Earliest Sonnets: Written by Giacomo da Lentini (118-1220)
Famous Collection: Francesco Petrarch's Canzoniere (370 sonnets)
Structure: 14 lines composed of an octave (8 lines) and a sestet (6 lines)
Venetian Sonnet Rhyme Scheme: ABBA ABBA CDCDCD
Shakespearean Sonnet Structure: 3 quatrains (4 lines each) and a couplet (2 lines)
Rhyme Scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
Meter: Generally iambic pentameter
Examples: Works by Elizabeth Barrett Browning and William Shakespeare
2. Villanelle
Structure: 19 lines in total, across six stanzas
5 tercets (3 lines each)
1 quatrain (4 lines)
Repetition: First and third lines of the opening tercet are alternately repeated at the end of the other tercets and both repeated at the end of the quatrain
Rhyme Scheme: ABA
Example: "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night" by Dylan Thomas
3. Sestina
Origin: Created by troubadours of the 12th century
Structure: 39 lines
6 stanzas of 6 lines each
Final 3-line stanza called "envoi"
Example: Work by Elizabeth Bishop
4. Blank Verse
Origin: Italy, transported by Earl of Surrey
Meter: Iambic pentameter (10 syllables per line, no rhyme)
Usage: Often used in dramatic speech
Example: "Paradise Lost" by John Milton
5. Heroic Couplet
Structure: Pair of rhyming lines written in iambic pentameter
Rhyme Scheme: AABBCC, etc.
Subject: Often heroic
Example: "My Last Duchess" by Robert Browning
6. Haiku
Structure: Traditional Japanese form
3 lines with syllable pattern 5-7-5
Content: Often captures a moment in nature or life
7. Free Verse
Structure: Open form, no regular rhyme or meter
Content: Relies on natural rhythms and images rather than structured patterns
Conclusion
Importance of studying different conventional forms
Helps in identifying and recognizing them in literature
Enhances understanding of literary variety and creativity