Enlightenment and Renaissannce Poetry

poetic devices and terms

- stanza
- couplet
- quatrain
- sestet
- octave
- rhyme scheme
- apostrophe
- allusion
- metaphor
- personification
- satire

stanza

a group of lines in poetry

couplet

two line stanza

quatrain

four line stanza

sestet

six line stanza

octave

eight line stanza

rhyme scheme

pattern of end rhymes designated by a lettering system

apostrophe

a poet or speaker addresses an absent person, abstract idea, or object which cannot reply

allusion

reference to a known event, work, or person

metaphor

comparison of unlike objects (without using like, as, or than)

personification

human characteristics given to a non-human

satire

when vices, follies, or shortcomings are held up for ridicule

sonnet form (general)

- 14 lines
- primarily iambic pentameter
- typically have defined rhyme scheme and structure of content

iambic pentameter

five iambs (unstressed syllable) followed by a stressed syllable

iambic pentameter examples

- to households both alike in dignity
- in fair verona where we lay our scene

most common sonnet forms

- shakespearean (english)
- petrarchan (originally an italian form)
- spenserian (a variation of the english form)

sonnet form (shakespearean)

- 14 lines
- iambic pentameter
- three quatrains develop the problem, conflict, or issue
- final couplet resolves, solves, or answers

shakespearean sonnet rhyme scheme

abab cdcd efef gg

sonnet 116 (shakespeare)

let me not to the marriage of true minds
admit impediments; love is not love
which alters when it alteration finds,
or bends with the remover to remove.
o no, it is an ever-fixèd mark
that looks on tempests and is never shaken;
it is the star to every wand'ring bark
whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
love's not time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
within his bending sickle's compass come.
love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
but bears it out even to the edge of doom:
if this be error and upon me proved,
i never writ, nor no man ever loved.

what is the meaning of sonnet 116's first quatrain?

love—"the marriage of true minds"—is perfect and unchanging; it does not "admit impediments," and it does not change when it find changes in the loved one

what is the meaning of sonnet 116's second quatrain?

speaker tells what love is through a metaphor: a guiding star to lost ships ("wand'ring barks") that is not susceptible to storms (it "looks on tempests and is never shaken")

what is the meaning of sonnet 116's third quatrain?

- the speaker again describes what love is not: it is not susceptible to time
- though beauty fades in time as rosy lips and cheeks come within "his bending sickle's compass," love does not change with hours and weeks: instead, it "bears it out ev'n to the edge of doom."

what is the meaning of sonnet 116's couplet?

the speaker attests to his certainty that love is as he says: if his statements can be proved to be error, he declares, he must never have written a word, and no man can ever have been in love

sonnet 130 (shakespeare)

my mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;
coral is far more red than her lips' red;
if snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;
if hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.
i have seen roses damasked, red and white,
but no such roses see i in her cheeks;
and in some perfumes is there more delight
than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.
i love to hear her speak, yet well i know
that music hath a far more pleasing sound;
i grant i never saw a goddess go;
my mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground.
and yet, by heaven, i think my love as rare
as any she belied with false compare.

what happens in sonnet 130's first eight lines?

shakespeare is criticizing the clichés used by sonnet writers (like petrarch of the 14th century)

what clichés is shakespeare satirizing?

"my mistress' eyes are as bright as the sun" / "her lips are as red as coral" by describing a woman who is real, but not ideal

how does the tone of sonnet 130 shift in the third quatrain?

although the woman is not ideal, the speaker loves to hear her

how does sonnet 130's couplet drive the speaker's point home?

- his love is one of the rare forms of love (wonderful) as all those women falsely compared in cliché sonnets (the love is real)
- he thinks his love as rare and valuable "as any she belied with false compare"—that is, any love in which false comparisons were invoked to describe the loved one's beauty

sonnet 29 (shakespeare)

when, in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes,
i all alone beweep my outcast state,
and trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,
and look upon myself and curse my fate,
wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
featured like him, like him with friends possessed,
desiring this man's art and that man's scope,
with what i most enjoy contented least;
yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,
haply i think on thee, and then my state,
(like to the lark at break of day arising
from sullen earth) sings hymns at heaven's gate;
for thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings
that then i scorn to change my state with kings.

what do the opening lines of sonnet 29 suggest?

the speaker feels like a failure (this is the problem developed)

what literary device is used in the line "and trouble deaf heaven"?

personification (deaf heaven) - not even god is listening to the speaker

sonnet 29 lines 5-8

speaker wants things that others have (he is jealous, envious, and covetous):
1.) hope
2.) good looks
3.) friends
4.) creativity
5.) intellect

what situation is sonnet 29's speaker in?

unrequited love

where does a change in tone occur in sonnet 29?

third quatrain (specifically line 9): "yet in these thoughts myself almost despising / haply i think on thee, and then my state / (like to the lark)..." - tone shifts from bleak to hopeful

sonnet 29 couplet

"for thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings / that then i scorn to change my state with kings" - reveals that if he has his love, he has everything he needs

sonnet form (petrarchan)

- 14 lines
- iambic pentameter
- octave develops the problem, conflict, or issue
- final sestet resolves, solves or answers
- sir phillip sidney used this form, but also played with it

petrarchan sonnet rhyme scheme

- abbaabba cdcdEE (couplet)
- abbaabba cdecde (no couplet)

sonnet 31 (sidney)

with how sad steps, o moon, thou climb'st the skies!
how silently, and with how wan a face!
what, may it be that even in heav'nly place
that busy archer his sharp arrows tries!
sure, if that long-with love-acquainted eyes
can judge of love, thou feel'st a lover's case,
i read it in thy looks; thy languish'd grace
to me, that feel the like, thy state descries.
then, ev'n of fellowship, o moon, tell me,
is constant love deem'd there but want of wit?
are beauties there as proud as here they be?
do they above love to be lov'd, and yet
those lovers scorn whom that love doth possess?
do they call virtue there ungratefulness?

what literary devices are present in the lines "with how sad steps, o moon, though climb'st the skies! / how silently, and with how wan a face!"?

personification and apostrophe

sad, thou climb'st the skies! / how wan a face!

personification

moon

apostrophe

how do the lines "with how sad steps, o moon, though climb'st the skies! / how silently, and with how wan a face!" set the initial tone of sonnet 31?

- sad and wan are descriptive words, so we can make inferences
- initial tone = somber

what literary device is used in "that busy archer his sharp arrows tries!"?

allusion - cupid

what does the speaker see in the moon?

the moon is lovesick

what does the speaker ask the moon?

1.) are true and faithful love idiots? - "is constant love deemed there but want of wit?"
2.) are beauties always vain? - "are beauties there as proud as here they be?" + "do they above love to be lov'd, and yet"
3.) do nice people always finish last? - "those lovers scorn whom that love doth possess?" + "do they call virtue there ungratefulness?"

what is the problem developed in the first octave of sonnet 31?

- speaker's love sickness is even reflected in the moon

what does sonnet 31's sestet conclude?

speaker concludes that it is a universal quality of women to choose pride over love

sonnet 39 (sidney)

come sleep! o sleep, the certain knot of peace,
the baiting-place of wit, the balm of woe,
the poor man's wealth, the prisoner's release,
th' indifferent judge between the high and low.
with shield of proof shield me from out the prease
of those fierce darts despair at me doth throw:
o make in me those civil wars to cease;
i will good tribute pay, if thou do so.
take thou of me smooth pillows, sweetest bed,
a chamber deaf to noise and blind to light,
a rosy garland and a weary head:
and if these things, as being thine by right,
move not thy heavy grace, thou shalt in me,
livelier than elsewhere, stella's image see.

what literary device is used in the line "come sleep; o sleep! the certain knot of peace!"

apostrophe

what do we learn about the speaker in sonnet 39?

the speaker hopes to find peace in sleep

how many metaphors are used to describe the power of sleep?

- six (the baiting-place of wit, the balm of woe,
the poor man's wealth, the prisoner's release,
th' indifferent judge between the high and low.
with shield of proof shield me from out the prease)
1.) place where wit is found
2.) place for healing of woe
3.) money for the poor
4.) release for the prisoner
5.) an impartial judge
6.) a shield

Despair (NOT despair)

- throws darts at speaker (personification)
- speaker is severely depressed

what does the speaker suggest in sonnet 39?

if sleep can stop his civil, the speaker will pay him (heart vs. head)

what kind of literary device is used in the line "a chamber deaf to noise and blind of light?"

personification (chamber) - speaker offers a perfect sleeping place and seeing stella in his dreams

what is the final clincher of the deal?

the speaker giving up seeing stella in his dreams

sonnet form (spenserian)

- variant of shakespearean sonnet
- 14 lines
- iambic pentameter
- three quatrains develop the problem, conflict, or issue
- final couplet resolves, solves, or answers

spenserian sonnet rhyme scheme

abab bcbc cdcd ee

sonnet 35 (spenser)

my hungry eyes, through greedy covetize
still to behold the obiect of their paine,
with no contentment can themselves suffize;
but having, pine, and having not, complaine.
for lacking it, they cannot lyfe sustayne;
and having it, they gaze on it the more,
in their amazement lyke narcissus vaine,
whose eyes him starv'd: so plenty makes me poore.
yet are mine eyes so filled with the store
of that faire sight, that nothing else they brooke,
but lothe the things which they did like before,
and can no more endure on them to looke.
all this worlds glory seemeth vayne to me,
and all their showes but shadowes, saving she.

what poetic device is used immediately to set the tone of sonnet 35?

- speaker's eyes are personified
- leads to a feeling of intense longing
- negativity, speaker is suffering

"narcissus vain"

allusion to greek mythology (narcissus)

why does the speaker of sonnet 35 suffer?

he suffers because he can never get enough of "her"

what has happened to all other things in the speaker's vision?

- they pale in relation to her (in terms of their meaning)
- his eyes cannot be satisfied with anything but her

sonnet 75 (spenser)

one day i wrote her name upon the strand,
but came the waves and washed it away:
again i wrote it with a second hand,
but came the tide, and made my pains his prey.
"vain man," said she, "that dost in vain assay,
a mortal thing so to immortalize;
for i myself shall like to this decay,
and eke my name be wiped out likewise."
"not so," (quod I) "let baser things devise
to die in dust, but you shall live by fame:
my verse your vertues rare shall eternize,
and in the heavens write your glorious name:
where whenas death shall all the world subdue,
our love shall live, and later life renew."

what problem does the speaker face in sonnet 75 (one day i wrote her name upon the strand,
but came the waves and washed it away:
again i wrote it with a second hand,
but came the tide, and made my pains his prey.)?

- the speaker is trying to write her name in the sand and the waves/tide keep washing it away: he doesn't want people to forget her name and is trying to immortalize love, but time and nature will run its course and it will end
- symbolism: life eventually comes to an end (impermanence)

what is his lover's response (sonnet 75; "vain man," said she, "that dost in vain assay,
a mortal thing so to immortalize;
for i myself shall like to this decay,
and eke my name be wiped out likewise.")?

- she is more realistic than romantic (idealistic)
- she says that he works in vain

what is the speaker's response to his lover's doubt (sonnet 75; "not so," (quod I) "let baser things devise
to die in dust, but you shall live by fame:
my verse your vertues rare shall eternize,
and in the heavens write your glorious name:
where whenas death shall all the world subdue,
our love shall live, and later life renew.")?

- the speaker's poem will immortalize her for the rest of time
- even in the afterlife people will know of their love (this is the solution)

enlightenment poems

- to althea, from prison
- to lucasta, going to the wars
- to the virgins, to make much of time
- to his coy mistress

to althea, from prison

when love with unconfinèd wings
hovers within my gates,
and my divine althea brings
to whisper at the grates;
when i lie tangled in her hair,
and fettered to her eye,
the gods that wanton in the air,
know no such liberty.

when flowing cups run swiftly round
with no allaying thames,
our careless heads with roses bound,
our hearts with loyal flames;
when thirsty grief in wine we steep,
when healths and draughts go free,
fishes that tipple in the deep
know no such liberty.

when (like committed linnets) i
with shriller throat shall sing
the sweetness, mercy, majesty,
and glories of my king;
when i shall voice aloud how good
he is, how great should be,
enlargèd winds, that curl the Flood,
know no such liberty.

stone walls do not a prison make,
nor iron bars a cage;
minds innocent and quiet take
that for an hermitage.
if i have freedom in my love,
and in my soul am free,
angels alone that soar above,
enjoy such liberty.

who is the author of "to althea, from prison"?

richard lovelace

to althea, from prison: stanza one

- love can take you to new heights
- in the speaker's mind and heart, he is with her
- his love for her frees him from the burden of missing her

to althea, from prison: stanza two

- he is describing his love for her as how really good wine makes him feel great

to althea, from prison: stanza three

hint of sarcasm - singing liked a caged bird: he is blaming the situation on himself
- not sure of exact situation, but maybe his job of working for the king has sent him away

to althea, from prison: stanza four

- stone walls and iron walls do not make a prison... anything can be a prison
- his prison is being away from althea
- his imagination gives him hope

to lucasta, going to the wars

tell me not (sweet) i am unkind,
that from the nunnery
of thy chaste breast and quiet mind
to war and arms i fly.

true, a new mistress now i chase,
the first foe in the field;
and with a stronger faith embrace
a sword, a horse, a shield.

yet this inconstancy is such
as you too shall adore;
i could not love thee (dear) so much,
lov'd i not honor more.

who is the author of "to lucasta, going to the wars"?

richard lovelace

to lucasta, going to the wars: stanza one

- his love is virtuous and pure
- she does not chase around other people, but he goes off to war despite loving her

to lucasta, going to the wars: stanza two

he values honor above love, but he might not have a choice

to lucasta, going to the wars: stanza three

- he tells his lover that once she realizes why he is leaving her, she will love and respect his decision
- he then leaves her with this bombshell: he tells her that he could not love her as much as he did if he did not love the glories of war more

to the virgins, to make much of time

gather ye rose-buds while ye may,
old Time is still a-flying;
and this same flower that smiles today
tomorrow will be dying.

the glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,
the higher he's a-getting,
the sooner will his race be run,
and nearer he's to setting.

that age is best which is the first,
when youth and blood are warmer;
but being spent, the worse, and worst
times still succeed the former.

then be not coy, but use your time,
and while ye may, go marry;
for having lost but once your prime,
you may forever tarry.

who is the author of "to the virgins, to make much of time"?

robert herrick

to the virgins, to make much of time: main message

seize the day - we're not promised tomorrow / our time on earth is temporary

to the virgins, to make much of time: stanza one

- you're only guaranteed the present moment
- we don't know how much time we have left, so do the things you enjoy

to the virgins, to make much of time: stanza two

- sun = the cycle of the sun is like the cycle of human life (metaphor)
- your youth is supposed to be the best part of your life
- youth being spent leads to life becoming harder/less enjoyable - getting older comes with more worries

to the virgins, to make much of time: stanza three

- bit of warning... if you don't make the most of your time while you're young, you're not going to throughout your life
- you're forming a bad habit

to his coy mistress

had we but world enough and time,
this coyness, lady, were no crime.
we would sit down, and think which way
to walk, and pass our long love's day.
thou by the indian ganges' side
shouldst rubies find; i by the tide
of humber would complain. i would
love you ten years before the flood,
and you should, if you please, refuse
till the conversion of the jews.
my vegetable love should grow
vaster than empires and more slow;
an hundred years should go to praise
thine eyes, and on thy forehead gaze;
two hundred to adore each breast,
but thirty thousand to the rest;
an age at least to every part,
and the last age should show your heart.
for, lady, you deserve this state,
nor would i love at lower rate.
but at my back i always hear
time's wingèd chariot hurrying near;
and yonder all before us lie
deserts of vast eternity.
thy beauty shall no more be found;
nor, in thy marble vault, shall sound
my echoing song; then worms shall try
that long-preserved virginity,
and your quaint honor turn to dust,
and into ashes all my lust;
the grave's a fine and private place,
but none, i think, do there embrace.
now therefore, while the youthful hue
sits on thy skin like morning dew,
and while thy willing soul transpires
at every pore with instant fires,
now let us sport us while we may,
and now, like amorous birds of prey,
rather at once our time devour
than languish in his slow-chapped power.
let us roll all our strength and all
our sweetness up into one ball,
and tear our pleasures with rough strife
through the iron gates of life:
thus, though we cannot make our sun
stand still, yet we will make him run.

who is the author of "to his coy mistress"?

andrew marvell

what does coy mean?

playful shyness: a lady was supposed to reject the man on the first couple dates so the man could earn her love

to his coy mistress: stanza one

- exaggeration in time it would take to win her approval... if we had an infinite amount of time he wouldn't mind her coyness, but we don't
- essentially, let's cut to the chase: do you like me?

to his coy mistress: stanza two

death is inevitable, so why are we waiting to love each other?

to his coy mistress: stanza three

- sun metaphor reappears from "to the virgins, to make much time"
- SEIZE THE DAY.