3rd lecture Intro to Early Modern Lit L3 S5

What happened to the sonnet during the Barock age?

• The Spanish Golden Age: Cervantes Don Quichote

• Italy: the renewal of the sonnet by Giambattista Marina

• Germany: a new Petrarchism with Opitz

• France: the decline of the sonnet because of Ronsard

• England (after 1630s); more rare, isolated example = Milton

What and when appear the Metaphysical poets?

17th

John Donne (religious poetry with erotic undertones)

—> Rejection of Petrarchism

—> Use of paradox. Ex: Holy sonnet

who and when: The Cavalier Poets?

17th

Thomas Carew, Lip and Eyes =/ a sonnet, petrarchism voc, blazon, playing with the contradiction of the metaphors used => Reasoning with devices instead of ides

What happened during the 17th?

• The age of the Metaphysical Poets

• The Cavalier Poets

• Restauration Poetry

• The Augustan Age (=/ sonnes)

What does Psalm mean?

Little song as sonnets

Who translated psalms?

• Sir Thomas Wyatt, Anne Lockn Sir Philip Sidney, Mary Sidney

What did Anne Lock write?

The Meditation of a Penitent Sinner

• development of each line of psalm 51 of David into a series of sonnets

• asking for forgiveness and redemption

• characteristic of Calvinist poetry

• use of lyric mode and repetitions

• probably meant to be said aloud

What did Barnabe Barnes write?

Parthenophil and Parthenophe 1593

• to warn against the dangers of love

• love potion to intoxicate the belovèd and to make love to her

• the love wound caused by Cupid’s arrow = replaced by Jesus’ wound

• The Muse =/ the belovèd = Jesus

=> Renouncing to love on Earth for  love to God

Who was John Milton?

1608-1674

• known for Paradise Lost

• wrote sonnets as secondary in his L

• Was in the Civil War as a Puritan

What was peculiar with Milton’s sonnets?

• was inspired by Italian sonnets (Giovanni, Della casa) and he used more the Italian pattern than the Englishs

• sometimes combined the It and EN patterns with a strong volta

• wrote around 20 sonnets (few aout love and the others about the role of a believer in a community, reaching the perfection of the self

• often mentions “Vision” in his sonnets → He became blind through the years

Who was Milton a role model for?

William Wordworth (late 19th)