shows the rhyme patter for stanzas and envoi.

Example Poem

Foolish Quests

My shyness kept me pure for you; no code

of moral deprivation.  When we met

all in my life was changed. The daily road

to college took me to you.  Fate I bet.

A pretty, busty, car-hop with large smile

would always hold us for a little while.

But you never wore off, so every day

One meal was there so you could bring my tray.

Amazement grabbed my mind.  It sure did seem

that you looked forward to our verbal play.

In the past the future was but a dream.

Our dates were chaste but teasing, and did goad

us on to more 'til finally we did pet.

In your home, fully clothed, myself you rode.

When your did that I guess my fate was set.

Winsome ways, compounded with gift worthwhile

propelled my lust to love.  I thought of guile,

I admit, after asking right a way

for you to be  my bride.  Could not display

that doubt  nor wait; the Navy called.  That gleam

of lust would roam unless bound in some way.

In the past the future was but a dream.

We coupled almost hourly the day I strode

away.  When my tour done,  appetite whet,

our mutual vigor and will did explode.

We simply could not touch without onset

of sexual thought.  It worked we loved in style. 

We never got arrested.  You made me smile

four times with babies we both loved.  How pray

could life get better? A degree okay,

Now a career unfolds in my life stream.

To learn my skills work projects all held sway. 

In the past the future was but a dream.

Your intense drive for sex, I met not while

I worked for what I didn't need, in denial

that I was hurting you.  You found more play

with another who put you first today

and not tomorrow. You left.  Now I seem

to understand, too late to my dismay.

In the past the future was but a dream.

© Lawrencealot - May 5, 2012

Related forms: Ballade, Ballade Stanza, Ballade Supreme, Double Ballade, Canzone II, Chanso, Double Ballade Supreme, Double Refrain Ballade, Double Refrain Ballade Supreme, Grand Ballade or Chant Royal.

Example Template