The sonnet, a 14-line poetic form, originated in Italy and was later adapted by English poets. Its structure evolved from the Italian octave-sestet to the English three quatrains and a couplet, allowing for more flexible progression of ideas.

English sonnets explored themes of love, beauty, and mortality, often using nature imagery. They maintained the Italian focus on a single theme or argument, condensed into 14 lines of iambic pentameter with varying rhyme schemes.

Origins and Development of the Sonnet

Origins of English sonnet form

• Italian roots trace back to Giacomo da Lentini in 13th century Sicily innovated 14-line structure
• Petrarch refined form in 14th century Italy established themes of courtly love
• Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey introduced sonnets to England in 16th century
• English poets translated and adapted Petrarchan sonnets incorporated native poetic traditions
• Shakespearean sonnet structure evolved three quatrains and a couplet (ABAB CDCD EFEF GG)
• Spenserian sonnet variation interlocked rhyme scheme (ABAB BCBC CDCD EE) added complexity

Italian influence on Renaissance poetry

• English poets adopted Petrarchan conventions idealized beloved and explored unrequited love
• Courtly love themes permeated English sonnets chivalric devotion and spiritual admiration
• Structural shift from octave-sestet to three quatrains and a couplet allowed more flexible progression
• Nature imagery borrowed from Italian tradition metaphors of seasons and landscapes
• English sonnets retained focus on single theme or argument condensed into 14 lines

Themes and Characteristics

Themes in sonnet expression

• Love explored multifaceted aspects romantic passion, spiritual devotion, unrequited affection
• Beauty celebrated physical attributes of beloved (eyes, lips) and transcendent qualities
• Ephemeral nature of beauty contrasted with enduring power of poetry (Shakespeare's Sonnet 18)
• Mortality contemplated impermanence of life and legacy through art
• Time's passage central theme aging, seasons, fleeting moments (Shakespeare's Sonnet 73)

Characteristics of English sonnets

• 14 lines in iambic pentameter create rhythmic structure and musical quality
• Rhyme schemes vary Shakespearean (ABAB CDCD EFEF GG), Spenserian (ABAB BCBC CDCD EE)
• Volta (turn) signals shift in tone or argument usually occurs in line 9 of Shakespearean sonnets
• Conceit extended metaphor throughout poem (Sidney's Sonnet 71, "Who will in fairest book of Nature know")
• Compressed language employs dense imagery and wordplay maximize impact in limited space
• Addressed to specific subject often lover (Shakespeare's "Fair Youth") or patron (Spenser's "Amoretti")
• Sonnet sequences developed interconnected poems exploring relationship over time (Sidney's "Astrophil and Stella")