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Poetic form

What is a Sestina?

Definition

A sestina is a 39-line form in which the same six end-words rotate through six stanzas and a closing envoi in a fixed spiral pattern.

The sestina is poetry's obsession machine. Invented by the 12th-century troubadour Arnaut Daniel, it runs six six-line stanzas plus a three-line envoi — 39 lines in which the same six end-words keep returning, reshuffled each stanza by a fixed spiral (each new stanza takes the previous one's end-words in the order 6-1-5-2-4-3). No rhyme, no required meter: the repetition is the music.

By the fourth stanza, those six words come back like thoughts you can't stop thinking — which is exactly the form's subject matter. Elizabeth Bishop's 'Sestina,' circling grandmother, child, house, and tears, shows how the machinery can disappear into grief. The craft secret is choosing end-words that bend: 'back,' 'still,' and 'light' will serve you in six different ways; 'photosynthesis' will not.

Structure of a sestina

  • 39 lines: six 6-line stanzas plus a 3-line envoi
  • Six end-words repeat in a fixed rotation: each stanza reorders the previous one's as 6-1-5-2-4-3
  • The envoi uses all six words, two per line
  • No rhyme or meter required — the repeating words are the music

How to write a sestina

  1. Choose six end-words that bend: multiple meanings, multiple parts of speech ('back,' 'light,' 'still').
  2. Chart the rotation before you draft; getting lost mid-sestina is traditional but avoidable.
  3. Enjamb sentences across lines so the end-words arrive naturally and the machinery hides.
  4. Pick a subject that won't leave you alone — the form is built for obsession.

Common questions

What is a sestina?

A 39-line poem in which six end-words rotate through six stanzas in a fixed spiral, then all appear in a final three-line envoi.

How does the sestina pattern work?

Each new stanza reorders the previous stanza's end-words as 6-1-5-2-4-3. After six stanzas, every word has occupied every position; the envoi then gathers all six.

Do sestinas rhyme?

No. The six repeating end-words replace rhyme entirely — the returning words are the form's music.