English I
Romeo and Juliet Sonnet Practice
Name:
Sonnet 29 by William Shakespeare
1
5
10
When, in disgrace with Fortune and men's eyes,
I all alone beweep my outcast state,
And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,
And look upon myself and curse my fate,
Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
Featured like him, like him with friends possessed,
Desiring this man's art, and that man's scope,
With what I most enjoy contented least;
Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,
Haply I think on thee, and then my state,
Like to the lark at break of day arising
From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven's gate;
For thy sweet love rememb'red such wealth brings
That then I scorn to change my state with kings.
1. How did Shakespeare name his sonnets?
2. Label the rhyme scheme of the sonnet above. (Put letters at the end of each line).
3. What is the name of the type of writing used by Shakespeare in his sonnets? Hint—this writing
consists of 5 pairs of stressed/unstressed syllables per line.
4. How many syllables are in each foot?
5. How many syllables are in each line?
6. How many iambs are in each line?
7. What is wrong with the speaker in lines 1-8?
8. What does the speaker remember in line 10?
9. How does the speaker’s mood change in lines 10-14?
10. What is the theme of this sonnet?
KEY
(the main idea of the sonnet is that in periods of despair and sorrow the thoughts of those you
love are a source of strength and sustenance).
List the speaker's catalogue of complaints in the first two quatrains (8 lines). What does the
speaker remember in line 10? What image describes his mood in line 12& 11? Compare the
speaker's thoughts in the first eight lines of the sonnet to his thoughts in the last 6 lines. How has
his perspective changed, especially in the last two lines? Is the transition in the speaker's mood
realistic or sincere? Who or why not?