0

Some poems format has some pattern, for example, the octosyllable verse is a line of verse with eight syllables.

I wonder if there's some format for a berceuse, or it's freestyle? for example here is a berceuse from Henry Bataille, I can't tell if there is any -- the first paragraphs has 4, the rest have 7 lines; the first paragraph has rhymes in ABAB, the rest has ABCCBAA...

Oiseau bleu, couleur du temps,
Me connais-tu ? fais-moi signe : —
La nuit nous donne des airs sanglotants,
Et la lune te fait blanc comme les cygnes…

Oiseau bleu, couleur du temps,
Dis, reconnais-tu la servante
Qui tous les matins ouvrait
La fenêtre et le volet
De la vieille tour branlante ?…
Où donc est le saule où tu nichais tous les ans,
Oiseau bleu, couleur du temps ?

Oiseau bleu, couleur du temps.
Dis un adieu pour la servante
Qui n’ouvrira plus désormais
La fenêtre, ni le volet
De la vieille tour où tu chantes…
Ah ! reviendras-tu tous les ans,
Oiseau bleu, couleur du temps ?

jlliagre
  • 148,505
  • 9
  • 106
  • 237
athos
  • 2,171
  • 2
  • 13
  • 22
  • Please use block quotes instead of code formatting STP (sorry I can't reformat astheure). What part of the meter makes you think it has no rhyme schema ? You've already counted it. Or do you mean lullabies in general? – livresque Jan 02 '23 at 11:24
  • on block quote, sorry i'm actually confused, whenever i click the button block quote, all words merged into one line. on rhyme, is ABAB or ABCCBAA the pattern for berceuse, or it's only for this poem while other berceuse can have other pattern so long as the author is happy? – athos Jan 02 '23 at 12:23
  • 3
    Berceuse just means lullaby. It's not like a sonnet, rondeau, triolet, villanelle, or ballade, which all have more-or-less fixed rhyme schemes. You could write a berceuse with any of these rhyme schemes, and chances are that French poets already have. – Peter Shor Jan 02 '23 at 14:29
  • @athos this one is probably freestyle, although interestingly enough, you can turn the first verses into octosyllables by pronouncing "oi" ou-a, also taking it closer to "Ô oiseau bleu". – guillaume31 Jan 10 '23 at 10:22
  • @guillaume31 but the 4th line, "Et la lune te fait blanc comme les cygnes", it has more... – athos Jan 10 '23 at 14:22
  • @athos yes. Apparently free verse became frequent in symbolist poetry in Bataille's time. Maybe someone more versed into Bataille/poetry can confirm? – guillaume31 Jan 10 '23 at 15:30

0 Answers0