Chant Royal: Poetic Form
The chant royal is a 60 liner that uses rhymes and refrains. So yes, for those wondering, the chant royal is a French form that's been around at least since the 14th century.
Here are the guidelines:
Five 11-line stanzas followed by a five-line envoy
The 11-line stanzas have this rhyme scheme: ababccddedE
The envoy has this rhyme scheme: ddedE
The final line of every stanza is a refrain
Lines can be any consistent (for the poem) length, but it's most common if they're eight or 10 syllables
Since this form asks you to rotate the same five rhymes across 60 lines, pick rhymes you can maintain throughout. The "d" rhyme, in particular, is used 18 times in the poem!
Post a Chant Royal below!
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