Hiking
the Quatrain Range
Greetings:
Today
is Syllabic Quatrain Day. I picked April
4, which numerically is 4/4, to give a nod of thanks to all the traditions of
syllabic quatrain scattered throughout the world. It also seemed to me an auspicious day to
launch my newest collection: Hiking the
Quatrain Range.
Hiking contains fourteen
collections of my quatrains. All the
collections take a syllabic approach. My
procedure is to compose each quatrain as a separate four-line poem, and then gather
them into sequences. These sequences
have either a common theme or share a common syllabic shape, or both.
“First
Day Poems, Parts 1 and 2” are quatrains rooted in my Quaker Faith and
Practice. Part 1 contains 5-count (five
syllables per line) quatrains. Part 2
contains seven-count quatrains.
“Clear
Skies” are quatrains with 2-count lines (two-syllables per line).
“Fall
Leaves Fall” contains 3-count quatrains.
“After
the Rain” contains 4-count quatrains.
“At
the Café” and “Quince” are fairly long sequences of 5-count quatrains.
“Serenity”
is a sequence of 6-count quatrains.
“The
Gift” and “Winter Dawn” are long sequences devoted to the 7-count quatrain.
“Englynion:
Books I & II” are devoted to two Welsh forms; Englyn Unodl Union and Englyn
Cyrch. Most are Engyln Unodl Union.
“Agitations”
are quatrains of various types on the theme of political or social commentary.
“Close
Encounter” closes the collection with 8-count quatrains.
The
Quatrain is found throughout the world in many
cultures. My approach was most strongly
influenced by the Chinese tradition of quatrain poetry. Other influences were the Welsh tradition
and, most recently, the minimalist poetry of Samuel Menashe. There is something very attractive about the
quatrain which seems to resonate with people everywhere.
It
took me a long time to put this collection together. I wrote, rewrote, and rewrote again the
sequences, trying to get the placements just right. But it was an enjoyable process and going
over the quatrains showed me how flexible and varied the parameters of the form
are. It also increased my appreciation
for those poets who have focused on this form and bequeathed us such a rich
heritage of examples to emulate. And
finally, going over these poems confirmed my feeling that a syllabic approach
to quatrains in English is efficacious and rewarding.
Hiking the Quatrain
Range
$14.95
250
pages
ISBN:
9781500763657
Available
from Amazon and, in a few weeks, from your local bookstore.
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