The quenine of p

By Jacques Roubaud
Translated by Claire Nashar.

A poetic form: the quenine of p

The quenine of p (where p is a rational number) is a generalisation of the quenine, a form invented by Raymond Queneau, who generalised the sestina of troubadour Arnaut Daniel.

In the following example p=3+1/2

*

When, fallen from the sky, night

Catches itself, the sun’s

Trace eludes itself

            On the ground

Later when the sun

Breaks up the night

The angle of sea eludes itself

            In the salt

Undefines itself, eludes itself

Ripped from the sun

Which catches the night

            In water, naked

Click here to listen to Jacques Roubaud reading the poem in French on Lyrikline.org.