What on earth is a triolet? Sounds a bit French yeah? Well, it is.... a bit French. But it's also a bit of other countries too, because although the poetry form originated in France, it has evolved and has been adapted so many times it's now positively cosmopolitan.
A triolet is almost always a poem of eight lines - an octave if you will - but it can be seven or nine lines too. Take your pick. The distinctive feature of the triolet though, is its repetition of lines. Three in fact, hence the moniker. I won't go into all the crappy details and boring technicalities of the triolet. Instead, I will give you an example from my own portfolio of poetry: Here's one of my triolets called Angels without Wings:
There in the depths of the eternal soul
There is a wondering beyond finite things
We ponder in our hearts a God-shaped hole
There in the depths of the eternal soul
We deeply yearn for something to console
And thus we fall as angels without wings
There in the depths of the eternal soul
There is a wondering beyond finite thingsSteve Wheeler © 25 June, 2022
You can see that the first and second line are repeated in lines seven and eight. But the first line is also repeated before that, in line four. Lines 1, 3, 4, 5 and 7 have end rhymes, while 2, 6 and 8 also rhyme. And that's about it, apart from the rhythm of the lines, which can be in iambic pentameter (10 syllables) or just about any other iamb combination.
So go forth and multiply - write your own triolet and share it here. I will be sure to comment on it.
Steve Wheeler
Image from Pixabay via a Creative Commons Licence
