Sonnets - David-Glen Smith• The Sonnets are attributed to William Shakespeare, although lately • The first 17 sonnets are written to a young man, urging him to marry • All of

1revised 12.27.12 || English 1302: Composition II || D. Glen Smith, instructor

Sonnets

2

Sonnet Form

revised 12.27.12 || English 1302: Composition II || D. Glen Smith, instructor

Historical Overview

• evolvedovercenturies;enduredforover700years

• originallydevisedasalyric,developedinsouthernFrance,northernItaly

• creationandtraditionallyattributedtoFrancescoPetrarch,

(July20,1304–July19,1374)theFatherofHumanism—

howeveritisclearhepopularizedtheformduringhislifetime

Defined

•Thesonnetisapoemcomposedwitharecognizedformula

andisconcernedwithasinglethoughtortheme,andmayhavea

secondarytheme.

•ThetermmeanslittlesonginItalian

3

Sonnet Form


Types of Sonnets

Becauseofitspopularity,thepoemhastransformedovertime,retaining

importantcategorizingelements,yetmetamorphosingsomecomponents.

Common forms:

•Italiansonnet >orPetrarchansonnet

•Englishsonnet >orShakesperiansonnet

•Spenseriansonnet

•Blanksonnet

4

Sonnet Form


Basic Characteristics of Traditional Sonnet

•fourteenlines

•chosenrhymeschemeandstrategicmeter

•aturnorshiftintheme(referredtoasthevolta)

Important Terms

•octave eightlines ||Forsonnetsthefirsteightlinescarryatheme.

•sestet sixlines ||Theremainingsixlinescantwistthetheme.

•tercet threelines

•quatrain fourlines

•couplet twolines

5

Sonnet Form


Charles Simic || History

Onagrayevening

Ofagraycentury,

Iateanapple

Whilenoonewaslooking.

Asmall,sourapple

Thecolorofwoodfire,

WhichIfirstwiped

Onmysleeve. 8

ThenIstretchedmylegs

Asfarasthey’dgo,

Saidtomyself

Whynotclosemyeyesnow

BeforetheLate

WorldNewsandWeather. 14

}

}

octave: in this case composed of two quatrains

sestet:in this case composed of a quatrain and a couplet

Simic,Charles.“History.”The Making of a Sonnet: A Norton Anthology. EdwardHirschandEavanBoland,eds.NewYork:W.W.Norton.2008.Print.

6

Sonnet Form


•Boththeoctaveandthesestetcontainparallelthemes,

ortwostorieswhicharerelatedtooneanother.

• Typicallytheoctavepresentsasituation,event,image,orgeneralization

andthesestetpresentsareflectionormeditationontheprevioussection,

areaction,oraresult.

Francesco Petrarch (July20,1304–July19,1374)

•notallowedtomarryduetoclericaldutieswiththeRomanCatholicChurch

• itisbelievedhefatheredtwochildrennonetheless

• wasaEuropeancelebrityfromhisearlywritingsinLatin

• diedofthePlagueinhislatesixties

• heestablishedcommonthemesinthesonnetformwhichbecometraditional

elementsforhundredsofyears

7

Sonnet Form


The Italian Sonnet

• sonnetsmustbewrittenaboutaBeloved

• thePoetwritermustbeobsessedwiththeBeloved

• theBelovedcannotbenamedinthework;theyaregivenasecretname

tohidetheirtrueidentity;thePoetwillmakepunsoutoftheBeloved’sname

• theBelovedisunattainableeitherbecausetheyarealreadybetrothed

ortheyarenotinterestedinthePoetatall;thePoetisbeneaththeirclass

• insomecasestheBelovedraisesthelowlystatusofthePoettohigherstatus

• —orcondemnshimtodamnation

• theBelovedisanintensebeauty,anIdealexample

• traditionallytheBelovedisblonde,blue-eyed

• theBelovedislovedevenbyHeaven

• thePoet’sloveissogreatheeventuallybecomessickwithwant

• itisacknowledgedthatloveisatrial;afrustrationforthePoet

• thePoetfallsinloveatfirstsightoftheBeloved

8

Sonnet Form


• insomecases,(aswithPetrarch)theBelovedisfatedtodieanearlydeath.

• thesonnetswillimmortalizetheBelovedonearth

• loveisshownalmostinamannerofstalking

• idolatryandinsomecasesintensesensualityanderoticallusions

• loveisequaltofeudalservicebetweenthePoetandtheBeloved

• thePoetwouldkillfortheBeloved

• thePoetwouldkillhimselfifasked

• Venus(Aphrodite)playsimportantrolehereattimes

• Cupid(Eros)isoftenshownaswell

To simplify, these poems can appear, when poorly written, over-dramatic,

pathos driven, scenes filled with heaving bosoms, and self-centered whining.

When well-crafted, the poems share a common story of lost love with the reader.

9

Sonnet Form


The Form’s Popularity

• considertheseaspop-songsoftheirday

• thepoemswerecomposedinthevernacularItalian,nottheacademicLatin

• thisallowshisworktobeaccessibletotheaverageperson

• likewise,Petrarch’smainthemedealswiththepsychologyofaspurnedlover,

aconceptanyonecanrelateto,nomatterwhatsocialclassoroccupation

10

Sonnet Form


The Sonnet Sequence

• ThroughPetrarch’sfullcollectionofpoemstheconceptofasonnetsequence

wascreated.

• Apopularformofwritingevenin16thCenturyEngland,200yearslater.

• Itiscrucialtofocuswasontheunityoftheworkasawhole.

• Thesequenceisapublicdeclarationofanartist’sdevotiontoaBeloved.

• Theoriginalintentionwasnottojustreadoneofthesepoemsrandomlyout

ofsequence,butrathertoreadtheentirecollectionfrombeginningtoend

toseethetransformationofthecharactersandtoseeastoryunfold.

• HismanuscriptistiltedRime Sparse, orinEnglish:Scattered Rhymes.

• Alsocalled:Canzoniere

• Thepoemsarearrangedasifcomposedinchronologicalorder,butrecent

studieshaveshownthathewrotethemoutofpropersequence.

11

Sonnet Form


The Story within Rime Sparse

• inPetrarch’spoems,thebelovedisnamedLaura

• hewroteover366poemstoher,317aresonnets

• thefullmanuscriptisdedicatedtoher

• thecollectionevolvestoincludethemesofbereavementoverheruntimely

death,andthelostpossibilitiestobewithher,andmemoriesofherbeauty

• ablurringoffictionandrealityoccurhereaswell:

>heclaimsshewasarealpersonhesawatachurchonApril6,1327

>fellinloveinstantly

>shediedonEasterSunday,April6,1348bythereckoningatthattime.

• hisloveforherwasunreciprocated;sheneverrespondsinkind

• LaurawasalreadymarriedandturneddownallofPetrarch’sadvances

• itisunknownifthetwoeveractuallyspoke(ifshereallyexisted)

12

Sonnet Form


Sonnet One from Rime Sparse

• themainthemeofcollectionexpressed:

>unrequitedlove

>remorse

>despair

• establishesintroductiontostoryofafailedloveaffair,twentyyearsprior

• poemactsasthethesisofthesequence

• Poetislove-lornandfoolish

• thereaderiswise

• Poetisridiculedbysociety

• theworldistemporal

13

Sonnet Form


The Italian Rhyme Scheme

A A

B B

B A

A B

A A

B B

B A

A B

C C

D D

E C

C C

D D

E C

}

}

octave: in this case composed of two quatrains

sestet:in this case composed of two tercets

14

Sonnet Form


English or Shakespearean Sonnet

TheEarlofSurrey,HenryHoward,inventedwhatisnowknownas

theEnglishorShakespeareanSonnet.

• followsoctave+sestetformulaslightly

• allowsforthreesetsofquatrainswithindividualrhymes

• anindependentcouplet,whichservesasaneffective“moral”tothepoem

• traditionallyfollowsiambicpentameter

15

Sonnet Form


Henry Howard(1517–19January1547)

Complaint of the Lover Disdained

InCyprussprings,whereasDameVenusdwelt, A 5

Awellsohot,thatwhosotastesthesame, B 5

Wereheofstone,asthawediceshouldmelt, A 4.5

Andkindledfindhisbreastwithfixedflame; B 4.5

Whosemoistpoisondissolvedhathmyhate. C 4.5

Thiscreepingfiremycoldlimbssoopprest, D 5

Thatintheheartthatharbour’dfreedom,late: C 5

Endlessdespairlongthraldomhathimprest. D 5

Anothersocoldinfrozeniceisfound, E 5.5

Whosechillingvenomofrepugnantkind, F 5

TheferventheatdothquenchofCupid’swound, E 5

Andwiththespotofchangeinfectsthemind; F 5

Whereofmydearhathtastedtomypain: G 5

Myservicethusisgrownintodisdain. G 5

}

}

octave

sestet

Surrey,HenryHoward,Earlof.The Poetical Works of Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey. Boston:Little,BrownandCompany,1854.Print.

16

Sonnet Form


Spenserian Sonnet

ThisformwascreatedbyEdmundSpenser(1552—1599).

• ItcombinestheItalianformwiththeEnglish,followingthethreequatrains

andcoupletconceptfromtheEnglish.

• HisrhymeschemefollowsamodificationofItalianversion:

italian : ABAB/ABAB/CDC/CDC

spencerian: ABAB/BCBC/CDCD/EE

• Likewisehedividesthepoemintothreesections:

>statementoftheproblem,asathesis;theopeningquatrainisusually

onesentence

>explorationoftheproblemintheresultingoctave

>solutionappearsintheendingcouplet

17

Sonnet Form


Emund Spenser(1552—1599)

fromAmoretti || IX

LongwhileIsoughttowhatImightcompare

Thosepowerfuleyes,whichlightenmydarksight,

YetfindInoughtonearthtowhichIdare

Resembleth’imageoftheirgoodlylight.

Nottothesun,fortheydoshinebynight;

Nortothemoon,fortheyarechangednever;

Nortothestars,fortheyhavepurersight;

Nortothefire,fortheyconsumenotever;

(octave ends/sestet begins; Spenser blurs the two together)

Nortothelightning,fortheystillpersever;

Nortothediamond,fortheyaremoretender;

Noruntocrystal,farnoughtmaythemsever;

Noruntoglass,suchbasenessmightoffendher;

ThentotheMakerselftheylikestbe,

Whoselightdothlightenallthatherewesee.

thesis: problem

established

problem discussed

in following octave.

problem resolved

in couplet

A

B

A

B

B

C

B

C

C

D

C

D

E

E

5

5.5

5

5

5

5

5

5.5 /(6?)

5.5

5.5

5.5

5.5

5

5

English Sixteenth-Century Verse: An Anthology.RichardS.Sylvester,ed.W.W.Norton&Co., NewYork,©1974.Print.

Rhyme scheme || Meter

18

Sonnet Form


Noticetheemphasisinline4ontheword“sight.”Withitfallingastheextrahalf

foot,itissubconsciouslystressedinthereader’smind.Thecorrelateswiththe

themeofwantingtodescribehisBeloved’seyes,whichblindhimwithlove.

Withhisnewformula,inthisparticularcasetheoctaveestablishesahierarchy

oficons,beginningwithmajorelementsfirst,thecelestialobjects,thenworksits

waydowntoearthlyelements,indescendingorder:

sun

moon

stars

fire

lightning

diamond

crystal

glass

19

Sonnet Form


•Helikewisetwistsallthenegativesintopositives,

allthewhilecomplimentinghisBeloved’seyes.

•Toforcethisidea,heutilizesatechniquecalled caesura,whichisapause

innaturalspeaking—whichdoesnotinterferewithmeter.

Here,thecaesura’srepresentanintakeofbreath.

• InSpenser’scase,heemployedthistrickinthestructureofthelistitself,

breakingbetweentheinferiormodelandtheperfectionoftheeyes.

• Theresolutioncouplettransformswhatappearstobeobviousfailure

toassertionofpositive:onlyGodcouldbeequaltohereyes.

ThePoetreachessalvationthroughhisBeloved.

20

Sonnet Form


The Sonnets of William Shakespeare || English Sonnet

•ThesefollowtherhymeschemeABAB,CDCD,EFEF,GG

•Thisisanotherexampleofwhyitisimportanttoreadtheentiresequenceas

awhole,notliftoneortwopoemsoutoftheseries.Thereisastoryunfolding

betweenall154ofthepoemsinthiscollection.

• The SonnetsareattributedtoWilliamShakespeare,althoughlately

ithasbeensuggestedotherauthorsmayhavewrittenthese.

• ThethemesarecloselylinkedtothePetrarchanconceptintroducedearlier

inthecourse.However,oftentimesthethemesaretwisted.

21

Sonnet Form


Themes include:

• love

• sex

• beauty

• politics

• (im)mortality

Four characters appear within the poems’ plot-structure:

1.ThePoet-Speaker

2.TheYoungMan

3.TheDarkLady

4.RivalPoet

22

Sonnet Form


Looking at the entire sequence of 154 poems:

•Thefirst17sonnetsarewrittentoayoungman,urginghimtomarry

andhavechildren,therebypassingdownhisbeautytothenextgeneration.

Thesearecalledtheprocreation sonnets.Theearliestpoemsinthe

collectiondonotimplyaclosepersonalrelationship;instead,they

recommendthebenefitsofmarriageandchildren.Thiswasacommon

themeatthetime.

•Thefollowingsonnets,18-126,areaddressedtoayoungmanexpressing

thepoet’sloveforhim—criticsarguewhetherthisisaspirituallove,a

brotherlyaffection,oragayrelationship—eitherwaytheyareread,

thesepoemsdefinitelyreshapethePetrarchanmodelofaBeloved.

23

Sonnet Form


•Finally,sonnets127-152arewrittentoafemalefigure,theDarkLady;

thesepoemsexpressastrong,earthylove—thesealsobreakthePetrarchan

modelofanIdealBeauty.

• TheDarkLadyisnotblonde,norblueeyed,butinsteadisadarkhaired,

oliveskinnedwomanofmiddleclass.

• Allofthesonnetsfollowaformatofthreequatrains(4lines)

andafinalcouplet.

• Theyaremostlycomposediniambicpentameter.

24

Sonnet Form


William Shakespeare(1564—1616)

18

ShallI/compare/theeto/asum/mer’sday?

Thouart/morelove/lyand/moretemp/erate;

Roughwinds/doshake/thedar/lingbuds/ofMay,

Andsum/mer’slease/hathall/tooshort/adate;

Sometimetoohottheeyeofheavenshines,

Andoftenishisgoldcomplexiondimm’d;

Andeveryfairfromfairsometimedeclines,

Bychanceornature’schangingcourseuntrimm’d;

Butthyeternalsummershallnotfade,

Norlosepossessionofthatfairthouow’st;

NorshallDeathbragthouwander’stinhisshade,

Whenineternallinestotimethougrow’st:

Solongasmencanbreatheoreyescansee,

Solonglivesthis,andthisgiveslifetothee.

The Sonnets and Narrative Poems: The Complete Non-Dramatic Poetry.SylvanBarnet,ed. SignetClassic,PenquinBooks,NewYork,1989.Print.

thesis: problem

establishedand

discussed in octave

sestetshifts

in tone

A

B

A

B

C

D

C

D

E

F

E

F

G

G

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5


25

Sonnet Form


Sonnet 18: “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?” • oneoftheYoungManpoems;afrequentlyquotedpiece • rhymeschemeisanexampleoftypicalEnglishsonnet: ABAB/CDCD/EFEF/GG • themeterisaperfectiambicpentameter

• ll1-4:thePoetopenswithaquestioningofhiscreativepowers,seeking anappropriatemetaphorfortheBeloved;throughthecontextofthepoem hediscoverstheYoungManisamorepositiveimagethantheseasonitself • ll5-8:thePoetbringsuptheconceptofApollo,theyoungGreekgodof thesun,music,andpoetry;heisalsoseenasaleaderoftheartisticMuses. ThePoetalsoresolvesthatallbeautyfadesovertime,eitherbycasual circumstancesorbyseasonalchangesintheyear. • ll9:establishesthetraditionalvolta,“Butthyeternalsummershallnot fade”—duetothepoemitselfpreservingasenseoftheyouth’sbeauty. • ll13-14:ithasbeensuggestedthattheclosingcoupletencouragesasense thattheyouthisrathervain.

26

Sonnet Form



29

Whenin/disgrace/withFor/tuneand/men’seyes,

Iall/alone/beweep/myout/caststate,

Andtrou/bledeaf/heaven/withmy/bootless/cries,

Andlook/upon/myself/andcurse/myfate,

Wishingmeliketoonemorerichinhope,

Featuredlikehim,likehimwithfriendspossess’d,

Desiringthisman’sart,andthatman’sscope,

WithwhatImostenjoycontentedleast.

Yetinthesethoughtsmyselfalmostdespising,

HaplyIthinkonthee,andthenmystate,

Liketothelarkatbreakofdayarising

Fromsullenearth,singshymnsatheaven’sgate;

Forthysweetloveremember’dsuchwealthbrings

ThatthenIscorntochangemystatewithkings.


thesis: problem

establishedand

discussed in octave

sestetshifts

in tone

A

B

A

B

C

D

C

D

E

B

E

B

F

F

5

5

5.5

5

5

5

5

5

5.5

5

5.5

5

5

5


27

Sonnet Form


Sonnet 29: “When in Disgrace with Fortune and Men’s Eyes” • oneoftheYoungManpoems;mostquotedfromthefullsequence • thepoemispresentedasonelongsentence • rhymeschemeisanexperimentinthiscase;theopeningquatrain establishessamerhymesusedinthethirdquatrain: ABAB/CDCD/EBEB/FF

• ll1-2:thePoetannouncesheisaloneintheworld,indisgrace • ll3-4:likeJob,hecomplainstoheaven,cursinghislostreputation • ll5-6:becauseofhisbadluck,hewishesforother’ssuccesses, anotherman’spopularity, • l7:another’screativity,another’svision • l8:atcloseofoctave,thePoetisleastsatisfiedwithhischosencareer • ll9-10:Yet,despitethesethoughtsofself-hatred,justbythinkingofthe YoungMan,thePoetfeelsacontentment • ll11-12:heformsananalogycomparinghimselfwithalark:justasa commonbirdsingstoheavenatdawn:Poet(bird)toYoungMan(sun) •ll13-14:TheloveoftheYoungManisenoughtohelpthepoetsurvive; somuchsohewouldn’tchangehislotinlife

28

Sonnet Form



130

Mymist/ress’eyes/arenoth/inglike/thesun;

Coral/isfar/morered/thanher/lips’red;

Ifsnow/bewhite,/whythen/herbreasts/aredun;

Ifhairs/bewires,/blackwires/growon/herhead.

Ihave/seenros/esda/mask,red/andwhite,

ButnosuchrosesseeIinhercheeks;

Andinsomeperfumesistheremoredelight

Thaninthebreaththatfrommymistressreeks.

Ilovetohearherspeak,yetwellIknow

Thatmusichathafarmorepleasingsound;

IgrantIneversawagoddessgo;

Mymistress,whenshewalks,treadsontheground:

Andyet,/byheav/en,I/thinkmy/loveas/rare

Asan/yshe/belied/withfalse/compare.


problem resolved

in couplet

thesis: problem

establishedand

discussed in octave

sestetshifts

in tone, slightly

A

B

A

B

C

D

C

D

E

F

E

F

G

G

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5.5

5


29

Sonnet Form


Sonnet 130: “My Mistress’ Eyes Are Nothing Like The Sun”

• Thefirstlineisironicinthesensethatallofthepoemsaddressingthe

YoungMancomparehimtothesun,orassertheisasbeautifulasApollo,

theGreeksun-god;theDarkLadyisofoppositecharacterization.

• Thefullpoemexplainsthecontrastofidealismandreality.

• Thesonnetendswithanassertionthathisbelovedisasbeautifulasany

thathasbeenfalselycomplimentedbyotherpoets.

A slight rewording of the final couplet for modern clarification:

Andyet,Iswearbyheaven,Ithinkmyloveisrare

Asanyshe(that is:anyotherwoman)misrepresentedwithfalsecompliments.

Theword“compare”inthiscaseisbeingusedbythePoetasanounnotaverb.

30

Sonnet Form


IfyoucomparetheDarkLadyagainstthecharacterizationofPertrarch’sLaura,

yougetacollectionofextremecontrastingelements.

Laura: Dark Lady:

beautiful average

blonde/blueeyes brunette/browneyes

pale,fairskin olivetones

artificialidealism realisticbeauty

icon/outofreach/goddess downtoearth/obtainable/mortal

Documents

Sonnets - David-Glen Smith• The Sonnets are attributed to William Shakespeare, although lately • The first 17 sonnets are written to a young man, urging him to marry • All of