The pantoum is a form of poetry that evokes a dreamy sort
of incantatory mood because lines from one stanza must be repeated in the next
stanza throughout the poem creating a rather intense repetitive scheme that
seems to dance in circles. The pantoum originated in 15th century
Malaysia but has never quite achieved the popularity of the sonnet, the haiku,
or the villanelle in poetry. In addition to the repetition of specific lines
from one stanza to the next, some poets insist on an abab rhyme scheme. Poets
also take the liberty from time to time of changing the repetitive lines just
slightly so that the core of the line is repeated, but the line may vary just
slightly from the line in the previous stanza. That said, here is the somewhat
complicated format of the pantoum, which requires a four-line stanza but does
not limit the number of stanzas.
So, the second and fourth lines in each stanza are
repeated in the following stanza, becoming lines one and three in that stanza.
Stanza 1: 4 lines, ABAB rhyme scheme
Line 1
Line 2
Line 3
Line 4
Stanza 2:
Line 5 (repeat of line 2 in Stanza 1)
Line 6 (new line)
Line 7 (repeat of line 4 in stanza 1)
Line 8 (new line)
All the stanzas proceed in this fashion, with lines 2 and 4 of each stanza becoming lines 1 and 3 of the following stanza until the last stanza (there is no set number of stanzas required and the poet determines how many stanzas he/she needs). The final stanza then returns to pick up the two lines from the first stanza which have not been repeated anywhere else and are then repeated in the final stanza. Line 3 from the first stanza becomes line 2 of the final stanza and line 1 of the first stanza becomes the final line of the final stanza.
Final Stanza:
Line 2 of the previous stanza
Line 3 from the very first stanza
Line 4 of the previous stanza
Line 1 of the first stanza
Pantoum: Fruit of the Gods
Called
golden apples or the fruit of the Gods by Greeks,
The orange
is a sultry vamp dressed in a dimpled coat
To protect its
provocative flesh from anyone who seeks
To taste its
succulent body, to nuzzle and tickle its throat.
The orange
is a sultry vamp dressed in a dimpled coat.
Paris gave
one to Aphrodite as the most beautiful goddess of all,
To taste its
succulent body, to nuzzle and tickle its throat,
But Hera and
Athena got jealous and flew into a frenzied squall.
Paris gave
one to Aphrodite as the most beautiful goddess of all
In turn she
gave him Helen, another man’s wife, as his prize,
But Hera and
Athena got jealous and flew into a frenzied squall.
Hera and
Athena thought Paris should suffer for being unwise.
In turn she
gave him Helen, another man’s wife, as his prize.
The couple
then fled to Troy to fan their adulterous lust.
Hera and
Athena thought Paris should suffer for being unwise,
So the two
green-eyed ladies turned Troy’s towers into dust.
The couple
then fled to Troy to fan their adulterous lust,
While a
tricked-out Trojan horse delivered Troy up to defeat.
So, the two green-eyed
ladies turned Troy’s towers into dust,
Then slunk
away to Mt. Olympus to savor revenge so sweet.
While a
tricked-out Trojan horse delivered Troy up to defeat,
Hera and
Athena gathered golden apples to savor and enjoy,
Then slunk away
to Mt. Olympus to taste revenge so sweet,
Sipping on
golden nectar above the toppled towers of Troy.
Each goddess
ate an orange, soothing her wounded pride,
Protecting
its provocative flesh from anyone who seeks
To discover
what can happen when goddesses are denied,
Called
golden apples or the fruit of the Gods by Greeks.
