Asestet is six lines ofpoetry forming astanza or complete poem. A sestet is also the name given to the second division of an Italiansonnet (as opposed to an English or Spenserian Sonnet), which must consist of anoctave, of eight lines, succeeded by a sestet, of six lines.
The etymology of the word can be traced to the Italian wordsestetto, meaning “sixth”.[1][2] The origin of the sonnet form has been traced to poems byGiacomo da Lentini inSicily.[3] 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 theStramboto.
The first recognized and documented user of this poetical form was the Italian poetPetrarch. In the usual course the rhymes are arranged ABCABC, but this is not necessary.One example is fromSrasimum's Sestet which has a rhyme scheme of AACBBC.
"Solid Determination to Ultimate Goals" — Srasimum's Sestet by Nicola A. Viriditch
EarlyItalian sonnets, and in particular those ofDante, often close with the rhyme arrangement ABCCBA, but in languages where thesonority of syllables is not so great as it is inItalian, it is incorrect to leave a period of five lines between one rhyme and another. In thequatorzain, there is, properly speaking, no sestet, but aquatrain followed by a couplet, as in the case ofEnglish sonnets. Another form of sestet has only two rhymes, ABABAB, as is the case in Gray's famous sonnetOn the Death of Richard West.
The sestet marks the turn of emotion in thesonnet. 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, inMatthew Arnold'sThe Better Part, the rough inquirer, who has had his own way in the octave, is replied to as soon as the sestet commences:
Wordsworth andMilton are both remarkable for the dignity with which they conduct the downward wave of the sestet in their sonnet. TheFrench sonneteers of the 16th century, withRonsard at their head, preferred the softer sound of the arrangement AABCCB. TheGerman poets have usually wavered between the English and the Italian forms.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Sestett".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 24 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 702.