Sonnets Introduced in Italy in the 13th century “sonnet” = little song Subject = focus on personal feelings and thoughts that are lyrical in nature
Sonnets Length = 14 lines Meter = iambic pentameter (5 metrical units, unstressed followed by a stressed syllable) Structure and rhyme scheme = strict pattern 3 most common types Spenserian Shakespearean Petrarchan
Spenserian Sonnet Structure: Rhyme Scheme: 3 quatrains (4-line unit) Each addresses the main idea, thought or question 1 couplet (2 rhymed lines) Provides and answer or summation Rhyme Scheme: abab bcbc cdcd ee
Shakespearean Sonnet abab cdcd efef gg Structure: Rhyme Scheme: 3 quatrains (4-line unit) Each addresses the main idea, thought or question 1 couplet (2 rhymed lines) Provides and answer or summation Turn, or shift in thought, occurs in 3rd quatrain or couplet Rhyme Scheme: abab cdcd efef gg
Petrarchan Sonnet 1 octave (8-line unit) abba abba Structure: 1 octave (8-line unit) Introduces a situation , presents a problem or raises a question abba abba 1 sestet (6-line unit) Speaker comments on or resolves question or problem cdcdcd or cdecde