1. The Sonnet
Sonnet comes from the Italian word sonnetto, meaning “a little sound or song”

2. Structure
14 lines
One of 3 rhyme schemes (Italian, English, Spenserian)
Meter = iambic pentameter (5 iambs per line)
10 syllables per line of unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.
(my LOVE) (is LIKE) (to ICE) (and I) (to FIRE)

3. Sonnet Forms 1. The Italian Sonnet (also called Petrarchan Sonnet)
First 8 lines = octave
Last 6 lines = sestet
There is a “shift” or “turn” between the octave and sestet that provides a resolution or answer to the problem presented in the octave.

4. 2. The Italian Sonnet Also called the Petrarchan Sonnet Structure:
One octave (8 lines) with their its own scheme
One sestet (two lines)
OCTAVE - 8 lines
SESTET - 6 lines

5. Sir Thomas Wyatt
He brought the Italian sonnet form to England, which transformed English poetry.
He used the Italian sonnet form, but included the concluding rhyming couplet that becomes the trademark of English sonnets.

6. Italian Sonnet Rhyme SchemeB
Octave: abbaabba
Sestet: cdecde or cdcdcd
Wyatt’s Mod C D C D E C D E

7. 2. The English Sonnet Quatrain (4 lines) Quatrain
Couplet (2 lines)
Quatrain (4 lines)
Also called the Shakespearean Sonnet
Structure:
3 quatrains (4 lines each) with their own rhyme schemes
One rhyming couplet (two lines)

8. Rhyme Scheme of the English SonnetA B C D E F G
Quatrain (4 lines)
abab cdcd efef gg
More versatile than Italian form.
Better for English language which has fewer rhyming words than Italian.

9. 3. The Spenserian Sonnet Created by Sir Edmund Spenser
Follows the same structure as the English/Shakespearean sonnet, but has a different rhyme scheme.

10. Rhyme Scheme of the Spenserian SonnetB C D E
Quatrain (4 lines)
abab bcbc cdcd ee
This is called an interlocking rhyme scheme.