The use of the sonnets in 20th century poetry.
Sarah Kennedy English Coursework
The use of the sonnets in 20th century poetry .
In my discussion of literary tradition in the 20th century with specific reference to Shakespearean and Patrarchan sonnet formats, three post 1914 sonnets will be chosen from the poems we have been studying at school for comparison and analysis of the different formats and how they add meaning to the sonnets. I have therefore selected the following as my subjects: Rupert Brooke - 'The Soldier', Robert Frost - 'Acceptance' and Wilfred Owen - 'Anthem for Doomed Youth'. From these three poems we can now discuss the use of the sonnet format in the 20th Century.
The poems selected are written in two different versions of the sonnet format. In both these versions whilst there are always 14 lines, as is basic to the sonnet, the different poets have permitted the sonnet to be divided up in different ways within the basic structure depending on their view and how they wished to emphasise their message.
There is a long tradition, in every century since Patrarchan, for poets to use the sonnet as vehicle for exploring their feelings and experiences. It is well suited to this as the structure permits the poet to place gentle emphasis on the important parts of his message by the use of the repetition of sounds and patterns of rhyme. Whilst the rhymes give resonance to the sounds and emphasise the message, there is also a generally widespread use of alliteration to give further emphasis - e.g. in Robert Frost's uses 'spent sun' (line 1) and 'softly,safe' (line11). Wilfred Owen uses 'rapid rattle' (line 3) and 'sad shires' (line 8) and Rupert Brookes uses 'foreign field' (line 2) and 'laughter learnt' (line 13) amongst many others to bring the additional emphasis which he wanted. The repetition of sounds in this way leaves a lasting thought in the reader's head.
Robert Frost's poem has a lot less serious tone compared to the other two poems. The message is still put across well but more subtly which fits with the poem. He is talking to the people through his poem but in a rhetorical manner and closes the poem with clear acceptance of his message therefore explaining the title.
Robert Frost's sonnet uses the Shakespearean format. This is where each line is in iambic pentameter with an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one e.g. (line 1) 'rays on a cloud' where the emphasis is on the syllable ...
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Robert Frost's poem has a lot less serious tone compared to the other two poems. The message is still put across well but more subtly which fits with the poem. He is talking to the people through his poem but in a rhetorical manner and closes the poem with clear acceptance of his message therefore explaining the title.
Robert Frost's sonnet uses the Shakespearean format. This is where each line is in iambic pentameter with an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one e.g. (line 1) 'rays on a cloud' where the emphasis is on the syllable 'oud' in 'cloud' and which rhymes with this where he says (line 3) 'is heard to cry aloud'. The lines have rhyming quatrains and end up in a rhyming couplet: abab,cdcd,efef,gg. This is clearly evident in the ending of his sonnet Acceptance: (line13) 'for me to see' and (line 14) 'what well be, be'. All of this adds to the message of the poem is the acceptance of death of a person through their natural course. There is reference to the acceptance of death when it says, 'No voice in nature is heard to cry aloud' this also bring the image of darkness and silence into the poem bring a solemn tone of death. There are three quatrains in this sonnet and each tells a different part to the story; 1st quatrain tells us of the start of the sun setting, ending up in darkness and silence- this sets the initial tone by bring the poem to silence. 2nd quatrain is when death starts to occur and the darkness prolongs. 3rd quatrain is when the death is coming to its end and leaves the thought of the person dying with dignity in peace and going to heaven.
Rupert Brooke's and Wilfred Owen's sonnets both use the Petrarchan format. This is when they, like the Shakespearean format, use iambic pentameter but the difference is in the rhyming pattern used. This format separates the sonnets into 2 sections: the first being the octave, which is an 8 lined unit, and the second being a sestet, which is a six lined unit of verse in a section of a poem that is repeated in the same form, with either similar or identical patterns of rhymes. This constitutes the last six lines of the Petrarchan format. Here is the sequence for the whole Petrarchan format: abbaabba, cdcdcd.
Rupert Brookes poem is him talking to his country in a patriotic way after the war. He is telling people his love for the country and not just for one person, the tone is a very religious epitaph and brings the point of his poem out very strongly.
Rupert Brookes sonnet 'The Soldier' was one of the great war poems and expressed a very patriotic and noble attitude to the war which wasn't as realistic in people's eyes compared to other authors at the time such as Wilfred Owen. This made Rupert Brookes sonnet very individualistic. The use of the chosen format brings emphasis to certain parts of the sonnet for example the quatrain:
a - introduces the question
b - gives reasons and answers
b- gives different answers in a similar way.
Using repetition with similar patterns so the pattern of verse suits the poets wish to re-emphasise his message here is an example:
a- If I should die,....
b-That theres some...
b-That is forever...
All of this adds to the message that Rupert Brooke was trying to give out to the readers of his poem. That there was another side to how everyone remembered the first world war and this was that if a soldier died in the war they should be remembered for fighting for their country and the person would have gone to heaven. The sonnet was quoted in a sermon on Easter Sunday 1915, this is because is also has religious epitaph. The poem is positive and tries to put a positive message in all the readers minds about the people in the war, if they are friends or even family. From then onwards it was remembered by people and Brooke was remembered as being a poet of 'exceptional, unfulfilled promise.'(D. Birchall)
Wilfred Owen's poem 'Anthem for Doomed Youth' automatically sends out the tone by the title and using the word 'doomed'. Then when you read on to discover it's about the war, you already know that the tone is sad. He is using interior monologue and telling his thoughts to the reader. Also the use of a question mark changes the sound of the first sentence. He also uses lots of different types of figurative language which is adding more meaning to his poem so that the reader is more engaged and will remember the point that he puts across to do with all the people who died.
In Wilfred Owen's sonnet, he also starts with a question and then gives an answer to that here is an example:
a- What passing bells ...
b- only the monstrous...
b- only the stuttering...
He is using rhetorical questions as he then goes on to answer his own question. This could be so the reader doesn't get their own opinion of the question they just have to accept the answer given in the poem.
Again all of this adds to the tone and message of the poem, which is a very solemn and solitary tone. The poem is all about the respect of the people who died and fought in the war. I think that this poem is very negative compared to 'The Soldier' but that is the tone that Wilfred Owen wanted to get across.
I think that all three of these poems suit the format that they have been written in, as this adds extra emphasis to the poets message through the use of compelling imagery for example in Wilfred Owen's poem Anthem for the doomed youth, ''And bugles calling for them from sad shires.'' and whilst in these cases, the subject matter deals with sad and emotional areas such as patriotism, war, death and the acceptance of death, the gentleness of the sonnet style, which was often used for poems of love, adds an extra poignancy to the messages they are sending and leaves us quietly reflecting on the subject matter.
Of the three, my personal favourite is 'The Soldier' by Rupert Brooke because of his different way 'take' on the aftermath of the war and the noble sentiments expressed, differentiating his work from other authors work after the war. The format of the poem does add extra emphasis to the message of the poem, the first quatrain of the octave is particularly memorable and uses two different kinds of figurative language being assonance and alliteration which add more thought into the first section of the poem.
Such use of figurative language in all 3 poems paints a picture and helps the reader engage in the poem bringing more power and meaning to the reader. Together with Alliteration, there is also the use of Assonance - the sound of two vowels in the same sentence repeating the sound e.g. if 'I should die' (The soldier, line1), Irony - when one thing is said but altogether another one is meant, Connotations - when there are hidden meanings to words which help add imagery e.g. 'bugles calling' (Anthem for doomed youth, line 8) ' and Onomatopoeia - when a word is used to echo a sound e.g. 'wailing shells' (Anthem for Doomed Youth, line7). This all serves to involve the reader more by either leaving a lasting sound in their head or making them engage their brain in the poem.