24 Aug Poetic Form: Vescál

A vescál is a form of poetry consisting of one extended line with the following sequence:

A B x A B x C D x C D x E x E

The capital letters signify one or two syllable categorematic words which agree (i.e. vowel rhyme) with all words in the poem with the same letter. No unbroken line of these letters can be more than three syllables. Every x signifies a one or two syncategorematic words, one syllable each. The proper format for the vescál is all lowercase and no punctuation. See below:

beauty flutters and duty shuttered in the cold knot of an old God as matter for all patterns

Alternatively:

sowing rains in flowing veins have a living wish a giving kiss from the fountains of mountains

The ideal vescál ought to contain a single subject as the first word, which extends through to the end of the poem. It should also contain at least one seasonal indicator (e.g. cold, rains, fallen leaves) and at least one charged term (e.g. God, kiss, life). The best vescál should be seen as a poet’s final words or their final observation before leaving this earth.