RENAISSANCE POETRYSonnet Types

SONNET TYPES

Italian/Petrarchan English/Shakespearean

Spenserian

ITALIAN/PETRARCHAN SONNET

This sonnet type is named after the Italian poet, Francesco Petrarch.

Many of his sonnets are about unrequited love, a common topic for sonnets that follow this form.

ITALIAN/PETRARCHAN SONNET

14 lines Iambic pentameter Organized into two parts:

octave (8) and sestet (6) Rhyme scheme is abba abba cde cde Octave: presents a problem or situation Sestet: problem is resolved or intensified Turn (volta) is usually at line 9

A volta is a shift in focus or thought (the switch from problem to resolution)

ENGLISH/SHAKESPEAREAN SONNET

Shakespeare was the master of this sonnet form.

The English form allows for a more detailed development of the question or problem with a quick summary and solution attached to the end.

ENGLISH/SHAKESPEAREAN SONNET

14 lines Iambic pentameter Organized into three quatrains (4 lines)

and a couplet (2 lines) Rhyme scheme is abab cdcd efef gg Volta (turn) is usually at line 9 or 13

SPENSERIAN SONNET

Created by Edmund Spenser Similar to Shakespeare’s version Interlocking rhyme scheme is the only

difference Final couplet is used to make a key

point or comment

SPENSERIAN SONNET

14 lines Iambic pentameter Organized into three quatrains (4 lines)

and a couplet (2 lines) Rhyme scheme is abab bcbc cdcd ee

**Notice how the rhyme is interlocking**