Introduction to Sonnet 18 and Shakespearean Sonnets

TL;DR

You're going to learn about Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare, a famous love poem. This sonnet is a perfect example of a Shakespearean sonnet, which has a specific structure of 14 lines and a unique rhyme scheme. Understanding its form and themes will help you appreciate poetry better and do well in your English FAL paper.

1. The Mental Model

Imagine a sonnet as a perfectly crafted musical box: it always has 14 parts (lines), a specific rhythm, and tells a complete story or idea in a short space. Shakespeare's sonnets, especially Sonnet 18, are like the most beautiful and well-known melodies from these boxes.

2. The Core Material

Shakespearean sonnets, also known as English sonnets, are a big deal in poetry. They follow a very specific pattern, and once you get it, you'll spot them everywhere!

What makes a Shakespearean Sonnet?

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1. 14 Lines: Always, always 14 lines long. No more, no less.
2. Iambic Pentameter: This is the rhythm. Think of it as a heartbeat: da-DUM, da-DUM, da-DUM, da-DUM, da-DUM. Each "da-DUM" is an "iamb," and "penta" means five, so it's five iambs per line (10 syllables total). It gives the poem a natural, flowing sound.
   • Example: "Shall I comPARE thee TO a SUMmer's DAY?"
3. Rhyme Scheme: This is how the lines rhyme at the end. For a Shakespearean sonnet, it's ABAB CDCD EFEF GG.
   • The first line (A) rhymes with the third line (A).
   • The second line (B) rhymes with the fourth line (B).
   • This pattern repeats for the next two groups of four lines.
   • The last two lines (GG) rhyme with each other – this is called a couplet.
4. Structure: Sonnets are usually broken into three quatrains (four-line stanzas) and one couplet (two-line stanza).
   • Quatrain 1 (Lines 1-4): Introduces the main idea or problem.
   • Quatrain 2 (Lines 5-8): Develops the idea, perhaps with an example or a comparison.
   • Quatrain 3 (Lines 9-12): Often presents a "turn" or a "volta" – a shift in thought, feeling, or argument.
   • Couplet (Lines 13-14): Provides a conclusion, a summary, or a surprising twist.

Here's how that structure looks:

graph TD
    A["Sonnet (14 Lines)"] --> B["Quatrain 1 (Lines 1-4)"]
    A --> C["Quatrain 2 (Lines 5-8)"]
    A --> D["Quatrain 3 (Lines 9-12)"]
    A --> E["Couplet (Lines 13-14)"]

    B --> F["Introduces idea/problem (ABAB rhyme)"]
    C --> G["Develops idea/comparison (CDCD rhyme)"]
    D --> H["'Volta' or turn in thought (EFEF rhyme)"]
    E --> I["Conclusion/Summary/Twist (GG rhyme)"]

Sonnet 18: "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?"

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This is one of Shakespeare's most famous sonnets, and it's a brilliant example of everything we just discussed.

Theme: The main idea of Sonnet 18 is about the enduring beauty of the person the speaker is addressing, compared to the temporary nature of a summer's day. It's a celebration of love and the power of poetry to make that love and beauty immortal.

Let's break down its key elements:

• Comparison: The speaker immediately asks if he should compare the beloved to a summer's day. He then spends the rest of the sonnet explaining why the beloved is better than summer. Summer is too short, sometimes too hot, and its beauty fades. The beloved's beauty, however, is eternal.
• Immortality through Poetry: The key message comes in the final lines. The speaker believes that as long as people can read and understand this poem, the beloved's beauty and essence will live on forever, defying time and death. This is the ultimate power the poet claims for his verse.
• Language and Imagery: Shakespeare uses beautiful language and imagery related to nature (summer, sun, flowers, wind) to highlight the temporary aspects of the natural world, contrasting them with the permanent beauty of the beloved.

3. Worked Example

Let's look at the first four lines (the first quatrain) of Sonnet 18:

• "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? (A)
• Thou art more lovely and more temperate: (B)
• Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, (A)
• And summer's lease hath all too short a date: (B)"

1. 14 Lines? Yes, this is just the first part of a 14-line poem.
2. Iambic Pentameter? Let's count the syllables and listen to the rhythm:
   • Shall I | com PARE | thee TO | a SUM | mer's DAY? (10 syllables, da-DUM x 5) - Yes!
   • Thou ART | more LOVE | ly AND | more TEMP | er ATE: (10 syllables, da-DUM x 5) - Yes!
3. Rhyme Scheme?
   • day (A) rhymes with May (A).
   • temperate (B) rhymes with date (B).
   • This perfectly matches the ABAB pattern for the first quatrain.

You can see how Shakespeare introduces the comparison (lines 1-2) and then immediately points out flaws in summer (lines 3-4) to elevate the beloved.

4. Key Takeaways

• A Shakespearean sonnet always has 14 lines, is written in iambic pentameter, and follows an ABAB CDCD EFEF GG rhyme scheme.
• The sonnet's structure involves three quatrains that develop an idea and a final couplet that offers a conclusion or twist.
• Sonnet 18 compares the beloved's eternal beauty to the fleeting nature of a summer's day.
• The central theme of Sonnet 18 is the power of poetry to grant immortality to the beloved's beauty.
• Shakespeare uses vivid imagery and personification to make his arguments.

Common Mistakes to Avoid:

• Confusing Shakespearean sonnets with other types (like Petrarchan sonnets, which have a different structure and rhyme scheme).
• Forgetting to look for the "volta" (turn in thought) around line 9 or 13.
• Just summarizing the poem instead of analyzing how its structure and language contribute to its meaning.
• Ignoring the rhyme scheme or meter – they're not just decorations; they're part of the poem's meaning and effect.

5. Now Try It

Read the next four lines (the second quatrain) of Sonnet 18, which are lines 5-8:

"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;"

Your task is to:
1. Identify the rhyme scheme for these four lines. Does it match the CDCD pattern?
2. In your own words, explain what Shakespeare is saying about summer in these lines. How does he continue to argue that the beloved is superior?

Success means you can correctly identify the rhyming words and explain the main idea of those lines, showing you understand how Shakespeare builds his argument.