Sestina Poem Analysis

(i)Describe the metre, rhyme and rhythmic patterns of your chosen poem:

It is difficult to distinguish a set metre for this poem because there are various examples of poetic feet and line length in each stanza. Sestina begins with Iambic tetrameter, an Iambic foot of eight syllables that features an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable, seen in “September rain falls on the house.” However, as the poem progresses, Bishop uses alternative feet such as Anapaestic Pentameter. This poetic foot of ten syllables contains two unstressed followed by a stressed syllable, for example: “and a winding pathway” Dactylic tetrameter is also the other common variation in the metre pattern. This foot contains a stressed syllable followed by two unstressed syllables like “laughing and talking to.”

A Sestina is one of the most interesting forms of poetry because it substitutes a rhyming scheme for the use of repetition, where words are used continuously throughout the poem. The repetition of the six end line words: tears, child, almanac, stove, grandmother, and house in each stanza creates a rhythm when saying the poem. As there is the use of enjambment or run on lines, this also speeds up the rhythm of the poem. Thus, there is no obvious rhyming pattern amongst the words themselves, but in the repetition of the end words in each stanza.

(ii) Describe the stanzas and/or the form of your chosen poem:

The title of this poem aptly resonates to its` form, being a Sestina. A