Sonnet

Amanda Bruner Mr. Kuhn Honors English 12 - E Period 22 September 2014 Awe for Calm In his Petrarchan sonnet “Composed upon Westminister Bridge, September 3, 1802,” William Wordsworth expresses his enthusiasm for the scene of London by explaining its vast beauty brought upon through the stillness of nature in the early morning. Differing from the majority of Wordsworth’s writings, this sonnet initially focuses on the unnatural world consisting of buildings and man-made objects present in an…

strong emotion about Love? Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s “Sonnet 43” and Edna St Vincent Millay’s “Sonnet 29” show that love is a life-changing force in a person’s life, and how they are affected differently by Cupid’s arrow. Browning has a sensuous experience of love whereas it has impacted Millay adversely. This essay explores how the twopoets use the sonnet form, imagery and tone to express their contrasting feelings of love. The sonnet form plays a vital part in explaining Browning's…

Browning wrote sonnet 43 in a series of sonnets titled Sonnets from the Portuguese. Although the individuals in the poem ‒ the narrator and the lover ‒ are ambiguous, there is a strong correlation between Barrett Browning's love life and the complex love of the sonnet. Even though there can be an argument made that sonnet 43 is not Barrett Browning’s husband, I will be using the assumption that Barrett Browning is the narrator and her husband is the lover. The theme that surrounds this sonnet is…

The aim of this assignment is to depict the various differences and similarities in Donne’s courtly sonnets and holy sonnet sequence, with reference to “A Valediction Forbidding Mourning” and “Holy Sonnet XIV”. “A Valediction Forbidding Mourning” depicts through various conceits and metaphors the theme of the bond between two lovers who are separated physically, but are not ready to sacrifice their relationship and passion due to the mere fact that they are separated by distance. This poem…

One can see examples of this in “Sonnet 18: Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day” and “Sonnet 130: My Mistress’ Eyes Are Nothing Like the Sun.” As one can tell from the titles, these are drastically different poems. Just by analyzing the titles, one can assess that Sonnet 18 seems positive while Sonnet 130 seems negative. This is because the first 126 Sonnets were speaking of a “Fair Youth,” and Sonnets 127-152 are speaking of a “Dark Lady” (Dautch). Although Sonnet 18 and 130 have the same…

over the world can relate to the theme no matter what time period it is. Classic stories remain timeless because their messages stay constant in today’s society. One theme defined in literature is that love doesn’t always have to be perfect. In “Sonnet 130”, the main character says, “I love to hear her speak, yet well I know that music hath a far more pleasing sound.” (Shakespeare 9-10) This piece shows how he still loves her even with her flaws. In today’s society, people want to be with the…

Shakespearean Sonnets and Modern Day Love Songs Shakespeare’s is a very well-known British poet, playwright, etc. that wrote a majority of the plays that we all read in school. Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets, all with no name. All 154 sonnets were published in 1609 by Thomas Thorpe, most likely without Shakespeare’s consent. Speculation says that the first 126 sonnets are about a young man that he was in love with. The final 28 sonnets are about a promiscuous woman that is known as “The Dark…

affiliated to religion, yet detached by it. In “My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun”, William Shakespeare is comparing his lover’s eyes to the natural beauty in a mocking way, yet always making nature’s elegance fascinating. Throughout this sonnet, William Shakespeare subdues his lover’s charm by portraying her as crowded with imperfections showing frankness and simplicity. Furthermore, In “Twas warm-at-first-like Us”, a corpse burial is implemented, demonstrating a transition from life…

Context plays a significant role in portraying values of the composer triggered by time and place. ‘Sonnets from the Portuguese’ (1845) by Elizabeth Barrett Browning is a reflection of her personal experiences in the context of the Victorian era’s gender issues and female expectation in a Petrarchan form. Similarly F. Scott Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’ (1926) centres of the failure and tragedy of the American dream in the Roaring 20's. Both texts explore the positive and negative effects of…

The Holy Sonnets and other Poems by John Donne (1572-1631) as well as the post-modern theatrical production “W;T” by Margaret Edson (1995) explore the enduring themes of the human condition, such as the mortality of man, and the interpersonal bonds that define humanity. These themes manifest in a religious context through Donne’s English Renaissance (1590 – 1710) due to the Calvinist beliefs of his time; such as life after death and an intrinsic potential for human bonds to be spiritual and…