Hi toads and pond visitors ! I am excited to share another weekend challenge - palindromes. This is also known as mirrored poetry.
Picture by Grace
Sotades invented palindromes in Greek-ruled Egypt, back in the 3rd century BC. In fact, palindromes were once known as "Sotadic verses." Palindrome comes from the Greek words "palin" (again or back) and "dramein" (to run). So if you read that backwards, it translates loosely into "to run back."
The palindrome simply reads the same forwards and backwards, usually with a central focal point from where it begins to read backwards. There are several ways to write palindrome poems, three are presented here, along with examples.
1. It can be read backwards, with the same words. Here's how to do this: Use the same words in the first half of the poem as the second half, but reverse the order for the second half, and use a word in the middle as a bridge from the first half to the second half of the poem.
Example: Love/Hate Relationship
by Paula Brown
Love
Mimics hate:
Passionate always, forging forward.
Unquiet rage screams
Poetry.
Tangled mercilessly;
Emotion
—mirrors—
Emotion,
Mercilessly tangled.
Poetry
Screams rage, unquiet.
Forward forging, always passionate:
Hate mimics
Love.
2. Here is another way of writing a palindrome poem, more difficult-- it reads the same forwards and backwards by letter.
Mood's mode!
Pallas, I won!
(Diaper pane, sold entire.)
Melt till ever sere, hide it.
Drown a more vile note;
(Tar of rennet.)
Ah, trowel, baton, eras ago.
The reward? A "nisi." Two nag.
Otary tastes putrid, yam was green.
Odes up and on; stare we.
Rats nod. Nap used one-erg saw.
(May dirt upset satyr?)
A toga now; 'tis in a drawer, eh?
Togas are notable.
(Worth a tenner for Ate`.)
Tone liver. O Man, word-tied I.
Here's revel!
Little merit, Ned? Lose, Nap?
Repaid now is all apedom's doom.
--by Hubert Phillips:
3. Another version of a palindrome poem is the line palindrome, which reads forwards and backwards, by lines.
As I was passing near the jail
I met a man, but hurried by.
His face was ghastly, grimly pale.
He had a gun. I wondered why
He had. A gun? I wondered... why,
His face was *ghastly*! Grimly pale,
I met a man, but hurried by,
As I was passing near the jail.
-- Author Unknown
The challenge: to write a new palindrome poem. Please note that only poems written for this challenge may be added to the Mr Linky. Management reserves the right to remove unrelated links, but invites you to share a poem of your choice on Open Link Monday.