When people think of sonnets, William Shakespeare is usually the first name that comes to mind.
But did you know that the sonnet originated in Sicily during the 13th century, more than 300 years before Shakespeare published his famous collection?
The form is generally credited to Giacomo da Lentini, a poet and legal official working at the court of Frederick II.
Petrarch helped make it famous across Europe, while Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, adapted it for English poetry.
There's an especially interesting historical discovery.
Researchers have identified a poem written in England around 1448-1449 that already follows the rhyme pattern we now associate with Shakespearean sonnets.
Its author, John Metham, may not even have known that he had produced something resembling a sonnet!
And although sonnets are traditionally associated with romantic love, poets have used them to address religion, political injustice, grief, freedom and many other subjects.
A Few Questions Worth Discussing
- Do you prefer the Italian sonnet, with its eight-line and six-line structure, or Shakespeare's three quatrains and final couplet?
- Why do you think Shakespeare became so closely associated with a form he did not invent?
- Should a sonnet always contain 14 lines, or is experimenting with the structure part of the tradition?
- Do you prefer sonnets about love, or those exploring more serious subjects such as injustice, identity and mortality?
- Have you read sonnets by Petrarch, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Claude McKay or other poets outside the usual Shakespeare selections?
- Can a poem accidentally become a sonnet simply by following the right rhyme scheme?
- If you have ever tried writing a sonnet, did the strict structure help or frustrate you?
The History of the Sonnet - Songs And Poems
I'd particularly welcome examples of sonnets written in different languages or from literary traditions that are less familiar to English-speaking readers.
Do you have a favourite sonnet, or a favourite poet who wrote them?
All respectful opinions and interpretations are welcome.