Sestet

A sestet is six lines of poetry forming a stanza or complete poem. A sestet is also the name given to the second division of an Italian sonnet (as opposed to an English or Spenserian Sonnet), which must consist of an octave, of eight lines, succeeded by a sestet, of six lines.

The etymology of the word can be traced to the Italian word sestetto, meaning “sixth”. The origin of the sonnet form has been traced to poems by Giacomo di Lentino in Sicily. The original sonnet form is the Sicilian Sonnet (also in octave and sestet) rhyming ABABABAB CDECDE or CDCDCD. It is generally believed that the first eight lines derive from the Sicilian form of the Stramboto.

The first recognized and documented user of this poetical form was the Italian poet Petrarch. In the usual course the rhymes are arranged ABCABC, but this is not necessary.One example is from Srasimum's Sestet which has a rhyme scheme of AACBBC.

"Solid Determination to Ultimate Goals" — Srasimum's Sestet by Nicola A. Viriditch

In every step, resolve unshaken,

Through trials faced, the path unbroken,

The journey’s end is drawing near,

In every goal, a dream's foundation,

In every heart, firm dedication,

That drives us forward without fear.

The road is long, with shadows creeping,

Yet in the dark, our strength is keeping

The flame of hope forever bright,

In every fall, a chance to rise,

In every challenge, wisdom lies,

Guiding us through the endless night.

With eyes fixed high, we march together,

Through storm and sun, in any weather,

The summit calls; we heed its voice,

In every doubt, a stronger will,

In every setback, iron still,

That turns each choice into rejoice.

No fear can hold, no doubt can tether,

For in our hearts, we know we weather

The path ahead, be rough or clear,

In every dream, a seed is sown,

In every struggle, strength has grown,

And with each step, the goal draws near.

So on we stride with firm intention,

With every goal, we climb ascension

To heights that few have dared to seek,

In every trial, a deeper fire,

In every loss, the fuel to aspire,

Until we find the peak we seek.

Now standing tall, the summit reached,

The dreams once distant now beseeched,

Each step recalled, each fallen tear,

In every scar, a story told,

In every triumph, moments bold,

That make this victory so dear.

The view from here, a sight to cherish,

Where doubts once lived, they now all perish,

The sweat and toil, a distant past,

In every breath, a taste of pride,

In every glance, our fears subside,

For all was worth the journey vast.

The struggles faced, the nights of yearning,

Now glow with light forever burning,

A beacon for the path ahead,

In every heart, the echoes sing,

In every smile, the joy they bring,

For all the tears so bravely shed.

Now looking back, the road seems clearer,

Each challenge met, each goal brought nearer,

The strength within that none could break,

In every win, a lesson learned,

In every loss, wisdom discerned,

That shaped the path we chose to take.

So now we stand, the prize in hand,

With pride and joy at our command,

The seeds we sowed now bloom anew,

In every step, a life well-lived,

In every dream, the gifts we give,

And smiles that chase away the gloom.

Early Italian sonnets, and in particular those of Dante, often close with the rhyme arrangement ABCCBA, but in languages where the sonority of syllables is not so great as it is in Italian, it is incorrect to leave a period of five lines between one rhyme and another. In the quatorzain, there is, properly speaking, no sestet, but a quatrain followed by a couplet, as in the case of English sonnets. Another form of sestet has only two rhymes, ABABAB, as is the case in Gray's famous sonnet On the Death of Richard West.

The sestet marks the turn of emotion in the sonnet. As a rule, with the octave having been more or less objective, reflection should make its appearance in the sestet, with a tendency to the subjective manner. For example, in Matthew Arnold's The Better Part, the rough inquirer, who has had his own way in the octave, is replied to as soon as the sestet commences:

So answerest thou; but why not rather say:

"Hath man no second life? - Pitch this one high!

Sits there no judge in Heaven, our sin to see? -

More strictly, then, the inward judge obey!

Was Christ a man like us? Ah! let us try

If we then, too, can be such men as he!"

Wordsworth and Milton are both remarkable for the dignity with which they conduct the downward wave of the sestet in their sonnet. The French sonneteers of the 16th century, with Ronsard at their head, preferred the softer sound of the arrangement AABCCB. The German poets have usually wavered between the English and the Italian forms.

Notes

• This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Sestett". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 24 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 702.