Unlike theorems in geometry and proofs in algebra the forms of speech and literature are open to ad hoc change by their users. Therefore, ultimately, human communication depends on context and analogy which then allow misunderstanding unless you are "in" with the in-crowd. Thus, we have weak verbs and strong verbs, regular and irregular. In English grammar we learn “singular” and “plural” but our plural is only a dual: bird, birds; ox, oxen. English lost the true plural form (1-2-Many) though Russian and other Indo-European languages kept it. Over time some forms stabilize.
The sonnet can be 12 lines (Petrarchan) or 14 (Shakespearean). See the Poetry Foundation at https://www.poetryfoundation.org/learn/glossary-terms/shakespearean-sonnet .
In English, the limerick is a stable poetic form. “Typically, the first two lines rhyme with each other, the third and fourth rhyme together, and the fifth line either repeats the first line or rhymes with it.” -- Academy of American Poets here: https://poets.org/glossary/limerick
There once was a gal from Nantucket.
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| From the Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror. She has a website: http://www.dorothydstover.com |
Previously on Necessary Facts
Linguistics Debate: What Colors Are Your Rainbow?
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