Holy Sonnets

Glasgow sonnet is a touching poem written by Edwin Morgan and is about how Glasgow used to be, years ago and the effects that it had on people. It deals with an important issue such as poverty and we see the reality of it and how it shouldn’t be ignored. By examining Morgans use of techniques we will be able to seen more of the effects of poverty and how and things actually are Morgans makes the poem particularly effective by the use of sonnet structure, the first 8 lines show us the area and the surroundings and the second half shows us the inside of the situation including people having to deal with this poverty.

“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” (“Sonnet 18”) is one of Shakespeare’s most famous poems. It is the model English, or Shakespearean sonnet: it contains three quatrains and a finishing couplet.. The poem follows the traditional English sonnet form by having the octet introduce an idea or set up the poem, and the sestet beginning with a volta, or turn in perspective. In the octet of Sonnet 18, Shakespeare poses the question “Shall I compare the to a summer’s day” and basically begins to describe all the bad qualities of summer. He says it’s too windy, too short, too hot, and too cloudy. Eventually fall is going to come and take away all the beauty because of the changes nature brings. In the sestet, however, his tone changes as he begins to talk about his beloved’s “eternal summer” (Shakespeare line 9). This is where the turn takes place in the poem. Unlike the summer, their beauty will never fade. Not even death can stop their beauty for, according to Shakespeare, as long as people can read this poem, his lover’s beauty will continue to live. Shakespeare believes that his art is more powerful than any season and that in it beauty can be permanent.

     The sonnet, being one of the most traditional and recognized forms of poetry, has been used and altered in many time periods by writers to convey different messages to the audience. The strict constraints of the form have often been used to parallel the subject in the poem. Many times, the first three quatrains introduce the subject and build on one another, showing progression in the poem. The final couplet brings closure to the poem by bringing the main ideas together. On other occasions, the couplet makes a statement of irony or refutes the main idea with a counter statement. It leaves the reader with a last impression of what the author is trying to say.

In the romantic era, British authors and poets focused on nature and its influence. Two of those poets, Charlotte Smith and William Wordsworth, wrote many pieces on the beauty of nature and their personal experiences with the beaches of England. In “Far on the sands” and “It is a beauteous evening,” Smith and Wordsworth describe their respective experiences on the shore at sunset. Both authors use structure, theme, allusions, and imagery to effectively convey their perceptions of nature. While the sonnets share a setting and the topics of nature and tranquility, Smith’s has a focus on introspection and Wordsworth’s is centered around religion. These have different focuses which achieve different effects on the reader.

The Molly Maguires are a group of men in Pennsylvania who emigrated from Ireland to look for job opportunities in the great new world America had sold itself as. Originally being founded as a Protestant dominant country, fleeing from religious persecution, there was some tension between Americans and Catholics, in this case the Irish. Unable to find a union that would accept the Irishmen they were, the Mollies formed their secret organization because of their frustrations against their employers, when their needs were not met, they resorted to violence and strikes . The Molly Maguires, or Mollies, were labeled cruel, brutal terrorists in their court hearings. These alleged Mollies got their name after the Irish group in Ireland that existed in the years

     There are many ideas about how the “Molly Maguires” got their name. One of the most popular is that Molly was a poor widow, who was evicted from her home after the landlord’s agent apparently, “severely abused her and her daughter”. The group adopted this name in homage to the Molly and her bravery. Another theory is that Molly’s home was used as the first

The Molly Maguires, also known as the Buckshots, White Boys, and Sleepers , centered in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, more particularly in Cass Township. Although they began as a crude labor organization whose tactics were aimed at bettering the then unbearable working conditions, the "Mollies" soon attracted undesirable elements from the rough mining towns, and became a criminal organization. The members of this organization sought to dominate the politics of the county, and resorted to violence to take care of unfair

Who were the Molly Maguires? Did they really exist? These are questions asked by many people today. Some historians wonder if the Molly Maguires really did bring their secret society from England to the United States, or if the incidents blamed on them were just random accidents on which officials needed to place a blame. We may never actually know...

Francesco Petrarch, Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard, the Earl of Surrey were three of the greatest poets in history. They were truly visionaries in their work and with their origination of the sonnet, they crafted poems of love in all its incredible forms. With these poets, we are able to see how the sonnet evolved into the form popularized by Shakespeare and even how it still influences the modern poetry of today. Petrarch, known as the "Father of Humanism," first wrote the Italian sonnet during the 14th century. Wyatt and Surrey, who lived and were close friends during the tumultuous reign of Henry VIII in England, composed respective translations of some of Petrarch 's

An Echo Sonnet: To an Empty Page, by Robert Pack, incorporates an echo sonnet form, which is foreshadowed in the title. It can be inferred that an echo sonnet is a poem written with the purpose to emphasize and restate a word or partial word for dramatic effect. The use of drama is appropriate due to the fact that sonnets are inner emotions and thoughts that are revealed aloud but not particularly to a specific individual, which tends to be exaggerated and theatrical. Furthermore, the meaning of the sonnet is to convey feelings of depression and anxiety over life and death. The literary techniques used to convey the meaning are rhetorical questions, repetition, and a metaphor.

John Donne's 'Holy Sonnet 2' is primarily written in the traditional Petrarchan sonnet form. One way in which Donne applies this traditional form is through the use of an octave, in which the narrator establishes a problem that causes anxiety and personal turmoil. The octave is then followed by a sestet, where the narrator attempts to organise and present a solution to the issue given in the octave, or there is a change of tone in the narrator's voice. "Wisheth that still he might be imprisoned; / Yet grace…" [1] Although there is a change in tone with the narrative voice, Donne's use of punctuation and enjambement between lines eight and nine suggests that Donne does not rigorously adhere to the traditional Petrarchan form, as the poem becomes detached from this tradition and increases the narrator's conflict and feeling of entrapment and suppression. This, in turn, might indicate that the narrator has no solution for his "black soul" [2] and reflects the narrator's anxiety and fear about not being able to repent, or, at least, not being able to repent in the way which would correspond to the narrator's personal religious beliefs. Anne Coles Kimberly argues that the "Calvinist doctrine held that man is resistant to God (due to sin), but that God will draw his elect to him. Donne, however, is not always convinced that the offer of salvation through grace will act irresistibly upon him." [3] The conflicting feelings about grace and what possible salvation it can offer are

In modern times, youth and beauty is an image seen everywhere. For example, a Versace billboard, magazine ad, TV commercial, all of which displays images of beautiful people. But what happens when this beauty fades? Shakespeare in his 12th sonnet talks about his experience and fading beauty. The purpose of this poem is to encourage a young man to not lose his beauty to the ravages of time. In order to do this, one must reproduce so beauty will live.

‘Sonnet 116’ by William Shakespeare and ‘What Lips My Lips Have Kissed, And Where, And Why” by Edna St. Vincent Millay are both sonnets that discuss companionship and a glimpse of each poet’s experiences. In ‘Sonnet 116’, Shakespeare illustrates how capability is weakened by its metaphysical stereotype and ideals such as, love, while on the contrary, in ‘What Lips My Lips Have Kissed, And Where, And Why” Millay feeds on the chaos between the ideal of love and its harsh reality, heartbreak. Both poets seem to be love struck but there is a significant difference in the two. I will compare and contrast ‘Sonnet 116’ by William Shakespeare and ‘What Lips My Lips Have Kissed, And Where, And Why” by Edna St. Vincent Millay. I will also inquire and analyze why this particular form of poetry established different effects.

Truth and honesty are key elements to a good, healthy relationship. However, in Shakespeare's Sonnet 138, the key to a healthy relationship between the speaker and the Dark Lady is keeping up the lies they have constructed for one another. Through wordplay Shakespeare creates different levels of meaning, in doing this, he shows the nature of truth and flattery in relationships.

Many people are familiar with poetry; they understand their basic concepts and know that some differ in their size and how they rhyme. What some people may not know is that poems are categorized and there are many different types of groups within poetry. There are various types of poetry -- which include the sonnet. The sonnet was introduced by an Italian poet named Francesco Petrarch (1304-1374) who introduced the creation in the 13th century (Applebee 295). He wrote over 300 love sonnets, a great number of them were dedicated to a woman named Laura. Centuries passed in which sonnets were not as popular; his work was later rediscovered by two lovelorn poets. Their names were Sir Thomas Wyatt (1503-1542) and Henry Howard, earl of Surrey (1517-1547). They changed some of the rhyme scheme to tie in with the English language; Shakespeare went on to write many sonnets, he was very good and left a huge impact on the style of poetry.