the Poetria nova - Invention of subject matter and disposition or organization of the work - belong to the domain of rhetoric. Likewise, memory and delivery are traditionally affiliated with rhetoric. The Poetria nova thus constitutes an intersection of grammar and rhetoric in the medieval curriculum. The Poetria nova opens with a famous passage about planning a poem and defining the limits of its subject matter. Geoffrey of Vinsauf distinguishes between the natural order and the artificial or artistic order in which the author can narrate the events.Geoffrey of Vinsauf prefers the artificial order and recommends a proverbial opening. The subject matter can be presented either through a lengthy treatment or a brief recapitulation of the story. Among the methods of amplification are refining or dwelling on a point; periphrasis; comparison; apostrophe; prosopopeia; digression; description; and opposition. Brevity of the narration can be achieved by the following devices: emphasis, articulus, absolute ablative "without a rower" [i.e. a preposition], skillful indication of one thing among the rest, "chains removed from between clauses" [i.e. omitting conjunctions], the sense of many clauses in one, and omitting repetition of the same word. Geoffrey of Vinsauf distinguishes between ornatus gravis ['difficult/serious/dignified ornament'] and ornatus levis ['easy/pleasant/light ornament']. Gravitas can be achieved by using the ten tropes listed in the pseudo-Ciceronian Rhetorica ad Herennium.The chief trope is metaphor. The ornatus levis includes the figures of diction and of thought given in the Rhetorica ad Herennium.These figures are for the most part non-metaphorical. The doctrine of conversion is a systematic method of varying a given sentence while preserving its meaning to make the sequence of words pleasant. The doctrine of determination consists primarily of creating a long sequence of brief phrases. This is the method and the manner of Sidonius. The contrary practice is that of Seneca: to round off the verses with a quick conclusion. Geoffrey of Vinsauf, however, prefers to be "neither as long, nor as short, rather both long and short, being made both out of neither". The remaining doctrines are treated very briefly. Words should be carefully chosen to keep the balance of meaning and form. The characters' actions and their speeches should be appropriate for their age, and the overall color should be in harmony with the subject. Excessive alliteration, awkward violation of word order, and overly long periods are stylistic faults to be avoided. To polish his work an author has