1. SONNETS Everything you need to know summarized by yours truly

2. ABOUT THE SONNET  Comes from the Italian word “sonnetto” which means “little song”  Invented in the 12 th century in Italy  Famous sonnet writers: Wordsworth, Shakespeare, Elizabeth Barrett Browning

3. THEMES OF SONNETS  Love-written usually in a male’s perspective  Praises a woman’s beauty then criticizes her for not loving him back  Compares his beloved to a star or other celestial body (courtly love).

4. TWO TYPES OF SONNETS  Italian Sonnets and English Sonnets  Both are 14 lines and written in iambic pentameter  Iamb: rhythm of poem; short unstressed syllable followed by a long stressed syllable  Each iamb equals one foot  Example: unCLEAR

5. I GOT THE “IAMB” PART, BUT WHAT’S “PENTAMETER”?  Meter=number of feet in a single line  PENTA= five  Pentameter= 5 feet (beats per line)  - / -/ -/ -/ -/  Let’s practice. Read the following line and mark it with iambic pentameter: My mistress eyes are nothing like the sun How many syllables in all?

6. ANSWER: - / - / - / - / - / My mistress eyes are nothing like the sun

7. ITALIAN SONNET Italian (Petrarchan) Sonnet: 2 parts 1 Octave (group of 8 lines) followed by 1 Sestet (group of 6 lines) Rhyme Scheme: abbaabba cdccdc

8. ENGLISH SONNET  English (Shakespearean Sonnet)  4 parts: 3 quatrains (3 groups of 4 lines) 1 rhyming couplet (2 lines that rhyme) Rhyme Scheme: abab cdcd efef gg