New Poem: The Pleiades: A Sestina

Have you ever wondered about the star cluster – the Pleiades?  They’ve always fascinated me, and I’ve wanted to write about the mythology of the “Seven Sisters” for years.  My muse woke me up in the middle of the night last week, demanding it was time.  Not only that, she decided I must write them in the traditional Sestina poetry format – and rhyming, too, which is rare even in the most traditional of Sestinas!  (My muse is a demanding task-master, lol.)

The Sestina is probably one of the most complicated and demanding traditional poetry formats; even more so, I think than a Sonnet.  It has 39 lines: 6 stanzas of 6 lines each; and the end word of the last line of the stanza must also be the end word of the first line of the stanza that follows.  The envoi, or last three lines, must also contain the end words – I’ve used 2 per line in mine.  Traditionally, the Sestina is also written in iambic pentameter.  The rhyming end words is not required – but I enjoyed the challenge of adding it to mine.  There are many versions of writing a Sestina, including the variation and placement of the lines in each stanza.  I hope that you enjoy my more traditional version, and the story of The Pleiades.  ~  Julie  ♥

http://juliecatherinevigna.wordpress.com/pixys-poetry/the-pleiades-a-sestina/

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