sherlock60 | Mrs. Hudson's Poetry Page: The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax

Welcome once again to my poetry page!

I hope each week you will read Dr. Watson’s delightful narrative and then be inspired to write a poem related to it in some way. All forms of poetry are permitted, and further down the page there is a selection you might like to consider using over the coming weeks.

This week my featured form is the mat̲h̲nawī.

Wikipedia, gives this definition:

Masnavi, or mat̲h̲nawī, is the name of a poem written in rhyming couplets, or more specifically, "a poem based on independent, internally rhyming lines". Most mat̲h̲nawī follow a meter of eleven, or occasionally ten, syllables, but have no limit in their length. The mat̲h̲nawī consists of an indefinite number of couplets, with the rhyme scheme aa/bb/cc.

Turkish mat̲h̲nawī

Turkish mat̲h̲nawī are strongly driven by their plot, and are usually categorized into three genres—mutaḳārib (heroic), ramal (religio/didactic), and hazadj (romantic). Some mat̲h̲nawī were written with an understanding that the audience would appreciate the importance of the subject of the poem, but some were also written purely for entertainment purposes.

Here is my example poem (which admittedly does not have much plot to it):

They drive me insane but I can always expect
Mr. Holmes and the Doctor to give me respect.

At first an employer and a wage earner.
Now we’re best chums: Mesdames Hudson and Turner.

What need have I of power, palaces and riches,
Laughing with the Knitting Circle over dropped stitches?

Parents die, siblings die, a happy marriage ends.
But a woman ought never to be without friends.

As always, this is simply something to consider for the future. Any form of poetry is welcome this week—and every week! Here are a few suggestions for you:

221B verselet, abecedarian poetry, acrostic poetry, alexandrine, beeswing, blackout poetry, blues stanza, bref double, call and response, chastushka, cinquain, circular poetry, clerihew, colour poems, concrete poetry, Cornish verse, curtal sonnet, diamante, doggerel, double dactyl, ekphrasis, elegiac couplet, englyn, epigram, epulaeryu, Etheree, fable, found poetry, ghazal, haiku, Italian sonnet, kennings poem, lanturne, limerick, lyric poetry, mat̲h̲nawī, palindrome poetry, pantoum, poem cycle, quintilla, renga, riddle, rime couée, Schüttelreim, sedoka, septet, sestina, sonnet, tanka, tercet, terza rima, tongue twister poetry, triolet, tyburn, villanelle

Please leave all your poems inspired by The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax in the comments on this post. I look forward to seeing them!

Warm regards,

Mrs. Hudson