1. Sonnets

2. Douglass
Paul Laurence Dunbar

3. Ah, Douglass, we have fall’n on evil days,
Such days as thou, not even thou didst know,
When thee, the eyes of that harsh long ago
Saw, salient, at the cross of devious ways,
And all the country heard thee with amaze.
Not ended then, the passionate ebb and flow,
The awful tide that battled to and fro:
We ride amid a tempest of despraise.

4. Now, when the waves of swift dissension swarm,
And Honor, the strong pilot, lieth stark,
Oh, for they voice high-sounding o’er the storm,
For thy strong arm to guide the shivering bark,
The blast-defying power of they form,
Togive us comfort through the lonely dark.

5. Petrarch (Italian) Sonnet
The Sonnet
14 lines
Usually iambic pentameter
Expressing one complete idea or theme
Petrarch (Italian) Sonnet
Shakespearean (English) Sonnet

6. Petrarch (Italian) Sonnet
Named for Francesco Petrarch
Octave + sestet
Rhyme scheme: abbaabba cdecde
or abbaabba cdcdcd
In most: a question is raised in the octave and the answer is presented in the sestet. Or a single idea is presented in the octave and either developed or contradicted in the sestet.

7. Shakespearean (English) Sonnet
Named for William Shakespeare
3 quatrains of 4 lines + a couplet
Rhyme scheme: abab cdcd efef gg
In most: idea is presented and developed in the 3 quatrains and summarized or concluded by the couplet

8. Iambic Pentameter Iamb: ٮ ١ Pentameter: 5X ٮ ١ ٮ ١ ٮ ١ ٮ ١ ٮ ١
Ah, Douglass, we have fall’n on evil days,
ٮ ١ ٮ ١ ٮ ١ ٮ ١ ٮ ١

9. Ah [ah]
Douglass [duhg-luh s]
We [wee]
Have [hav; unstressed]
Fall’n Fallen [faw-luh n]
On [on, awn]
Evil [ee-vuh l]
Days [deyz]
Using the dictionary can help you identify the stressed and unstressed syllables.
ٮ ١ ٮ ١ ٮ ١ ٮ ١ ٮ ١
Ah, Douglass, we have fall’n on evil days,

10. Thinking and Writing
Write a sonnet in which you address one of your heroes. (Similar to Dunbar in Douglass). Start by thinking of people, perhaps historical, who have made a difference. You might choose Martin Luther, Eleanor Roosevelt , or Mother Theresa. How would this person respond to contemporary life? Then choose which form you will use (Petrarch or Shakespearean) Finally, write a sonnet focusing on issues concerning contemporary society that would be of interest to this person.