Cento:
Borrowed Lines
Cento: History
 From the Latin word for "patchwork," the cento (or collage
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poem) is a poetic form made up of lines from poems by other
poets.
Poets often borrow lines from other writers and mix them in
with their own, but a true cento is composed entirely of lines
from other sources.
Early examples can be found in the work of Homer and Virgil.
Modern centos are often witty, creating irony or humor from
the juxtaposition of images and ideas.
When working in this form it is perhaps worth remembering
T.S. Eliot’s famous statement about literary theft in this
context:
Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal; bad poets deface
what they take, and good poets make it into something better, or
at least something different.
Cento: Example
"In the Kingdom of the Past, the Brown-Eyed Man is King
Brute. Spy. I trusted you. Now you reel & brawl.
After great pain, a formal feeling comes—
A vulturous boredom pinned me in this tree
Day after day, I become of less use to myself,
The hours after you are gone are so leaden.“
 Sources:
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Charles Wright, Marie Ponsot, Emily
Dickinson, Sylvia Plath, and Samuel Beckett
Cento: Another Example
 Rhyming Cento
Round paradise is such a wall, (Monro)
And, hearing fairy voices call, (Webb)
And the streams run golden, (Lee)
Where there is no grass at all. (Stephens)
 Sources:
Harold Monro, “Real Property”
Mary Webb, “Green Rain”
Laurie Lee, “Day of These Days”
James Stephens, “White Fields”
Cento: Yet another Example
Down at the water’s edge, at the place,
I dream no more but stare at a hole.
I’ve spent the last days, furthermore,
surprised at the earth.
I am alive I guess.
 Sources:
Line 1- Elizabeth Bishop: At the Fishhouses
Line 2 - Jean Garrigue: Dialog
Line 3 - James Merrill: Lost in Translation
Line 4 - W.S. Merwin: For the Anniversary of My Death
Line 5- Emily Dickinson: I am alive I guess
Cento: Form
 The rules for writing a cento are simple. You can write a cento as
long or as short as you like. It may or may not rhyme. You may only
borrow one line from a poem, but you can repeat that same line
throughout your cento. The subject choice is yours to make, be it
serious or comedic.
 Get started. Find a line you especially like, and make that the first line
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of your patchwork poem. Write the poet’s last name in parentheses at
the end of the line.
Add more lines. Select lines 2, 3, and 4 in the same way. Choose
your lines carefully—your poem must make sense.
Make sure the beats sound right.
Tenses should agree.
Person should agree. In other words, pick lines that have all been
written in either first or third person.
Give credit. At the end, list each poet’s full name. Include the name of
the poem in quotes.