Sonnets: A Poetic Form With Italian Origins - Essay Sample

Introduction

Sonnet is a derivation word from 'sonetto' an Italian word which means little song. It is a type of poetry and comprises 14 lines which are in iambic pentameter writing style. In most cases, the lines contain ten syllables and the whole sonnet has a specific scheme (Fuller, 2017). They are divided into various groups depending on the rhyme scheme used. English rhyme scheme is abab, cdcd, efef, and gg mostly while sonnet of Italian nature has abba, abba, cde, cde. There are different types of sonnet which include Curtail, Terza Rima, Shakespearean, Spenserian, Italian, and Miltonic Fuller, 2017). The paper explores two sonnets from both Shakespeare and Elisabeth Barrett Browning.

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Sonnet 130 of Shakespeare talks about the beauty of his mistress. He expresses emotions of love on her by saying she can't be compared to anything and loves her voice as she speaks. Says she is more beautiful than a rose and her hair is like black wire, not simply wires (Muir, (2013). Sonnet 116 written by Shakespeare speaks about true love which never alters. He defines love as a permanent mark that does not shake or bend Muir, 2013). It addresses marriages and advises them that love should remain even on the edge of doom.

Elizabeth's sonnet with index (X), says that love is beautiful and worth acceptance. Adds that love is fire and has rays that can transfigure and glorify someone (Browning, 2019). It reads that nothing low in love and God accepts the inferior in loving Him. Sonnet index (XLII), wrote by Elizabeth Barrett and speaks about the future being different from the past. Predicts future to have green leaves and full of comfort (Browning, 2019). Emphasize on leaving behind the bad things and begin a new life of hope and prosperity.

Poetry could be valued as literature that uses aesthetic qualities such as rhythm and songs.it expresses the meaning beyond prose paraphrasing (Fuller, 2017). Poetry uses lines to cast message and is held across visual aspects or meter. In conclusion, I prefer poems with a structure of the poem without structure. It is easy to memorize and entertaining.

References

Browning, E. B. (2019). Sonnets from the Portuguese. BoD-Books on Demand. https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=HS-yDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA44&dq=+sonnets+by+Elizabeth+Barrett+Browning.&ots=c4X1KRWJ2Z&sig=nPQsO5rogcT1EUg_fEEEcm1INrU&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=sonnets%20by%20Elizabeth%20Barrett%20Browning.&f=falseFuller, J. (2017). The sonnet (Vol. 25). Taylor & Francis. https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=6EcrDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=Sonnets+%26+Poems&ots=PuNk5HY_CX&sig=B8a0slU-tLYZL-uAEQNdzdpqYt0&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Sonnets%20%26%20Poems&f=falseMuir, K. (2013). Shakespeare's sonnets https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=pRjeAAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=Shakespeare+sonnets&ots=ls6-lWr5Ar&sig=ttml4Bhcd4potcL8-kPZPxOndwE&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Shakespeare%20sonnets&f=false.