The Art of Courtliness and Conceit Renaissance Sonnets The Art of Courtliness and Conceit

Renaissance Literature The creativity of the Renaissance produced the greatest amount of literature the west had ever seen. It was also the first time that readers and listeners, poets and playwrights all delighted in the beauty of the English language.

Renaissance Literature The ornate Elizabethan court was a focus of poetic creativity, particularly the Elizabethan sonnet. Members of the court vied for position and favor by trying to create the most highly polished, technically perfect poems.

Renaissance Literature Lyrics that expressed passionate desire for a beautiful, intriguing, and elusive woman were popular. Renaissance poetry also appealed to the intellect as well as the emotions, blending the classical reverence for truth with the Renaissance appreciation for beauty.

Elizabethan Sonnet The Elizabethan sonnet was an adaptation of the Italian form, known as the Petrarchan sonnet. The Petrarchan sonnet consisted of an octave (8 lines) and a sestet (6 lines) with a rhyme scheme of abbaabba cdecde where at the end of the octave, there would usually be a turn in the sonnet.

Elizabethan Sonnet With a slightly different structure, the Elizabethan sonnet consisted of three quatrains (4 lines) with a couplet (2 lines) with a rhyme scheme of ababcdcdefefgg, 14 lines total. Each line was written in iambic pentameters (10 syllables, stressed/unstressed). The couplet often served as a turn in the sonnet.

Elizabethan Sonnet The Elizabethan conceit was a method used in love poems consisting of detailed yet exaggerated comparisons to the lover's mistress (blazon). The conceit is the true, often hidden, argument or purpose of the sonnet- often the more intellectual aspect of the poem.