Task 33: Anapestic Fun

For the last task of 2008, we are going to have fun with the ANAPEST.

So you can kiss that infernal iamb goodbye for the time being, and lock that sonnet in the cupboard for the foreseeable future. Some of you have cracked it completely and perfectly, and most of you are pretty much there. We will return to iambic pentameter - whether you like it or not - but the final task of 2008 is slightly different (and, I hope, FUN!).

If you have learnt anything from our recent tasks, your understanding of rhythm and meter will now be far more advanced than you realise. You will know the difference between a stressed and an unstressed syllable; you will know what a foot is, and what makes one iambic; and, hopefully, you will be starting to think and speak in feet. To add to that, you will also know all about enjambement, caesura and different types of rhyme.

So Task 33 should be easy! :)

You will probably have clicked on the hyperlink above already, and so will already have some basic idea of what an ANAPEST is anyway. But, nonetheless, I shall give you my own explanation:

An ANAPEST is a FOOT which consists of THREE syllables; the first two are UNSTRESSED and the last one is STRESSED.

In other words, whereas an iamb is dee-DUM, an ANAPEST is dee-dee-DUM.

Here are some examples of anapestic poetry:

"For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee." (Edgar Allen Poe)

"And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and forever grew still!" (Lord Byron)

"Not a word to each other; we kept the great pace
Neck by neck, stride by stride, never changing our place." (Robert Browning)

As with any different type of meter/rhythm, it's just a question of tuning into the rhythm with which you are dealing: dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM etc. (you get the idea...)

Now as for how many of these feet I am looking for in each line, I am expecting FOUR. In other words, you will be writing ANAPESTIC (using anapests) TETRAMETER (four anapestic feet):
dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM dee-dee-DUM

And I am looking for a minimum of four quatrains – or, in other words, a minimum of four sets of four lines.

Each quatrain should rhyme abcb (and the second defe) etc.

N.B. As always, enjambement, caesura, soft and/or internal rhymes and alliteration strengthen any poem – as does a reliance on imagery and, above all, ORIGINALITY.

And as for your checks for this task:
1. Does each line have 12 syllables?
2. Does the 3rd, 6th, 9th and 12th syllable sound correct stressed (and the others correct unstressed)?
3. Do you have at least four, 4-line stanzas (quatrains)?
4. Do the even lines rhyme in each stanza?
5. And, lastly, have you made any careless errors with spelling, punctuation, grammar or typos?

I will expect you all to conduct ALL these checks before you post, and, as always, your post must be submitted by the deadline, which is MIDNIGHT on SATURDAY 13TH DECEMBER.

Lastly, as for your topic: ANYTHING you want... ☺

Here, as always, is my attempt:

My Family and Other Books

In the absence of father or mother to guide
Me and give me the sanctum of love in a home;
And without someone’s hand to hold mine, I was left
So bereft, with no choice but to seek out my own.

And where better to look than in characters born
On the page of a book? I could enter the how
Of the author’s creation and fashion myself
As a character too. I had family now.

I remember that Emerson taught me that why
Had an answer, and that was invariably yes.
I recall that Iago was bad but poor Lear
Was misguided and Hamlet was simply a mess.

Uncle Sam taught me tons, as I waited for God
-ot and realised Kerouac had it in one:
That the journey is everything. Borges was right:
It’s the moments that matter, so why not have fun?

So when you look for guidance or seek the advice
Of a person who knows how to truly survive,
Friends and family, even your teachers reside
In the yellowing pages around chapter five.

P.S. If any of you want me to explain any of the many literary references in this poem, all of which have shaped my life to a massive degree, please feel free to email me and ask... :)