The Sonnet

Literature > English
Literature > Poetry
Shakespeare > Sonnets

The Sonnet

This paper examines the use of the sonnet in Thomas Wyatt's "Whoso List to Hunt" and Shakespeare's sonnets 18 and 130, specifically the Petrarchan sonnet.

1,360 words () | 4 sources | MLA | 2009 United Kingdom

Paper Summary:

By using Thomas Wyatt's sonnet, "Whoso List to Hunt" and Shakespeare's Sonnets 18 and 130, this essay demonstrates how the Petrarchan sonnet form has been employed, adapted and subverted by these two poets. This paper analyzes the structural conventions of the sonnet and illustrates Wyatt's attempt to adopt Petrarchan conventions whilst highlighting how Shakespeare re-invents them. The paper also examines the different ways in which the conceit, blazons and Petrarchan content were employed and subverted by Shakespeare in sonnets 8 and 130.

From the Paper:

"By using Thomas Wyatt's sonnet Whoso List to Hunt and Shakespeare's Sonnets 18 and 130, this essay will attempt to demonstrate how the Petrarchan sonnet form has been employed, adapted and subverted by these two poets. The structural conventions of the sonnet will firstly be considered, illustrating Wyatt's attempt to adopt Petrarchan conventions whilst highlighting how Shakespeare re-invents them. The different ways in which the conceit, blazons and Petrarchan content were employed and subverted by Shakespeare will then be examined through a comparison of Sonnet 8 and 130."

Sample of Sources Used:

Ferguson, Salter and Stallworthy The Norton Anthology of Poetry Fifth Edition W.W.Norton and Co: London 2005
Fuller, John The Oxford Book of the Sonnet Oxford University Press: Oxford 2000
Kennedy, X.J An Introduction to Poetry Little, Brown and Co: Boston 1986
Tillyard, E.M. The Elizabethan World Picture Vintage Press: London 1959