Themes and Formats of Sonnets
A sonnet is a format for poetry which we call a lyrical poem. We refer to this format as lyrical because of the musical quality the structure gives the words. The Italian word ” sonetto “, origin of the word sonnet, means “little song”. In the Italian tradition, sonnets were set to music. Lyrical poetry expresses the poet’s deepest feelings, rather than simply telling a story or making humorous observations. William Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets, all of which were related to love or love themes. You can write a Shakespearean style sonnet by writing a love themed poem, and following some simple rules of form .
An Iamb is a combination of two syllables where the emphasis is placed on the second. Examples of words which support an iamb are “because”, “himself” and “support”. Listen to how the pitch and volume of the words shoot upward on the second syllable as you say them. It is fine to use words that aren’t naturally emphasized on the second syllable, or to form an iamb from the parts of two words. The most important factor is to remember that each line uses iambic pentameter. Pentameter means that each line has five iambs, so each of the lines of the poem must have ten syllables, no more and no less. Regardless of where the emphasis of each word falls naturally, when you recite the poem, each line will fall into iambic pentameter if you read it correctly, and it has ten syllables.
Follow the Correct Rhyme Scheme
Shakespearean Sonnets follow a rhyme scheme which differs from the traditional Italian and Petrarchan sonnet forms. Shakespeare’s sonnets were written in three stanzas of four lines each, followed by a rhyming couplet. The rhyme scheme for the three stanzas and couplet followed the pattern:
ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
In this pattern, the first and third lines rhyme together, and the second and fourth lines rhyme together. In the second stanza, the lines follow the same pattern of rhyme using two new sounds. The same pattern is used again in the third stanza with two more unique sounds, followed by the rhyming couplet which also ends with a unique rhyming sound .
The rhyming couplet which ends the sonnet is meant to summarize the overall message of the sonnet, or to provide a dramatic twist to the theme. Follow these rules and you ‘ll be on your way to creating your own masterpiece of poetry in the style of the great William Shakespeare.
This lesson on how to compose a Shakespearean sonnet is a culmination of my lesson plans and lecture notes, built from five years of teaching English Literature and Creative Writing in North Carolina public schools. For additional information and resources follow this useful link.
