1. Sonnets of the Renaissance: Petrarchan (Italian) and Shakespearean (English)

2. Sonnet  14 line lyric poem  written in iambic pentameter  A very specific rhyme scheme  2 types –Petrarchan (Italian) –Shakespearean (English) *Sonnets are one of the most difficult poems for a poet to master because of its rigid structure – a strict pattern of rhythm and rhyme

3. Lyric poem  Deals with emotions and feelings

4. Iambic pentameter  Poetry with 10 beats per line, alternating stressed and unstressed syllables U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U /  One day I wrote her name u pon the strand, U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U /  But came the waves and wash ed it a way: U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U /  A gain I wrote it with a sec ond hand, U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U / U /  But came the tide, and made my pains his prey

5. Rhyme scheme Pattern of lowercase letters that shows which lines of a poem have similar end rhymes Mary had a little lamb Its fleece was white as snow Everywhere that Mary went The lamb was sure to go

6. Petrarchan Sonnet  Originated in Italy  Structure –Has 2 parts  8 line section (octave)  6 line section (sestet) –Volta – turn/ transition between the two parts  Question-answer  Problem-solution  Theme-content  Rhyme scheme –abba abba cd cd cd OR –abba abba cde cde  Conceit – a metaphor or simile that makes a striking or fanciful comparison (describing beauty of women or pangs of love) e.g. hair of spun gold, lips of ruby

7. Characteristics of Petrarchan Sonnets  Love @ first sight  Unattainable object of love; unfulfilled love  Lady is ideally beautiful  Love as idolatry  Suffering of lovers  Poet acknowledges self as author  Strict adherence to form

8. Shakespearean Sonnet  Originated in England  Structure –3 quatrains (4 lines section) –1 couplet (2 lines)  Rhyme scheme –abab cdcd efef gg  Lines 1-8 express the speaker’s conflict  Lines 9-12 signal a turning point in the speaker’s thinking; a revelation  Lines 13-14 sum up the theme, the speaker’s final conclusion

9. Characteristics of Shakespearean Sonnets  Shakespeare wrote 150+ sonnets –3 subjects of his sonnets  1 – The Fair Youth (Sonnets 1-126)  2 – The Rival Poet (Sonnets 78-86)  3 – The Dark Lady (Sonnets 127-152)  Sonnets often deal with the meaning of love, time, death, and the immortality of the written word.