Sonnet 130 by Shakespeare
Sonnets have a specific rhyme scheme, the pattern of rhyme in a poem. To identify rhyme scheme, assign a letter of the alphabet to each rhymed sound at the end of a line. If that sound id repeated later on in the poem, that line receives the same letter. For example:
Sonnet 130 by Shakespeare
My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; (A)
Coral is far more red than her lips' red: (B)
If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; (A)
If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. (B)
And so on and so on. You continue to do this throughout the poem, looking for a pattern in the rhyme scheme.
The basic meter in sonnets is iambic pentameter. Each line of the sonnet consists of 10 syllables following a pattern of unstressed syllable, stressed syllable. The unstressed syllable is marked with a U. the stressed is marked with a /. For example:
I am a pirate with a wooden leg. (10 syllables)
There are three main sonnet types:
1.
Petrarchan or Italian Sonnet: The rhyme scheme in a Petrarchan Sonnet is abbaabba and a
variation of cde. In a Petrarchan Sonnet, the first eight lines are related and establish the scene or situation. These 8 eight lines are called the octave. The last six lines change in rhyme pattern
(variations of cde) and change in subject matter, often times providing the “moral” of the story.
These six lines are called the sestet. ONLY PETRARCHAN / ITALIAN SONNETS HAVE AN OCTAVE
AND SESTET!!
2.
Spenserian Sonnet: The rhyme scheme of a Spenserian Sonnet is ababbcbccdcdee. A
Spenserian Sonnet consists of three Quatrains (set of four lines) and a couplet (two lines). The first 12 lines or 3 quatrains establish the scene or situation. The message of the poem is contained within the couplet, or last two lines of the poem.
3.
Shakespearean Sonnet: The rhyme scheme of the Shakespearean Sonnet is ababcdcdefefgg.
Like the Spenserian Sonnet, the Shakespearean follows the 12-line problem (3 quatrains), 2-line
(couplet) solution to the problem.
Using the 3 sonnets attached, determine what type they are. Find the rhyme scheme and then label each sonnet as either Italian/Petrarchan, Spenserian, or Shakespearean.
