Acrostic

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An acrostic (from the late Greek akróstichon, from ákros, "top", and stíchos, "verse") is a poem or other writing in an alphabetic script, in which the first letter, syllable or word of each line, paragraph or other recurring feature in the text spells out another message. A form of constrained writing, an acrostic can be used as a mnemonic device to aide memory retrieval.

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[edit] History

The word acrostic was first applied to the prophecies of the Erythraean Sibyl, which were written on leaves and arranged so that the initial letters of the leaves always formed a word.[citation needed] This technique was later used to ingenious effect by Vladimir Nabokov in his story The Vane Sisters.

[edit] Overview

Acrostics may simply spell out the letters of the alphabet in order; these acrostics occur in the Lamentations of Jeremiah, and in certain areas of the Psalms of the Hebrew Bible.[citation needed] Two notable acrostic Psalms are the long Psalm 119, which typically is printed in subsections named after the letters of the Hebrew alphabet, each of which is featured in that section; and Psalm 145 (commonly referred to as "Ashrei"), which is recited three times a day in the Jewish services.

The ease of detectability of an acrostic can depend on the intention of its creator. In some cases an author may desire an acrostic to have a better chance of being perceived by an observant reader, such as the acrostic contained in the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili (where the key capital letters are decorated with ornate embellishments), or as in the poem To Doctor Empiric (by Ben Jonson). Giving emphasis to, and capitalizing the key letters renders such acrostics relatively easier to discern.[citation needed] However, acrostics may also be used as a form of steganography, where the author seeks to conceal the message rather than proclaim it. This might be achieved by making the key letters uniform in appearance with the surrounding text, or by aligning the words in such a way that the relationship between the key letters is less obvious.[citation needed] Acrostic ciphers were popular during the Renaissance, and could employ various different methods of enciphering, such as selecting other letters than initials based on a repeating patten (equidistant letter sequences), or even concealing the message by starting at the end of the text and working backwards.[1]

[edit] Examples

The Dutch national anthem (The William) is an acrostic: the first letters of its fifteen stanzas spell WiLLEM VAN NASSOV. This was one of the hereditary titles of William of Orange (William the Silent), who introduces himself in the poem to the Dutch people.

Here is an example in English, an Edgar Allan Poe poem titled simply An Acrostic:

Elizabeth it is in vain you say
"Love not" — thou sayest it in so sweet a way:
In vain those words from thee or L.E.L.
Zantippe's talents had enforced so well:
Ah! if that language from thy heart arise,
Breath it less gently forth — and veil thine eyes.
Endymion, recollect, when Luna tried
To cure his love — was cured of all beside —
His follie — pride — and passion — for he died.

Another example is from Lewis Carrol's "Through the Looking-Glass". The final chapter "A Boat, Beneath A Sunny Sky" is an acrostic of the real Alice's name: Alice Pleasance Liddell.

A boat, beneath a sunny sky
Lingering onward dreamily
In an evening of July -


Children three that nestle near,
Eager eye and willing ear,
Pleased a simple tale to hear -


Long has paled that sunny sky:
Echoes fade and memories die:
Autumn frosts have slain July.


Still she haunts me, phantomwise,
Alice moving under skies
Never seen by waking eyes.


Children yet, the tale to hear,
Eager eye and willing ear,
Lovingly shall nestle near.


In a Wonderland they lie,
Dreaming as the days go by,
Dreaming as the summers die:


Ever drifting down the stream -
Lingering in the golden gleam -
Life, what is it but a dream?

Here is another example where the initial letters spell out the months of the year, entitled A Calendar Acrostic:

JANet was quite ill one day.
FEBrile trouble came her way.
MARtyr-like, she lay in bed;
APRoned nurses softly sped.
MAYbe, said the leech judicial
JUNket would be beneficial.
JULeps, too, though freely tried,
AUGust ill, for Janet died.
SEPulchre was sadly made.
OCTaves pealed and prayers were said.
NOVices with ma'y a tear
DECorated Janet's bier.


[edit] Disputed acrostics

A purported acrostic code found in the parallel ungodly line of Cain. It contains 8 names and reads, "I will choose a circumcised people for myself even (many) peoples for myself."[citation needed]

There are some acrostics whose authenticities are disputed. For instance, the first letter of each consecutive Hebrew name from Adam to the father of Abraham appears to form an acrostic that reads, "I will forgive my enemies, having compassion, forgiving those made from dust a second time." However, it is debatable whether this acrostic is the result of random chance or by design.

The acrostic appears to be highly structured. For example, the Hebrew word for forgiveness also means, "to lift up". Thus it may also read (and note the play on words), "I will lift up those who have risen up against me, having compassion, lifting up those (laid low in) the dust a second time."

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