A SUMMER OTTAVA RIMA
The crash of waves is always in the air,
And caravans adorn the crowded shore.
People roast on towels without a care,
Or find new rocky outcrops to explore.
Crunchy crystal sand grows too hot to bear,
Yet we stay: it’s what all Aussies yearn for!
In summertime, this is our golden place;
Then winter comes and banishes all trace.
James Aitchison
TEACHERS’ NOTES:
The ottava rima is a very rhythmic form of Italian poetry, first written in the fourteenth century.
Lord Byron and William Butler Yeats also used the form.
The rules:
- Each stanza has 8 lines
- You can create one stanza as a stand alone 8-line poem, or write multiple stanzas
- The first six lines have an a-b-a-b-a-b rhyme scheme, capped with a c-c couplet
- Mostly an ottava rima is written in iambic pentameter or 10-syllable lines.
Have fun!