I found this on sapphics from different sources.

After the odes of the Greek lyric poet, Sappho, a verse of eleven syllables
in five feet, of which the first, fourth and fifth are trochees, the second
a spondee, and the third a dactyl. The Sapphic strophe consists of three
Sapphic verses followed by an Adonic.

Form:
unrhyming but using the Sapphic stanza (where / represents a long syllable, in English stressed, and _ a short syllable, in English unstressed).
/ _ / _ / _ _ / _ / _
/ _ / _ / _ _ / _ / _
/ _ / _ / _ _ / _ / _
/ _ _ / _



trochee: TROCHEE (TROH-kee), TROCHAIC (troh-KAY-ick)
A metrical foot with a long or accented syllable followed by a short or unaccented syllable, as in ON-ly or TO-tal, or the opening line of Poe's "The Raven:"
ONCE up- | ON a | MID-night | DREAR-y, | WHILE I | PON-dered, | WEAK and | WEAR-y,

spondee: SPONDEE (SPAHN-dee), SPONDAIC (spahn-DAY-ick)
A metrical foot with two long or equally accented syllables together, as in
bread box or shoeshine. Two unaccented syllables (a pyrrhic foot) often
precede or follow a spondee.
(Verses entirely composed of spondees are rare; their principal use is as
variations in iambic lines in which the successive accented syllables of a
spondee are effective for the suggestion of gravity or emphasis, as in
Christina Georgina Rossetti's "Song," Be the | green grass | above | me )

dactyl: A metrical foot of three syllables, the first of which is long or
accented and the next two short or unaccented, as in merrily or lover boy,
or from Byron's "The Bride of Abydos,"
Know ye the | land where the | cypress and | myrtle

(Except for their use in humorous light verse, dactylic lines are now
infrequent in English poetry.)

Adonic: A verse consisting of a dactyl followed by a spondee or trochee. It
is believed to be so named because of its use in songs during the Adonia, an
ancient festival in honor of Adonis.
( The festival of Adonia was celebrated by women, who spent two days
alternating between lamentation and feasting.)

An example by Isaac Watts:
THE DAY OF JUDGEMENT
An Ode Attempted in English Sapphic


When the fierce north wind with his airy forces
Rears up the Baltic to a foaming fury,
And the red lightning with a storm of hail comes
Rushing amain down,

How the poor sailors stand amazed and tremble,
While the hoarse thunder, like a bloody trumpet,
Roars a loud onset to the gaping waters,
Quick to devour them!

Such shall the noise be and the wild disorder,
(If things eternal may be like these earthly)
Such the dire terror, when the great Archangel
Shakes the creation,

Tears the strong pillars of the vault of heaven,
Breaks up old marble, the repose of princes;
See the graves open, and the bones arising,
Flames all around 'em!

Hark, the shrill outcries of the guilty wretches!
Lively bright horror and amazing anguish
Stare through their eyelids, while the living worm lies
Gnawing within them.

Thoughts like old vultures prey upon their heart-strings,
And the smart twinges, when the eye beholds the
Lofty Judge frowning, and a flood of vengeance
Rolling afore him.

Hopeless immortals! how they scream and shiver,
While devils push them to the pit wide-yawning
Hideous and gloomy, to receive them headlong
Down to the center.

Stop here, my fancy: (all away ye horrid
Doleful ideas); come, arise to Jesus;
How He sits God-like! and the saints around him
Throned, yet adoring!

Oh may I sit there when he comes triumphant
Dooming the nations! then ascend to glory
While our hosannas all along the passage
Shout the Redeemer.


There is an article here, also:
http://www.public.asu.edu/~aarios/formsofv...otes/page5.html

--

Dear pixordea,
Well now, I thought I was done with Sapphics as my first experience was frustration mixed with abhorrence as my muses simply couldn't cope with the flow and I put flow first in the light verse I write.
To hear that I might be throwing in the towel too soon alarms me.
As to Watt's piece, when I capitalize the intended strong beats I see little conformance to sapphic cadence. I'll review the reference you posted and have more later.
Thanks for the alternate view- I know I responded rather quickly and very negatively to sapphics and the topic deserves a better hearing.
Cheers, Ron jgdittier

Dear pixordia,
I've had chance to read Swinburne's "Sapphics".
It seems that he paid much more attention to the form, that is
/-/-/--/-/- or /-///--/-/- depending on how much beat the spondee deserves.
I, as a light verser, overread the beat and so still find the metric flow hard to write to or read. However, that's just me!
Simple trochees I can handle- read JTBaker's "Western Justice", in thochees for an example. It's here in Karnak.
Well, that's what makes a horserace. At the track, every possible betting combination will have its followers.
I doubt I'll ever master Sapphics as I've one more excuse. I'm a rhymer!
Cheers, Ron jgdittier

I found Watts verses to be very well done and quite delightful to read. I, like you Ron am a natural Rhymer and battle with free verse, even my prose is rhythmic.

The discipline required for sapphics takes quite some time to master but like everything gets easier with practice. I do believe though with every poem the form selected is vital to set the mood, and lets face it, iambs can get rather monotonous.

I know of a successful poet who writes only mythical sonnets, each one is very very good, but the book is tiresome to read.

Hello Gentlemen:
I appreciate your thoughts and comments on Sapphics and feel it is a form that probably needs
the right subject to complement it's lilting rythm.
One of my favorites is by Marilyn Hacker
It was published in "The Best American Poetry" 1998
I have typed the first 6 stanzas. I could not find a copy on the web to paste here,
so one day I will complete the next 14 stanzas.

Again, the River
for genevieve Pastre

Early summer in what I hope is "Midlife,"
and the sunlight makes me its own suggestions
when I take my indolence to the river
and breathe the breeze in.

Years, here, seem to blend into one another.
Houseboats, tugs, and barges don't change complexion
drastically (warts, wrinkles) until gestalt-shift
dissolves the diffference.

Sentence fragments float on a wave of syntax,
images imprinted in contemplation,
indistinct impressions of conversations
which marked some turning.

Food and drink last night with a friend - wev'e twelve years
history of Burgundy and good dinners
and as many books off the press between us
toasted together.

Writing is a difficult form of reading.
Paragraphs that roll away from their moorings
seems like passages to another language
half- comprehended.

Sometimes thought is more like a bad translation.
Hazy shapes resistant to sentence- structure
intimate- but what do they mean, exactly?
Texture, sound, odor

so much Suz for posting this form and the examples. I always find them extremely helpful when attempting to learn a new form.

I may have to try one of these but the metrical requirements scare me, tee, hee!
Generally, when we are learning new forms, members will post them here in Karnak as replies to the thread of that particular form; some go right in to the crit forum though and some do both.


Cheers,
~Cleo

Hi Cleo:
So glad you enjoyed the info.
If possible, to keep it all neat, could you move it to where it should be under Sapphics.

I will look for the right place next time before I post on other Forms.
I have a Glosa that I wrote once.
Is there already an existing thread started on them?
SuZ

Hi Suz,

Oh no - where you have posted your is prefectly fine if you are seeking commentary. You could also just post it here as well as a reply to show yours as a sample of the form if you wish.

I'll need to check on Glosa (not heard of the form in quite some time) one can also sort this forum by 'topic title' and look for it that way too. I'm traveling today and have a lousy connection speed here so I'll plan to pop back in once at home later this evening and tomorrow, since it's the holiday and I don't have to work, yay!

TTYL
~Lori

Ezra Pound's, 'Apparuit' an example

First verse.

Golden l rose the l house, in the l portal I saw l <<< trochee, trochee, dactyl, dactyl
thee, a marvel carven in subtle stuff a
portent. Life died down in the lamp and flickered,
caught at the wonder.


John