Look, a test! It's FOUR OR LESS!

[featherynscale]

Here's a challenge to sharpen your brain on dull, grey Friday: Take a piece of literature, poetry, play, or other type, your choice, and re-write it (or a chunk of it), using only words of four letters or less.

This is not as easy as it sounds. If you are re-writing poetry, can you keep the sense of the thing and still keep the rhyme scheme and scansion (if any)? (Bonus game: once these get posted, can you tell what they are? Mine's pretty easy.)


Big cat, big cat, who is on fire
In the wood in dark, so dire
What hand or eye that will not die
Did make the form we fear to spy?

In what far off sea or sky
Did burn the fire of your eye?
What wing bore him up to sol?
With what hand dare he take the coal?

And what wide back, what art, what goal?
Did form the thew that held your soul?
And when thy soul did move in thee
What hand or foot made this to be?

What did beat, and what did bind?
In what oven was thy mind?
What held thy form, and what dire hold
Did grip that fear and make so bold?

And when each star did toss his dart
And wept as if the sky did part
Did he grin, his work to see?
Did he who made the lamb make thee?

Big cat, big cat, who is on fire
In the wood in dark so dire
What hand or eye that will not die
Did make the form we fear to spy?

(I wrote this for a similar challenge a few years ago, and then lost it, but today I discovered it and wanted to pass the fun along.)

Comments

Tygre, Tygre, burning bright

[crookedface.livejournal.com]

Ya know, this looks too painful for those of us terminally long-winded and long-worded....

Re: Tygre, Tygre, burning bright

[featherynscale.livejournal.com]

That would be why it's good practice, I think. I'll try to work up something else clever for it this afternoon. Gods know I've gotten far too verbose.

Wow.

[niveus-tigris.livejournal.com]

I actually dig the four letter version.

Good work!

[project-becky.livejournal.com]

Long ago, in a land far away, was born a girl of the king. A fete was held for her. Many came, evil Lady felt a snit and thus cast a wish for a bad poke.

All that was keen was kept away. One day the girl came upon an old lady. The lady did sew, and the girl did try to sew, and the keen edge did poke her nail.

Rest, fair girl! Many a year did pass. Many a boy of the Loin of the king did try to save her, die boys die.

One boy had a gift. He did work his way, with time, to the girl. Kiss!

No more rest for the girl.

End

[lexpendragon.livejournal.com]

There Once was a man from the east by the sea....


Na, wouldn't work so well.

[featherynscale.livejournal.com]

Naw, you gotta have Nantucket in that one, or it just doesn't work.

[featherynscale.livejournal.com]

Very nice. I will admit, though, that the "die, boys, die" part is my favorite.

Re: Wow.

[featherynscale.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Some of it doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but I think I got the sound right. I'm pretty proud of it.

[project-becky.livejournal.com]

Thank you:)

Re: Tygre, Tygre, burning bright

[crookedface.livejournal.com]

That sounds suspiciously like a character-building exercise of some sort....

Re: Tygre, Tygre, burning bright

[featherynscale.livejournal.com]

Because I would never do anything like that....