What is a sonnet?

Key learning points

• The traditional conventions of a sonnet
• How the form of the sonnet has changed over time
• Shakespearean, Petrarchan and modern sonnets
• Traditional features such as iambic pentameter, rhyme and the theme of love

The poetic form of the sonnet originated in the 13th century in Italy. It was originally intended as a way of expressing romantic love among the upper classes.

Traditional sonnets follow a set of rules. The most common rules are:

• A 14 line structure
• It has a regular rhyme scheme
• It follows a regular rhythm (also called the metre)

What is a rhyme scheme?

A rhyme scheme means the pattern of the rhyming words at the end of each line. For example, look at the pattern of rhymes in the first section of this Shakespearean sonnet:

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? A
Thou art more lovely and more temperate. B
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, A
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date. B

The words ‘day’ and ‘May’ rhyme so they are both given the letter ‘A’. Then ‘temperate’ and ‘date’ rhyme so they are both given the letter ‘B’ (the words temperate would have been pronounced to rhyme with date) Therefore, this section of the sonnet has a rhyme scheme of ABAB.

If a new rhyme is used, then the next letter in the alphabet continues the pattern.

What is a regular rhythm?

In poetry, rhythm is the beat and pace of a line of poetry. A regular rhythm has a regular beat to each line of the poem. Sonnets typically have ten beats in a line – this is called an iambic pentameter.

Shakespearean sonnets end in two lines that rhyme with one another, called a couplet.

Shakespeare’s sonnets are some of the most well-known in the English language. In total, Shakespeare wrote a large number of sonnets so it is unsurprising that he made a few changes to the traditional structure and themes associated with this form.

Shakespeare kept the 14 line structure and followed a regular rhyme scheme. His sonnets usually change the rhyming pattern every four lines – so that each sonnet is made up of three quatrains. Shakespeare’s sonnets usually end with a rhyming couplet. A traditional Shakespearean sonnet has a rhyme scheme of ABAB CDCD EFEF GG.

Instead of writing a series of love poems to a goddess-like female, as previous poets had done, Shakespeare’s sonnets express feelings of lust, mortality, infidelity and jealousy towards one of two characters. Some of his sonnets were written for a young man (the ‘Fair Youth’) whilst others appear to address a ‘Dark Lady’.

The word sonnet derives from the Italian word sonetto which means ‘little sound’ or ‘little song’. Petrarchan sonnets are also known as Italian sonnets, and are named after an Italian poet named Francesco Petrarca, who lived in the 14th century. The structure and form of this type of sonnet was developed by various Renaissance poets.

Petrarchan sonnets all have 14 lines, however they are usually split into two sections: an octave followed by a sestet.

The rhyme schemes for the octave usually follow an ABBAABBA pattern and the sestet can vary between CDECDE or CDCDCD.

The octave usually introduces the reader to a problem or conflict and the sestet then provides the solution. The change that occurs between the octave and sestet is called a volta. Volta means ‘turn’ in Italian.

Many modern poets have written sonnets which do not follow the exact structure or rhyme scheme of the Petrarchan or Shakespearean sonnets. Poets often enjoy playing around with this poetic form.

Some poets have chosen not to use rhyme in their sonnet. In the 1920s, WH Auden wrote one of the first unrhymed sonnets in English, The Secret Agent.

Other poets have written ‘inverted’ sonnets where the sestet comes first followed by the octave. Sometimes a modern poet may take features from the Shakespearean form and combine them with some of the features from the Petrarchan form.

A feature of modern poetry is that the poet doesn’t have to use ‘end stopped’ lines. Instead the poet can use ‘run on lines’ (or enjambment). The Trick by Imtiaz Dharker is an example of a modern sonnet that uses some ‘run on lines’.

Sometimes the only way to spot a modern sonnet is that it has 14 lines!

Iambic pentameter

This is a rhythm of unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable, with a total of 10 beats. A good way to think about iambic pentameter is to think about the sound of a heartbeat (duh-DUM, duh-DUM, duh-DUM). If we take a word like ‘delight’, we pronounce it ‘de-light’ where we place more emphasis on the second syllable.

Rhyme

Petrarchan sonnets tend to follow a rhyme scheme of ABBAABBA CDCDCD or ABBAABBA CDECDE whereas Shakespearean sonnets follow a rhyme scheme of ABAB CDCD EFEF GG. The rhyme pattern often identifies sections of meaning in the poem. These sections have names that tell us how many lines they have:

• Couplet – two lines
• Quatrain – four lines
• Sestet – six lines
• Octave – eight lines

Themes

Traditionally, sonnets were written as a form of expression of a person’s romantic love for another. However, some poets have adapted the sonnet to suit a range of other themes. In the case of Rupert Brooke’s The Soldier, the theme of love has remained but instead his sonnet being about his love for a person, it is about his love for his country.

Have a go at writing your own sonnet.

Remember to include the following features:

• Fourteen lines
• Iambic pentameter
• Theme of love
• Split your sonnet into an octave and sestet or three quatrains and a couplet
• Choose the rhyme scheme that matches your structure (ABBAABBA CDCDCD/ ABBAABBA CDECDE/ ABAB CDCD EFEF GG)
• Use a volta