I really find it hard to believe that the cinquain is defined solely by its syllable count any more than the haiku or tanka are.
If Ms. Crapsey were attempting to transpose those forms into English, then presumably the additional requirements of those forms would transpose as well, would they not?
It seems more similar to the tanka than the haiku. Somebody doublecheck me on this, but as I recall, the tanka is meant to be a five line poem with a sort of hinge in the middle, so that lines 1/2/3 convey one image, lines 3/4/5 a different image, and the skill is in crafting line 3 and the two images so that the whole works together as a pleasing and thought-provoking juxtaposition. Sort of a compressed sonnet, with a turn at line 3.
Looking at the cinquain, I'd incline towards transposing this requirement into a turn/hinge on line 4.
Rather than bash the form for trivial gimmickry and prove it by writing a bad poem in 3 minutes, why not see what it can offer by writing the best cinquain you can, finding a way to use the form to contribute to the poem?
A cinquain challenge, perhaps? Post not only the best cinquain you can write, but post along with it an explication of what the form offers and how you used that to strengthen the poem?
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