The Sonnet

The Sonnet
Italian and English
Petrarch (Italian)
1304-1374
Pet-rark
Rhyme Scheme: abba abba cde cde
Iambic Pentameter
Sonnet Cycles (sequences)
sonnet has two parts, the octet (8 lines) which consists of lines describing a problem and the
sestet (6 lines) which consists of lines proposing solutions to the problem (see Laura slide)
Laura
Iambic Pentameter
An iambic foot is an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. The
rhythm can be written as:
da DUM
The da-DUM of a human heartbeat is the most common example of this
rhythm.
A standard line of iambic pentameter is five iambic feet in a row:
da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM
*Straightforward example of this rhythm can be heard in the opening line of
William Shakespeare's Sonnet 12:
When I do count the clock that tells the time
da DUM da DUM da DUM da
DUM da
DUM
Laura: Head-over-heels in love with Laura, Petrarch wrote 365
sonnets, one passionate poem a day dedicated to his true love.
Quando fra l'altre donne ad ora ad ora
Amor vien nel bel viso di costei,
quanto ciascuna è men bella di lei
tanto cresce 'l desio che m'innamora.
I' benedico il loco e 'l tempo et l'ora
che sí alto miraron gli occhi mei,
et dico: Anima, assai ringratiar dêi
che fosti a tanto honor degnata allora.
When Love within her lovely face appears
now and again among the other ladies,
as much as each is less lovely than she
the more my wish I love within me grows.
I bless the place, the time and hour of the day
that my eyes aimed their sights at such a
height,and say: 'My soul, you must be very
grateful that you were found worthy of such
great honour.
Da lei ti vèn l'amoroso pensero,
che mentre 'l segui al sommo ben
t'invia,pocho prezando quel ch'ogni
huom desia;
From her to you comes loving thought that
leads,as long as you pursue, to highest good,
esteeming little what all men desire;
da lei vien l'animosa leggiadria
ch'al ciel ti scorge per destro sentero,
sí ch'i' vo già de la speranza altero.
there comes from her all joyous honesty
that leads you by the straight path up to
Heaven-already I fly high upon my hope.'
Italian Sonnet
Love at first sight
Unattainability of the object of love;
unrequited love
one-sided love is love that is not openly reciprocated or understood as such by the beloved. The beloved may not
be aware of the admirer's deep and strong romantic affection or consciously reject it. (Sonnet 18-Shall I Compare
thee to a summer’s day?)
Lady as ideally beautiful
Love as idolatry
Use of oxymorons to describe the
suffering of the lover
“Love of suffering…” –Romeo and Juliet
English Sonnet
Change in rhyme scheme: abab cdcd efef
gg – abab bcbc cdcd ee
Sonnet cycle tradition continues
Important sonneteers: Sidney, Spenser,
Shakespeare
Subject matter:
Petrarchan conventions
Spenser – wife,
Shakespeare – Fair young man, Dark lady,
realistic attitude towards beauty and love
Sonnet 12
When I do count the clock that tells the time,
And see the brave day sunk in hideous night;
When I behold the violet past prime,
And sable curls all silver'd o'er with white;
When lofty trees I see barren of leaves
Which erst from heat did canopy the herd,
And summer's green all girded up in sheaves
Borne on the bier with white and bristly beard,
Then of thy beauty do I question make,
That thou among the wastes of time must go,
Since sweets and beauties do themselves forsake
And die as fast as they see others grow;
And nothing 'gainst Time's scythe can make defence
Save breed, to brave him when he takes thee hence.
What’s the rhyme scheme? Is this an English sonnet or and
Italian sonnet?
Summary
1.The Italian sonnet is known as the Petrarchan sonnet while the
English sonnet is known as a Shakespearian sonnet.
2.These two writers (Petrarch and Shakespeare) were not the
creators of these forms of sonnet but were the most famous sonnet
writers of their time.
3.The Italian sonnet has two parts, the octet (8 lines) which consists
of lines describing a problem and the sestet (6 lines) which consists
of lines proposing solutions to the problem while the English sonnet
has three quatrains(3 stanzas with 4 lines in them) and a couplet (2
lines). *refer to “Romeo and Juliet” –the prologue
4.The Italian sonnet was created in the early 11th century while the
English sonnet was created in the early 16th century.
5.All sonnets have fourteen lines. The English sonnet differs from
the Italian sonnet in the structuring of these lines.
Read more: Difference Between English Sonnet and Italian Sonnet | Difference Between | English Sonnet vs
Italian Sonnet http://www.differencebetween.net/language/difference-between-english-sonnet-and-italiansonnet/#ixzz3xo2LxUSE