LiteratureLesson 2 of 3 in the course Poetry

The Sonnet Across Languages and Periods: Origins, Forms, and Adaptations

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

Save course
Lesson progress
0 / 5

Your progress is kept in this browser only.Sign up to save it

Summary

This lesson introduces the sonnet as a poetic form and traces its early development. Understanding its basic structure and origins provides a foundation for exploring the many sonnet traditions that followed.

A traditional sonnet is a fixed poetic form consisting of fourteen lines organized according to a rhyme scheme. Its compact length encourages poets to develop an idea, feeling, or argument within a small space. A sonnet may describe love, reflect on nature, address political or religious questions, or explore many other subjects.

All flashcards

What is a traditional sonnet?
A compact poetic form traditionally made up of fourteen lines arranged according to a rhyme scheme.
What are the origins of the word sonnet?
It comes from Italian *sonetto*, meaning “little song,” from Latin *sonus*, meaning “sound.”
Where and when did the sonnet emerge?
It emerged in 13th-century Sicily and later spread to mainland Italy and other language communities.
Who is credited with the sonnet’s invention?
Giacomo da Lentini, a poet associated with the court of Frederick II in Palermo, is traditionally credited.
What are two proposed influences on the early sonnet?
The Sicilian *strambotto* folksong stanza and Arabic and wider Mediterranean poetic traditions, including the *qasida*, have been proposed as influences.

Quiz questions

  1. How are the sections of a typical Italian sonnet divided?Answer: An eight-line octave followed by a six-line sestet.
  2. Which rhyme scheme is associated with the Shakespearean sonnet?Answer: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
  3. What is a sonnet sequence?Answer: A series of sonnets linked by a shared theme, narrative, speaker, or design.
  4. What characterizes the French alexandrine line commonly used in sonnets?Answer: It has twelve syllables and a central pause.
  5. Which term did Gerard Manley Hopkins use for a shortened sonnet form?Answer: Curtal sonnet

Based on the Wikipedia article Sonnet, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

More in Literature

All Literature lessons
LiteratureLiterary Formalism: Textual Form, Russian Formalism, and Defamiliarization5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 4 gamesPlay free →LiteratureEdward Said’s Orientalism: Representation, Power, and Critical Debates5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 4 gamesPlay free →LiteraturePsychoanalytic Literary Criticism: Freud, Jung, Lacan, and Later Approaches5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 4 gamesPlay free →LiteratureReader-Response Criticism: Readers, Texts, and Interpretive Models5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 4 gamesPlay free →LiteratureRealism Across the Arts: Visual Art, Literature, Theatre, Film, and Opera5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 4 gamesPlay free →LiteratureMiguel de Cervantes: Life, Works, and Literary Legacy5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 4 gamesPlay free →