Sonnet:
Sonnet is a special kind of Lyrical poem which is bound in certain rules. It is a poem of fourteen lines which expresses a single thought or idea so, it cannot have multiple themes or ideas. It is short and musical. Musical, because certain poetic devices are used to gain rhythm and melody in the poem. It has a fixed rhyme scheme and number of stanzas. There are some rules for writing Sonnets. These rules vary according to its type. There are two main types of Sonnet; Petrarchan Sonnet and Shakespearean Sonnet. Let’s study these two kinds!
Petrarchan Sonnets:
Petrarchan Sonnets are also known as Italian Sonnets because they were originated in Italy. This sonnet is named after the Italian poet Petrarch. It is divided into two parts, octave and sextet. Octave is the first part of eight lines and sextet is the second part of six lines. Octave is further divided into two stanzas of four lines called ‘quatrains’. The rhyme scheme of octave i.e, two quatrains is always “abba,abba””.” Sextet is divided into two stanzas of three lines called ‘tercets’ and the rhyme scheme of sextet i’e, two tercets is “cde,cde.”
Example of Petrarchan Sonnet can be the poem, ‘On His Blindness‘ composed by John Milton.
Shakespearean Sonnets:
Shakespearean Sonnets are modifications of Petrarchan Sonnets. Shakespeare did not follow the rules of Italian Sonnet and modified it for his own. He has written about 154 sonnets in this form. These sonnets contain fourteen lines, same as Italian Sonnet. These lines are divided into three quatrains and one couplet at the end. The theme or idea of this sonnet is developed in the first twelve lines i.e, three quatrains, and then it is summed up in the last two lines called couplet. “abab,cdcd,efef,gg” is the rhyme scheme of this kind of sonnet.
Example of this sonnet can be, ‘Sonnet 130- My Mistress’ eyes‘
