Triolet
Encyclopedia
A triolet is a three stanza
poem
of eight lines. Its rhyme scheme
is ABaAabAB and often all lines are in iambic tetrameter
: the first, fourth and seventh lines are identical, as are the second and final lines, thereby making the initial and final couplet
s identical as well.
- the earliest written examples are from the late 13th century. The triolet is a close cousin of the rondeau
, another French verse form emphasizing repetition and rhyme. Some of the earliest known triolets composed in English were written by Patrick Cary
, briefly a Benedictine
at Douai
, who purportedly used them in his devotions. British poet Robert Bridges
reintroduced the triolet to the English language, where it enjoyed a brief popularity among late-nineteenth-century British poets.
An effective conventional triolet achieves two things; firstly the naturalness of the refrain
and secondly the alteration of the refrain's meaning.
Notice how in the last line the punctuation is altered; this is common although not strictly in keeping with the original form. Furthermore, the fact that the 'berries now are gone' has a new relevance; the birds are going unfed.
Triolets are a relatively rare form.
Stanza
In poetry, a stanza is a unit within a larger poem. In modern poetry, the term is often equivalent with strophe; in popular vocal music, a stanza is typically referred to as a "verse"...
poem
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
of eight lines. Its rhyme scheme
Rhyme scheme
A rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhyme between lines of a poem or song. It is usually referred to by using letters to indicate which lines rhyme. In other words, it is the pattern of end rhymes or lines...
is ABaAabAB and often all lines are in iambic tetrameter
Iambic tetrameter
Iambic tetrameter is a meter in poetry. It refers to a line consisting of four iambic feet. The word "tetrameter" simply means that there are four feet in the line; iambic tetrameter is a line comprising four iambs...
: the first, fourth and seventh lines are identical, as are the second and final lines, thereby making the initial and final couplet
Couplet
A couplet is a pair of lines of meter in poetry. It usually consists of two lines that rhyme and have the same meter.While traditionally couplets rhyme, not all do. A poem may use white space to mark out couplets if they do not rhyme. Couplets with a meter of iambic pentameter are called heroic...
s identical as well.
Examples
The form stems from medieval French poetryFrench poetry
French poetry is a category of French literature. It may include Francophone poetry composed outside France and poetry written in other languages of France.-French prosody and poetics:...
- the earliest written examples are from the late 13th century. The triolet is a close cousin of the rondeau
Rondeau (poetry)
This article is about the poetry form. For other uses, see Rondeau.A rondeau is a form of French poetry with 15 lines written on two rhymes, as well as a corresponding musical form developed to set this characteristic verse structure...
, another French verse form emphasizing repetition and rhyme. Some of the earliest known triolets composed in English were written by Patrick Cary
Patrick Cary
Patrick Cary was an English poet, an early user in English of the triolet form.-Life:He was a younger son of Henry Cary, 1st Viscount Falkland, by Elizabeth Cary née Tanfield. At an early age he was sent to France, to be brought up a Catholic...
, briefly a Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
at Douai
Douai
-Main sights:Douai's ornate Gothic style belfry was begun in 1380, on the site of an earlier tower. The 80 m high structure includes an impressive carillon, consisting of 62 bells spanning 5 octaves. The originals, some dating from 1391 were removed in 1917 during World War I by the occupying...
, who purportedly used them in his devotions. British poet Robert Bridges
Robert Bridges
Robert Seymour Bridges, OM, was a British poet, and poet laureate from 1913 to 1930.-Personal and professional life:...
reintroduced the triolet to the English language, where it enjoyed a brief popularity among late-nineteenth-century British poets.
An effective conventional triolet achieves two things; firstly the naturalness of the refrain
Refrain
A refrain is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse; the "chorus" of a song...
and secondly the alteration of the refrain's meaning.
- "Birds At Winter"
- Around the house the flakes fly faster,
- And all the berries now are gone
- From holly and cotoneaster
- Around the house. The flakes fly! – faster
- Shutting indoors the crumb-outcaster
- We used to see upon the lawn
- Around the house. The Flakes fly faster
- And all the berries now are gone!
- Thomas HardyThomas HardyThomas Hardy, OM was an English novelist and poet. While his works typically belong to the Naturalism movement, several poems display elements of the previous Romantic and Enlightenment periods of literature, such as his fascination with the supernatural.While he regarded himself primarily as a...
Notice how in the last line the punctuation is altered; this is common although not strictly in keeping with the original form. Furthermore, the fact that the 'berries now are gone' has a new relevance; the birds are going unfed.
Triolets are a relatively rare form.
Triolet on the Web
- How Great My Grief by Thomas HardyThomas HardyThomas Hardy, OM was an English novelist and poet. While his works typically belong to the Naturalism movement, several poems display elements of the previous Romantic and Enlightenment periods of literature, such as his fascination with the supernatural.While he regarded himself primarily as a...
- Triolet by Robert BridgesRobert BridgesRobert Seymour Bridges, OM, was a British poet, and poet laureate from 1913 to 1930.-Personal and professional life:...
- Triolet on a Line Apocryphally Attributed to Martin Luther by A. E. StallingsA. E. StallingsAlicia Elsbeth Stallings is an American poet and translator. She was named a 2011 MacArthur Fellow-Background:Stallings was raised in Decatur, Georgia and studied classics at the University of Georgia and University of Oxford. She is an editor with the Atlanta Review. In 1999, Stallings moved...
- The Country Wife (a double triolet) by Dana GioiaDana Gioia-Poetry:It was as a poet that Gioia first began to attract widespread attention in the early 1980s, with frequent appearances in The Hudson Review, Poetry, and The New Yorker. In the same period, he published a number of essays and book reviews...
- Triolet by Wendy CopeWendy CopeWendy Cope, OBE is an award-winning contemporary English poet. She read history at St Hilda's College, Oxford. She now lives in Ely with the poet Lachlan Mackinnon.-Biography:...
- Valentine by Wendy Cope
- Worker Bees by Gail White(Dave BaldwinDave Baldwin (baseball)David George Baldwin is a retired American professional baseball player, a right-handed, sidearm/submarine Major League pitcher.-Life and career:...
) - Gilda & Johnny, a triolet sequence by Antonia Clark
- The Triolet by Don MarquisDon MarquisDonald Robert Perry Marquis was a humorist, journalist, and author. He was variously a novelist, poet, newspaper columnist, and playwright. He is remembered best for creating the characters "Archy" and "Mehitabel", supposed authors of humorous verse.-Life:...
- Examples of Triolet
- Triolet Workshop
- www.triolets.org