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'Five and seven and five,
The words fall into lines;
Is this better form?'
Thanks for the clarification. When I looked for a definition of 'haiku' while originally working on the verse about the flax (several years ago...) I found several conflicting definitions, one of which (IIRC) suggested that as the rules about what could be used as a syllable weren't the same in English as in Japanese trying to stick rigidly to the Japanese pattern needn't be absolutely required, but as the Encylcopaedia Britannica agrees with you about 5-7-5 I'll try to follow that pattern henceforth.
It's been quite a few years since I actually attended any classes about the English language, however, and I'm not actually sure about what does count as a syllable for poetic purposes... Is the presence of at least one vowel (implied, even if not actually written) absolutely required? Do I recall correctly that a terminal letter 's' (as in 'flowers') counts as a syllable in its own right? And that although all of the vowels in the word 'ground' belong with the initial consonants the terminal "_nd" also counts as a full syllable? If so then...
'Fields of flax,
The sky upon the ground;
A Sussex summer.'
Or, if "ground" counts as just one syllable rather than as two...
'Fields full of flax,
The sky is upon the ground;
A Sussex summer.'
Posted by: Anonymous User (---.in-addr.btopenworld.com)
Date: August 04, 2003 06:00PM
Sounds like one of his, but he hasn't the sense of humour to make himself the victim. Remember the virtual marshmallows --- the book is the next best thing to me in a chat room --- !!!
Posted by: Anonymous User (---.in-addr.btopenworld.com)
Date: August 04, 2003 06:05PM
Gets better as it goes. Book one was a rushed skit. But fun. Met any penguins yet?
Simon did a thread called 'About the Nextarillion' entries in which will always get my attention quick, but it's so full of long waffle by me and other Tolkien afficionados that it may take about a minute to load ---