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S
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N
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• What
• IS
• A
• SONNET?

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The Basics of a Shakespearean Sonnet
-Contains 14 lines
-Written in Iambic Pentameter 10 syllables
Contains a rhyme scheme ababcdcdefefgg
Contains 3 quatrains and a couplet
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What!?!
What!?!
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-Understanding Iambic Pentameter-
da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM

• Meaning of Iambic
• Each line contains
• 10 syllables
• An unstressed/stressed foot is known as an iamb.
• Thats where the term iambic comes from.

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-Understanding Iambic Pentameter-
da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM

• Meaning of Pentameter
• Pentameter is simply penta, which means 5,
  meters.
• So a line of poetry written in pentameter has 5
  feet, or 5 sets of stressed and unstressed
  syllables.
• There you go!

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-Example-

• if YOU would PUT the KEY inSIDE the LOCK
• da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM
• Thats the simplest way to define iambic
  pentameter.
• Piece of Cake Right?

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More Examples
da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM

• Example
• But, soft! what light through yonder window
  breaks? 
• Example
• I am a pirate with a wooden leg! Aargh!
• Btw, nearly EVERY line in Romeo and Juliet is
  written in iambic pentameter!

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Practice

• Write a sentence that contains iambic pentameter
  in your journal and tap your pencil to check it.

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Rhyme Scheme

• The end rhyme of each line creates a pattern
  starting with the letter a.
• Example
• Jack and Jill (a)
• Went up the hill (a)
• To fetch a pail of water. (b)
• Jack fell down (c)
• And broke his crown (c)
• And Jill came tumbling after. (b)

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Rhyme Scheme

• A Shakespearean sonnet contains a rhyme scheme
  of
• abab
• cdcd
• efef
• gg

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-Shakespearean Rhyme Scheme-

• The Shakespearean Sonnet follows this rhyme
  scheme
• A B A B C D C D E F E F
  G G

Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
Rhyme
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-Shakespearean Rhyme Scheme-

• Understanding the Quatrains of a Sonnet
• A B A B
• C D C D
• E F E F
• G G

gt
1st Quatrain This should establish the subject,
main theme, or main metaphor of the sonnet.
gt
2nd Quatrain This should develop or complicate
the sonnets theme. Often some imaginative
example is given.
gt
3rd Quatrain This should round off the sonnets
theme by using a twist or conflict.
gt
4th Quatrain This should conclude the sonnet
by answering the question or leaving the reader
with an insight or image about the topic.
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Shakespearean Sonnet 18
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate.
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date.
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimmed
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance, or nature's changing course, untrimmed
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest,
Nor shall death brag thou wanderest in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou growest.
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
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Modern Translation

• Sonnet 18OOOH Baby I think I shall compare you
  to a summer dayBut, you know, you're prettier
  and even better, even calmBecause sometimes it
  gets windy and the buds on the trees get shaken
  offAnd sometimes summer doesn't last very
  longSometimes it's too hotAnd everything
  gorgeous loses its looksBy getting hit by a
  truck Or just because everyone and everything
  gets old and ugly and shabbyBUT (and here's the
  turn) you're going to keep your looks for ever
  Your beauty will last for everI'm going to make
  sure that you never lose your good looksAnd that
  nasty old Death can never brag about owning
  youBecause I shall write this poem about youAs
  long as men can breathe (are you breathing?) As
  long as men can see (are you looking at this
  poem?)Then this poem lives, and it gives life
  and memory to your beauty.
• http//www.pbs.org/shakespeare/educators/language/
  lessonplan.html

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Summarize

• A Shakespearean Sonnet contains
• 14 lines
• 3 Quatrains, 1 couplet
• Strict rhyme scheme
• Each line is written in iambic pentameter
• 10 syllables each line
• unstressed stressed syllables

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Create a Cupcake Sonnet

• Each group will write one line containing 10
  syllables and rhyme with the following words
• Lines 1 3 Day
• Lines 2 4 Small
• Lines 5 7 Hot
• Lines 6 8 Hill
• Lines 9 11 Seek
• Lines 10 12 Most
• Lines 13 14 Feet

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The End
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Shakespearean Sonnet 18 (sort of)

• So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
• And summer's lease hath all too short a date.
• And every fair from fair sometime declines,
• Thou art more lovely and more temperate.
• But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
• When in eternal lines to time thou growest.
• Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
• Nor shall death brag thou wanderest in his shade,
• So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
• And often is his gold complexion dimmed
• Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
• Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest,
• By chance, or nature's changing course,
  untrimmed
• Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?