Hendecasyllabic verse

Hendecasyllabic verse

The Hendecasyllabic verse is a quantitative metre used by Catullus. It has a rhythmic pattern that repeats with every eleven syllables, hence the name. The pattern is as follows (L = long syllable, s = short syllable, | = foot division):

:L L | L s s | L s | L s | L s:(spondee | dactyl | trochee | trochee | trochee)

The first foot is also often a trochee (L s) and sometimes an iamb (s L). The last foot can also be a spondee, in which case it is a "Phalaecean" hendecasyllabic.

Another form of hendecasyllabic verse is the "Sapphic" (so named for its use by the Aeolic poet Sappho), which has the pattern:

:L s | L s | L s s | L s | L L

In this form, the second foot can also be a spondee.

Examples of Latin hendecasyllabics are Catullus 7, 10, 43 and 46. The metre has been imitated in English; the most important examples are by Tennyson and Swinburne. In English, the long/short pattern becomes a stress/unstress pattern, although Tennyson maintained the quantitative features of the metre:

:O you chorus of indolent reviewers,:Irresponsible, indolent reviewers,:Look, I come to the test, a tiny poem:All composed in a metre of Catullus...:("Hendecasyllabics")

This form should not be confused with Hendecasyllable.

Example

Catullus 1


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • hendecasyllabic — [hen΄dek΄əsil′ə bəlhen dek΄əse lab′ik] n. [L hendecasyllabus < Gr hendekasyllabos: see HENDECA & SYLLABLE] a line of verse having eleven syllables: also hendecasyllable [hen΄dek΄əsil′ə bəl] adj. containing eleven syllables: said as of a line… …   English World dictionary

  • heroic verse — a form of verse adapted to the treatment of heroic or exalted themes: in classical poetry, dactylic hexameter; in English and German, iambic pentameter; and in French, the Alexandrine. An example of heroic verse is Achilles wrath, to Greece the… …   Universalium

  • Catullus 2 — is a renowned poem by the Roman poet Gaius Valerius Catullus ( c . 84 ndash; c . 54 BC) that describes the affectionate relationship between Catullus lover, Lesbia, and her pet sparrow. As scholar and poet John Swinnerton Phillimore has noted,… …   Wikipedia

  • List of literary terms — The following is a list of literary terms; that is, those words used in discussion, classification, criticism, and analysis of literature.: See also: Glossary of poetry terms, Literary criticism, Literary theory CompactTOC8 name=Contents… …   Wikipedia

  • Renée Vivien — Renée Vivien, born Pauline Mary Tarn (June 11,1877 November 18, 1909) was a British poet who wrote in the French language. [http://www.testamentdespoetes.be/Vivien17.gif] [Académie Renée Vivien. [http://www.academie renee… …   Wikipedia

  • Sá de Miranda, Francisco de — ▪ Portuguese author born Aug. 28, 1481?, Coimbra, Port. died May? 1558, Tapada       Portuguese poet who introduced Renaissance poetic forms to Portugal.       The illegitimate son of a canon of Coimbra, Gonçalo Mendes de Sá, and Dona Inês de… …   Universalium

  • Juan Boscán Almogáver — Juan Boscán Almogáver, (1490? ndash;September 21, 1542), Spanish poet, was born about the close of the 15th century. Although he was a Catalan, he wrote exclusively in Spanish. His original Catalan name was Joan Boscà Almogàver.The exact date of… …   Wikipedia

  • Catullus 85 — is a poem by the Roman poet Catullus for his mistress Lesbia. Its declaration of conflicting feelings I hate and I love (in Latin, Odi et amo) is renowned for its force and brevity. The meter of the poem is the elegiac couplet. Contents 1 Text 2… …   Wikipedia

  • phalaecean — |falə|sēən noun ( s) Usage: usually capitalized Etymology: Greek phalaikeion phalaecean (from Phalaikos Phalaecus, Greek poet) + English an : a hendecasyllabic verse in Greek and Latin prosody that is a glyconic with three additional syllables… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Aeolic Greek — For the architectural style, see Aeolic order. Distribution of Greek dialects in the classical period.[1] Western group …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”