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Rondel
Rondel
(RAHN-dul) originated from Old French, the diminutive of
roont "round", meaning "small circle" (Wikipedia).
Applied to poetry A rondel is a verse form originating
in French lyrical poetry, later used in the verse of
other languages as well, such as English and Romanian.
It is a variation of the rondeau consisting of two
quatrains followed by a quintet (13 lines total) or a
sestet (14 lines total). The rondel was invented in the
14th century, and is arguably better suited to the
French language than to English.
Not to be confused with Roundel, a similar verse form
with repeating refrain. In the 15th century the terms "rondel"
and "rondeau" seem to have been used interchangeably
(Preminger).
The first two lines of the first stanza are refrains,
repeating as the last two lines of the second stanza and
the third stanza. (Alternately, only the first line is
repeated at the end of the final stanza). For instance,
if A and B are the refrains, a rondel will have a rhyme
scheme of ABba abAB abbaA
The meter is open, but typically has eight syllables.
There are several variations of the rondel, and some
inconsistencies. For example, sometimes only the first
line of the poem is repeated at the end; or: the second
refrain may return at the end of last stanza, making a
Rondel Prime ABba abAB
abbaA(B) (aka, Rondel Supreme or French Sonnet) (Bob's
Byway).
Henry Austin
Dobson provides the following example of a rondel prime:
Love
comes back to his vacant dwelling,
A
The old, old Love that we knew of yore!
B
We see him stand by the open door,
b
With his great eyes sad, and his bosom swelling.
a
He makes as though in our arms repelling
a
He fain would lie as he lay before;
b
Love comes back to his vacant dwelling,
A
The old, old Love that we knew of yore!
B
Ah ! who shall help us from over-spelling
a
That sweet, forgotten, forbidden lore?
b
E'en as we doubt, in our hearts once more,
b
With a rush of tears to our eyelids welling,
a
Love comes back to his vacant dwelling,
A
The old, old Love that we knew of yore!
B
An
additional rondel example by Geoffrey Chaucer:
Rondel
of Merciless Beauty
Your two
great eyes will slay me suddenly;
A
Their beauty shakes me who was once serene;
B
Straight through my heart the wound is quick and
keen.
B
Only your word will heal the injury
a
To my hurt heart, while yet the wound is clean—
b
Your two great eyes will slay me suddenly;
A
Their beauty shakes me who was once serene.
B
Upon my word, I tell you faithfully
a
Through life and after death you are my queen;
b
For with my death the whole truth shall be seen.
b
Your two great eyes will slay me suddenly;
A
Their beauty shakes me who was once serene;
B
Straight through my heart the wound is quick and
keen.
B
Rondel Poems in
Sketchbook:
Sandra Martyres,
IN—The
Game of Cricket: Vol. 6, No. 1, Jan/Feb, 2011.
Resources
"Rondel"
in Preminger, Alex and T.V.F. Brogan, editors. The
New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics.
New York: MJF Books Princeton University Press,
1993, p. 1098.
"Rondel"
in
Bob's Byway Glossary of Poetic Terms
"Rondel"
in
Wikipedia.
"Rondel
of Merciless Beauty".
Geoffrey Chaucer from
Poem Hunter.
"Rondel—poem"
in
Wikipedia.
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