Poetry School Lesson #2 The Sonnet

Poetry School Lesson #2 The Sonnet

So the question to be asked is ‘why to begin with a sonnet?’

First of all, a sonnet naturally leads to two essential elements of poetry rhyme and rhythm. Secondly, it takes skill and talent to write a sonnet. Poetry is an art like any other art.

Let’s compare poetry to painting. In painting one does not jump into the abstract. Rather they prove their control of the medium by simple paintings, such as a fruit bowl or a portrait. When I went to Manhattan and saw Picasso’s collection I was amazed. I first saw his early paintings. They were incredible and lifelike. I saw many paintings that I could tell, without a doubt what they were. They were painted excellent.

Then I saw other paintings by Picasso.  They didn’t make sense to me. They were abstract. Still, I could appreciate these distorted depictions of life. Why? Because I knew, by his work, that Picasso was in control of his medium, that every brush stroke was done exactly as he wanted.

Now in poetry, there is some creature called free verse. Free verse in poetry is like an abstract to a painter. If I as a painter can’t even paint a decent fruit bowl or portrait why should you respect my abstracts?

The same holds in poetry. Today all rules are out of whack. Under the ambiguous cover of free verse, anything goes. Poems lack substance and meaning. Poets think they are sophisticated but they haven’t proven themselves. Where is their demonstration of mastering the art?

William Shakespeare is considered one of the greatest writers in the English language if not the greatest writer ever. Outside of his plays Shakespeare wrote sonnets. In fact, he created his own sonnet.

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 dimm'd;

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm'd;

But thy eternal summer shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st;

Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st:

   So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,

   So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

So what is going on here?

Okay, so there are two main features.

The first is the meter. There are ten beats to every line. In practical application, many authors violate this ten beat rule. Usually, the discrepancy is adding beats to the line. The reason this is done is to create a complete thought. It is much easier to add a beat than to remove one.

Also there is the rhyming scheme of

A

B

A

C

D

C

D

E

F

E

F

G

G

The last pair is called a couplet.

Here are a couple of my sonnets.

This first one comes from my book “Sunset Sonnets”

Sunset Sonnet 1

Black petals shriveled akin to leper’s skin

I dare not touch what I once held in my hands

Death decays outside, life vibrant within

Love is for fools only folly understands

Seasons commit treasons to everyone

In Spring we joyfully sing youth’s sweet song

Never to realize death’s hold has begun

We mock the reaper confident and strong

My spectacle covered eyes behold you

You sleep foreshadowing eternal rest

Inept in all the world, nothing to do

I shall walk alone to complete my quest

Ah my sweet rose you shall never truly part

In unending youth you reside in my heart

This second one I bend the rules of a sonnet changing the rhyming structure. This sonnet is maybe thirty years old.

Sonnet #3

Since we first met you have been on mind

In nightly dreams and in my fantasy

What kind of spell have you put over me?

Your light shines brightly making my eyes blind

There’s a sense of awe but I find you kind

In life I desire to make you happy

Your lips are tender I kiss you with glee

If I searched nothing better I could find

For you are special totally unique

Inside of you love is real with such power

Your words sing like an angel’s holy choir

I have truly found what the poets seek

In your eyes I see the beautiful flower

You take me to a place that is higher

Please participate by writing a sonnet and mailing it to peacepoems@mail.com

Next we will look at the simplest rhyming poem to write, something I call a list poem.

Please investigate my book of sonnets called “Sunset Sonnets.” It is a positive and spiritual look at death and dying. “As Love slips away, what does one say?”

Click here to check out Sunset Sonnets. 

Click Here