What makes a sestina

Learn why people trust wikiHow. Download Article Explore this Article parts. Sample Sestinas. Related Articles. Article Summary. Sample Sestinas Sample Love Sestina. Sample Sestina About Dreams. Sample Nature Sestina. Part 1. Focus on a specific theme or idea. Sestinas often explore a theme or idea in detail. Themes like love, death, war, loss, and nature are all good options. Try to interpret a theme or idea from your perspective.

Ask yourself, What does love or war mean to me? How has loss and death affected my life? What can I say that is unique or new about nature? You may compose the sestina with memories or feelings you associate with your sister. Choose a particular experience or moment. You can also focus on a memorable event or experience in your life as inspiration for the sestina.

Think of any event that was life changing for you or that shifted your view on the world. Write about an experience that affected you in a big way as a person. For example, you may write a sestina about your first kiss or your first time swimming in the ocean. Study the structure of the sestina. The sestina follows a strict pattern where you use the six end words of the first stanza in the remaining five stanzas.

Each stanza is six lines long. The poem ends with a three line envoi, also known as a tornada. If you label each word with a letter e. This way, the six recurring words appear in the final three lines of the poem. A sestina does not have to rhyme. Read examples of the sestina.

Study successful examples of the form so you get a better sense of how to write your own. Part 2. Identify the six repeating words in the poem.

Choose six words that are versatile and evocative. You will need to reinterpret these six words throughout the poem, so go for words that are specific enough but also open to interpretation. You may choose a few words that are nouns or verbs. Avoid using adjectives, unless you feel you can interpret the adjective more than one way.

Write around your six chosen words. Rather than try to write each stanza of the sestina in order, arrange the six repeating words in their set places using the pattern of the sestina. Then, write around them, focusing on describing your subject in detail. Try to interpret the chosen words in different ways each time they appear in the poem.

Decide if you will use rhyme. Sestinas do not have to rhyme and many modern sestinas do away with rhyme completely. But you can integrate rhyme into the lines of your sestina to give it more rhythm.

Try rhyming two words side by side in one line of the sestina to give the sestina an interesting sonic quality. Use metaphors and similes. Metaphors are when you compare one thing to another. Try using a mix of metaphors and similes to add variety to your sestina. Focus on sensory details and imagery. Integrate the five senses into the sestina, focusing on how your subject looks, sounds, feels, tastes, and smells. Stanza 2. Stanza 3. Stanza 4. Stanza 5. Stanza 6.

Last stanza--tercet 3 lines :. You can mix the order of the B, D, and F as long as you put one of them on each line so you have 2 of your 6 words on each line. Directions for a sestina:. Pick 6 end words -- try to choose words that have multiple meanings, or that evoke a mood, place, or season. You can change the form of the word for grammatical purposes if you need to. The main 6 stanzas should follow the prescribed pattern. The ending tercet does not have such a strict pattern.

Look at the poem by Elizabeth Bishop. She followed a different pattern for her tercet. Make yourself a prompt sheet to help you keep track of your words so they follow the sestina pattern. Remember you can vary pattern of the last 3 lines as long as you use all 6 words, 2 words per line.

It averts the worst cold. National Poetry Month. Materials for Teachers Teach This Poem. Poems for Kids. Poetry for Teens. Lesson Plans. Resources for Teachers. Academy of American Poets. American Poets Magazine. Sestina Explore the glossary of poetic terms. Rules of the Sestina Form The sestina follows a strict pattern of the repetition of the initial six end-words of the first stanza through the remaining five six-line stanzas, culminating in a three-line envoi.

The form is as follows, where each numeral indicates the stanza position and the letters represent end-words: 1.

History of the Sestina Form The sestina is attributed to Arnaut Daniel, the Provencal troubadour of the twelfth century. Here are the first two stanzas after a prefatory stanza which sets the scene : I Damn it all! Academy of American Poets Educator Newsletter. Teach This Poem. Follow Us.