1. History
The
modern
villanelle
evolved
from
14th
century
Italian
pastoral
round-­‐songs.
The
French
poet
Jean
Passerat
wrote
the
first
recognizable
villanelles
in
the
16th
century.
By
the
19th
century
English
poets
were
using
the
form
to
write
cute
and
clever
light
verses
that
often
referred
to
the
form
itself.
Modern
and
contemporary
poets
have
demonstrated
its
potential
more
fully
by
writing
villanelles
that
range
from
humorous
to
haunting.
The
villanelle
is
the
second
most
common
form
poem
modern
poets
choose
to
write
(beaten
out
only
by
the
sonnet).
What
is
a
villanelle?
The
villanelle
is
a
form
poem,
that
is,
it’s
a
poem
written
according
to
a
blueprint
or
plan.
Furthermore,
within
the
family
of
form
poems
the
villanelle
is
a
fixed
form
because
it
always
has
the
same
number
of
lines—19.
These
are
arranged
as
five
stanzas
of
three
lines
(tercets)
and
a
final
stanza
of
four
lines
(quatrain).
The
villanelle
employs
rhyme.
It
has
two
rhyme
sounds
which
we’ll
refer
to
as
a,
and
A
(the
same
sound),
and
b.
To
complicate
things,
it
also
has
two
repeating
lines
(or
refrains).
The
first
repeating
line
initially
appears
as
line
1
(A1)
and
repeats
in
lines
6,
12
and
18.
The
second
repeating
line
appears
first
as
line
3
(A2)
and
repeats
in
lines
9,
15
and
19
(the
last
line
of
the
poem).
Here
is
the
villanelle’s
pattern:
St.
1
A1
(first
repeating
line
or
refrain)
b
A2
(second
repeating
line
or
refrain)
St.
2
a
b
A1
(repeat
of
line
1)
St.
3
a
b
A2
(repeat
of
line
3)
St.
4
a
b
A1
(repeat
of
line
1)
St.
5
a
b
A2
(repeat
of
line
3)
St.
6
a
b
A1
(repeat
of
line
1)
A2
(repeat
of
line
3)

2. When
working
with
the
repeating
lines,
it
is
accepted
practice—and
most
poets
do—to
change
these
slightly
from
one
appearance
to
the
next.
The
goal
is
to
enlarge
the
meaning
of
the
poem
rather
than
precisely
parrot
back
the
words.
Villanelles
have
no
set
rhythm
or
line
length
but
the
lines
are
usually
even.
Iambic
pentameter
(te-­‐TUM
x
5)
is
a
common
rhythm
for
serious
villanelles.
The
Thomas
poem
with
which
we
began
this
article
is
written
in
iambic
pentameter
(do
NOT
go
GENtle
INto
THAT
good
NIGHT).
The
trochee
rhythm
(TUM-­‐te,
BASket)
also
works
well.
Eight
to
ten
syllables
per
line
is
the
most
common
length
but
shorter
or
longer
lines
are
okay
too.
The
main
thing
is
to
keep
the
rhythm
regular.
For
a
light
verse
villanelle,
anapest
feet
create
a
tripping
rhythm
(
te-­‐te-­‐TUM,
ser-­‐e-­‐
NADE).
Or
use
dactyl
feet
for
a
marching
or
galloping
effect
(TUM-­‐te-­‐te,
HAR-­‐mo-­‐
ny).
Read
some
villanelles
Now
let's
take
a
break
from
reading
about
villanelles
to
reading
some
actual
poems.
Below
are
links
to
villanelles
by
well-­‐known
poets.
They
illustrate
how
the
theory
works
in
practice.
You
might
want
to
read
each
poem
several
times.
On
first
reading:
•
Read
for
meaning
and
general
effect.
On
second
and
successive
readings:
•
Note
the
repeating/refrain
lines.
Has
the
poet
changed
them?
How
do
the
changes
affect
poem's
meaning.
•
Note
line
lengths
and
rhythm.
What
do
those
things
communicate
to
you?
"Chatty
Cathy
Villanelle"
by
David
Trinidad
"Do
Not
Go
Gentle
into
That
Good
Night"
by
Dylan
Thomas
"During
the
Service"
by
Carrie
Grabo
"In
Memory
of
the
Unknown
Poet,
Robert
Boardman
Vaughn"
by
Donald
Justice
"Lissadel"
by
Wendy
Cope
"Subject
to
Change"
by
Marilyn
Taylor
More
villanelles
here.
<strong>Write
a
Villanelle</strong>
Now
that
you
are
familiar
with
the
rules
of
the
form
and
have
read
a
few,
follow
these
steps
to
compose
a
villanelle
of
your
own.

3. 1.
Choose
a
subject.
Though
any
subject
might
do,
there
are
some
ideas
which
are
better
suited
to
the
villanelle
form
than
others.
(W.
H.
Auden,
when
asked
whether
the
form
or
content
came
first,
replied,
“At
any
given
time,
I
have
two
things
on
my
mind—a
theme
that
interests
me
and
a
problem
of
verbal
form.
The
theme
looks
for
the
right
form;
the
form
looks
for
the
right
theme.
When
the
two
come
together,
I
am
able
to
start
writing.”2)
Some
subjects
or
themes
that
lend
themselves
well
to
the
villanelles
are:
•
Duality,
for
example
two
differing
points
of
view,
or
two
unlike
things
or
people
forced
together.
The
first
villanelle
I
wrote
was
for
a
contest
where
the
challenge
was
to
write
a
poem
about
Christmas
in
a
prison
or
care
home.
Note
the
duality:
happy
time,
sad
place.
•
Ironic
subjects.
Actor,
writer
and
poetry
aficionado
Stephen
Fry
describes
many
villanelles
as
consisting
of
“a
rueful,
ironic
reiteration
of
pain
or
fatalism.”3
•
Humorous
subjects—especially
those
rooted
in
irony.
2.
Write
the
two
repeating
or
refrain
lines.
This
is
the
most
important
step
of
the
villanelle-­‐writing
process
and
will
largely
determine
the
success
of
your
poem.
When
composing
the
two
repeating
lines
keep
in
mind:
•
The
end
words
of
the
two
lines
rhyme.
The
sound
on
which
they
end
will
also
be
the
‘a’
rhyme
sound
in
the
non-­‐repeating
lines.
Therefore
choose
end
words
with
a
rhyme
sound
that’s
easy
to
match.
•
The
lines
should
resonate
with
a
meaning
that
has
the
potential
to
enlarge
as
the
poem
progresses.
•
The
lines
should
be
musical
and
pleasing
to
the
ear.
•
Try
beginning
one
or
both
refrain
lines
with
a
verb.
•
The
two
lines
need
to
come
together
effectively
at
the
end
of
the
poem.
“Technically
the
trick
of
it
seems
to
be
to
find
a
refrain
pair
that
is
capable
of
run-­‐
ons,
ambiguity,
and
ironic
reversal”
says
Fry.
3.
Decide
on
your
second
rhyme
sound
‘b.’
Again
choose
a
sound
that
has
lots
of
rhyme
potential
and
that
is
different
enough
from
rhyme
‘a’
to
provide
a
pleasing
contrast.
If
you
need
some
help
finding
rhymes,
you
can
always
use
a
free
on-­‐line
rhyming
dictionary
for
some
help.
•
Rhymer
•
Rhymezone
4.
Print
out
or
write
the
villanelle
form
on
a
piece
of
paper
and
enter
the
repeating
lines.

4. 5.
Make
lists
of
words
that
rhyme
with
the
two
sounds
you
have
chosen
(a,
A
and
b).
Use
a
rhyming
dictionary
if
you
need
to.
6.
Compose
the
additional
lines
of
your
poem
according
to
the
rhyme
scheme,
using
ideas
suggested
by
the
words
on
your
list.
7.
Make
subtle
changes
to
the
refrain
lines
as
your
poem
takes
shape.
Make
these
changes
to
enhance
and
add
meaning,
not
simply
for
the
sake
of
variety.
“The
repetition
cannot
be
static,”
says
Frances
Mayes.
“Each
time
a
repeating
line
appears
it
should
have
added
significance.”5
If
this
way
of
composing
a
poem
seems
contrived
and
non-­‐poetic,
be
reassured
that
you’re
not
the
first
person
to
feel
this
way.
Poet
and
teacher
Michael
Begeja
tells
students
they
need
to
plot
their
villanelles6
(and
you
thought
only
fiction
writers
did
that).
Fry
observes,
“Certain
closed
forms
(and
he
includes
the
villanelle
here)
…seem
demanding
enough
in
their
structures
and
patterning
to
require
some
of
the
qualities
needed
for
Sodoku
and
crosswords.”7
But
despite
the
seemingly
unpoetic
method
of
composing,
villanelles
often
appear
spontaneous.
Strive
for
such
an
effect,
even
if
it
takes
much
crossing
out,
agonizing
over,
and
rewriting
lines
to
get
exactly
what
you’re
after.
Once
you’re
familiar
with
writing
by-­‐the-­‐rules
villanelles,
you
may
be
tempted
to
join
poets
who
have
written
villanelles
that
break
the
rules.
Some
poets
leave
out
or
add
stanzas,
rhyme
only
some
of
the
lines,
or
none
at
all,
or
even
write
in
free
verse.
As
John
Drury
says,
“You
can
manipulate
forms
as
much
as
you
like,
shortening
or
lengthening
as
long
as
the
poem
turns
out
well.”
8.
Try
your
hand
at
writing
a
villanelle.
Suitable
topics
could
be
things
about
which
you
have
mixed
feelings—like
Christmas
or
winter.