Poetry Place Collected Poems

A September Date to Remember Cornish Sonnet

Sam Adams thought about that date.
On a fine date in September.
That was the day he met his fate.
Sparks flew from heart-to-heart.
A date he would always remember.
She soon became his sweetheart.

When he saw her on the bus, he knew
That she would be his forever.
And that he would never feel blue.
As long as she was by his side.
He vowed they would be happy forever
As long as she was by his bedside.

Sam Adams thought about that date.
On a fine date in September.


The Cornish Sonnet is said by an internet source to be influenced by Arab traders to the Cornish coast . This verse form appears to be a merging of Arabic meter and the sonnet. Exactly when and how this came about I have yet to pin down. Early Cornish verse is fragmented and stingy at best. The earliest literature in the Cornish language were fragments of religious plays. The language became all but extinct by the 18th century but what was preserved demonstrates some verse in octaves using 7 syllable loose trochaic lines and alternating rhyme. Unlike verse from other Celtic origins, deliberate use of alliteration or other devices of "harmony of sound" are not present. This sonnet form doesn't fit with these early findings so I can only assume that it arrived on the scene much later than originally presumed.
The elements of the Cornish Sonnet are:
1. lyrical meditation.
2. a quatorzain, 2 sestets made up of linked enclosed tercets, followed by a refrain which is the repeat of the first line of each sestet.
3. metered at the discretion of the poet, lines should be similar length.
4. rhymed Abacbc Dedfef AD The first line of each sestet are repeated in refrain in the last couplet.
5. variable. The sonnet can be written with an alternate rhyme scheme abacbC dedfeF CF In this scenario the last line of each sestet is repeated in refrain in the last couplet.
I opted to not use traditional meter as I generally don’t handle that well for some reason

original poem about old man lost in his memories – spelling out his memories of meeting his wife

Memories
Of past events
Yesterdays
Overwhelming
An old man
Lost in his past
Can’t sleep at 0 dark hundred.

Note: “ O dark hundred” is military/intel jargon referring to the time two to three hours before dawn when operatives get up to get ready for dawn operations. Depending on location and time of year, it is between 2 a.m. to 5 a.m.

for me is 3 a.m. and 5 a.m. when I get the insomnia blues.
Syllable Pattern: 3/4/3/4/3/4/7
https://poetscollective.org/poetryforms/whitney/

The form consists of two, three couplets stanzas and a refrain made up of the first or last line of each stanza.

https://www.poetrymagnumopus.com/topic/1057-cornish-sonnet/