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What Stanza Form? In the Japanese tradition the principal genres of linked verse, renga, alternate two basic stanzas - the long stanza (chouku) and the short stanza (tanku). These stanzas are respectively seventeen and fourteen syllables (onsetsu) in length, the overall syllable counts dividing into metrical units of 5/7/5 for the long verse and the 7/7 for the short. In translation these metrical divisions have often been equated with the 'line' of English versification and is common to see the single verse haiku defined as a short verse written on three lines, the first having five syllables, the second seven, and the last five syllables. In fact the Japanese verse is written as a single line and the 5/7/5 (or 7/7) division is a phonic cadence rather than a clausal or phrasal division; indeed a single word may span two phonic 'blocs'. The relative mobility of Japanese syntax also allows for a far more flexible word order than does English. As a result these seemingly rigid fixed-form (teikei) stanza structures are rather more flexible than they at first appear, in the hands of a skilled poet permitting an almost infinite range of organisation and expression. In seeking to emulate the innate malleability of the Japanese stanzas a majority of practised writers of haiku and renga in English have abandoned the idea of syllable count in favour of vers libre, retaining only the general consensus that the long verse be written on three lines and the short verse on two. In many ways this is an entirely satisfactory solution, however there are two core qualities of Japanese prosody which must also be accommodated when considering issues of stanza structure;
Solution One - Conventional Free-form The vers libre approach is retained as is the convention of writing on three and two lines respectively. A permitted range for each of the stanza types is established, typically 10/11/12 syllables for the short verse and 14/15/16 syllables for the long verse. Within these overall parameters the final arbiter of a stanza's length should be naturalness of phrasing, both in terms of the stanza itself and in its relationship to the proceeding stanzas. Solution Two - Conventional Strict-form The syllable counts typical of the Japanese stanzas are applied directly to English, each syllabic cluster being treated as a 'line'. The long verse is therefore 5/7/5 syllables written on three lines and the short: 7/7 syllables written on two lines. As has been mentioned above, differences in the relative flexibility of syntax between Japanese and English have lead many writers to consider that this approach is overly restrictive, however it may be argued that there are benefits to be had from presenting persons new to the concept of linked verse with this more 'definite' or unambiguous model. Solution Three - Zip Strict-form Given the importance of the aesthetics of teikei - strict form - to the Japanese tradition many attempts have been made to define an effective English alternative. In recent years one of the more widely adopted approaches has been the 'Zip'. The zip maintains the idea of a fixed syllable count but within a flexible structure of lineation and pause-punctuation:
In so far as zip stanzas tend to encourage a greater subtlety of expression it may be that this approach is best reserved for practised poets or groups benefiting from an extended period of guidance. Solution Four - Zip Free-form The basic lineation and pause-punctuation of the zip stanza is preserved but a range of syllable counts is permitted for both long and short verse. As long as the caveats concerning the importance of long verse/short verse proportionality are borne in mind this approach can be both novel and effective. Shared Values Whatever approach to stanza structure is adopted there are certain constants necessary to the creation of any given verse:
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