Over at Ethical ELA for the Monday Open Write, host Wendy Everard challenged participants with this thing called the double dactyl.
It’s deadly. Don’t even think of trying it.
Ok, not really deadly. You just kind of wish for grim death.
Ok, not really…but…it’s danged hard to write this “simple” poetry (or is it just me?).
Wendy shared the process:
- The first line must be nonsense, often higgledy-piggledy or jiggery-pokery.
- The second line must be someone’s name. (Again, it has to be a double dactyl, so not every six-syllable name works. Matthew McConaughey does; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar doesn’t.)
- The last line of the first stanza must rhyme with the last line of the second.
- One of the six-syllable lines must be one word. This can be anywhere in the poem, but Hecht [one of the form’s creators] preferred it as the sixth line.
Ummmmmmmmmm….
So, here’s an example by John Hollander, another of the form’s creators:
Higgledy piggledy,
Benjamin Harrison,
Twenty-third president
Was, and, as such,
Served between Clevelands and
Save for this trivial
Idiosyncrasy,
Didn’t do much.
…and here are more good examples.
—All right. I gave it a shot. No one can call me a coward. I used one of my favorite Harry Potter characters: Professor Snape.
I know what you’re thinking: This post is getting grimmer by the line.
Yeah, well, so does my poem; even with ongoing revisions I still can’t get the dactyls right.
But I am letting my double-trouble terri-dactyl fly (get it? get it?).
Stand back!—[stretching arms, cracking fingers]—
A Spell of Redemption
Grim-diddy-grim-grib-roo
Snape the Professor, there
Greasy hair, face a-glare,
Stares holes in you.
Adaptability?
Impossibility.
Snape can never forget
The love he knew.
‘Tis misfortune indeed
For you, The-Boy-Who-Lived,
Always reminding him,
Turning the screw.
Wizard-child, unwitting
He’ll give his life for you
All due to your mother…
Snape’s love, still true.
—welp. I tried to do it, and him, at least a little justice.
P.S. I know the double dactyl is supposed to be humorous…like I said, I was feeling grim.
“younger sev snape“. Snape’s True Love. CC BY 2.0.
*******
Composed for Day 20 of the Slice of Life Story Challenge with Two Writing Teachers
—and allow me to celebrate a milestone: This is my 1000th post on Lit Bits and Pieces.
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You did a wonderful job with the double dactyl! It’s so perfect! I think I will try one sometime when I’m not on vacation. Just reading the directions was getting me flustered. Truth be told I had a small crush on Snape/Alan Rickman. Alas, I hope he is resting in peace.
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It’s not a form I’ll try much (or maybe ever again) but at least there’s the benefit of productive struggle… As for Snape: He shattered my heart when I finally read the series in 2007. Quintessential antihero. I didn’t see the movies until the past couple of years; Rickman was phenomenal – that voice! I hear it even as I write this. We have a Harry Potter club at school and when the kids ask me which is my favorite character, and I say Professor Snape, they look at me differently, like, “You’re not who we thought you were. Mrs. Haley…”
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I love when kids give me that look! They know that I’m human not just the teacher!
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Wow! Happy 1000th! Woohoo! And that’s a LOT of technicality for a poem– I got a little lost in the rules, but appreciate the product! I also like the vision of stepping back and cracking your knuckles to get ready!
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Thank you for your words, Melanie! As for it being “a LOT of technicality for a poem”: When I first read the prompt I thought, Seriously??!! (Better yet, in keeping with Harry Potter: Siriusly??!!). The struggle was real but I figured…might as well have fun with it. Somehow!
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Congratulations, Fran, on your 1000 mark! I like that you bravely took the plunge with this double dactyll. I am not feeling so brave with this format. There are so many fabulous line sin your poem and I do think it is humorous-at least the first line is with its rhythmic opening.
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Thank you for your words, Carol – it is always a delight to “see” you! It doesn’t seem like I could have written 1000 posts – but it’s all been so rewarding.
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Wow, a 1000 posts, congratulations. Like others above, I am completely flummoxed by the rules and I have to confess I haven’t read Harry Potter either, so I have no idea who Professor Snape is, but I nevertheless, found the poem amazing and intricately woven and loved the humour in between!
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Oh dear, Celia, I have leaked a major plot spoiler, should you ever read the books. But thank you for your words in response to the poem!
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After reading through it a couple of times your opening line brought “Chim Chim Cher-ee” to mind. However, changing the tempo to a good bit slower & making it a tad more minor made it fit a little better.
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I actually thought of chim chim cheree when I found “grimgribber” in a list of nonsense words and altered it some for the poem…still not a fan of the form!
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Fran, first of all, congratulations on 1000 posts on Lit Bit and Pieces blog! I love that you stuck with this crazy form and created this beauty. I too have no idea if the stressed syllables are correct or not, but it is fun to read, tells a story in such a few words. Well done.
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Thank you for your gracious words, Denise! It does not seem I could have written 1000 posts, but I am happy that I’ve stuck with it.
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OK…so that lead up led me to believe I was going to read a crappy poem, but instead, I read a masterpiece! Why the heck do you sell yourself short like that?? You have a true gift of writing!
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Oh my – thank you Jennifer! I was a bit overwhelmed with the rules. I love writing poetry – not a fan of this form, though. It’s really supposed to be lighthearted but when I came across the word “grimgribber” as a word I could alter for the first line requirement…it somehow made me think of Snape and so that is what I went with. The poem doesn’t “beat” like it should but Iet go anyway. I will say I like the content, lol. I appreciate your uplifting words!
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