Skill Poetry: Sonnets

5 things about

Sonnets

A sonnet has fourteen lines

A sonnet usually ends with a rhyming couplet, a pair of lines that rhyme.

There is more than one rhyme scheme in a sonnet, but those rhyme schemes can vary.

A sonnet often has a regular meter

The point when the rhyme scheme first changes is often called a volta. At that point, the speaker often finds an answer to a question or finds a different way to think about a topic.

Lines are a row of words in a poem, not always a full sentence or phrase.

Each line has ten syllables. An unstressed syllable is often followed by a stressed syllable ("When I do count the clock that tells the time" )

A meter is a regular pattern of sounds in a poem.

More About Poetry...

Poems also convey meaning through their use of specific language choices, such as the poet’s diction or word choice, syntax or arrangement of words, use of grammar, and use of imagery and figurative language.

The reader notices the regular rhyme scheme and meter. Every other line rhymes in lines 1 to 4, and every other line rhymes in lines 5 to 8. Each line also has ten syllables, and every other syllable is stressed, or emphasized: I doubt not God is good, well- mean ing, kind. The reader then states how the form of the sonnet influences the poet’s style. Cullen is developing his ideas with a steady rhythm. But why?

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The reader returns to the same eight lines and wants to find out how this form affects meaning. When people speak with a steady voice, they often show that they are calm and sure about what they have to say. As a result, she infers that the speaker has a confident tone even though he is talking about something that no person, including himself, can know for sure. Due to the speaker's religious beliefs, he is confident that God can explain actions and events that human beings cannot be certain about.

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