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Envoi hexastich

Form
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A six-line envoy concluding a longer poem, often summarizing or dedicating the work

Detailed Definition
Envoi hexastich is a six-line concluding stanza in a poetic form like the ballade or sestina, often addressing a patron or summarizing the poem’s theme; its compact structure provides closure while maintaining the work’s metrical and rhyme integrity.
Example
Example in poetry:
Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s “The House of Life” uses envoi hexastichs to summarize sonnet sequences; Algernon Charles Swinburne’s “A Century of Roundels” ends with envoi hexastichs addressing the muse; Marilyn Hacker’s “Cancer Winter” closes a crown of sonnets with an envoi hexastich; Terrance Hayes’s “American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin” occasionally uses hexastich envois for reflection; A.E. Stallings’s “Sestina: Like” concludes with a witty envoi hexastich; Molly Peacock’s “The Shimmering Verge” employs envoi hexastichs to pivot between personal and mythic.
Additional Notes
Six-line envoi closing a longer poem. Rare form—most envois are quatrains or tercets. Compare lengths to understand structural choice. Often summarizes or dedicates preceding work.
Also Known As
six-line envoy concluding hexastich
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