Quaternion (poetry)

Quaternion is a poetry style in which the theme is divided into four parts.

Characteristics Each part of a quaternion explores the complementary natures of the theme or subject. The word quaternion is derived from the Latin word quaterni, meaning "four by four".The Chambers Dictionary, Chambers Harrap Publishers, Edinburgh, 2006 The poem may be in any poetic form and 'offers poets the chance to experiment with varied rhetorical structures'.Eberwein, Jane Donahue, ' Early American Literature' vol 9 no 1 University of North Carolina Press Spring 1974

Examples Anne Bradstreet, America's first significant poet, wrote four quaternions: "Four Seasons" "Four Elements" (Fire, Earth, Water and Air) "Of the Four Humours of Man's Constitution" (sanguine, pragmatic, choleric and melancholic) "Of the Four Ages of Man" (Childhood, Youth, Manhood and Old Age) "The Four Monarchies" (Assyrian, Persian, Grecian, and Roman)

Elizabeth Daryush, known for her syllabic verse, used the quaternion form in her poem "Accentedal".'Biography of Elizabeth Daryush' MyPoeticSide.com

References

External links Quaternion examples