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Directory of Cinquain Resources

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SO WHAT'S A CINQUAIN? Pronounced (sing-KANE). Technically, any five-line poem or stanza is a cinquain, the latter, sometimes referred to as a quintet. AMERICAN CINQUAIN -- The most common form is a counted syllabic poem of five lines of free verse: two, four, six, eight, two syllables each, and is generally in iambic foot. It was developed in the early 20th Century by the American poet, Adelaide Crapsey (1878-1914), whose brief cinquain series was published posthumously in her book titled "Verse"(Rochester, NY: Manas Press,1915). It is derived from the Japanese haiku and tanka traditions, which were modified by Crapsey to fit polysyllabic English-language verse. DIDACTIC CINQUAIN There is another form of cinquain which is typically used to teach young children the rudiments of line and meter: line 1: one word names the subject; line 2: two words describe the subject; line 3: three words relate what it is doing; line 4: four words tell how you feel about it; line 5: one word renames the subject. This is generally used as a didactic device in elementary schools. --Billie Dee

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