摘要:关于十四行诗可谈之处甚多,其中比较重要的一点是其形式。它不仅体现了诗歌的韵律,还影响着诗歌主题的推进。本文试图通过对比莎士比亚十四行诗与意大利十四行诗,探讨莎士比亚十四行诗的形式之美,以及其在诗歌史上的地位。
关键词:莎士比亚十四行诗;意大利十四行诗;形式
Abstract: There are many aspects of sonnet that deserve to be discussed. However, among them the form is of great importance. It shows the rhyme scheme and influences the emotion or idea the poem tries to explain. By means of comparative study with Petrarchan sonnet, this paper aims at analyzing the form of Shakespearean sonnet and its influence on the meaning of poem.
Key words: Shakespearean sonnet; Petrarchan sonnet; Form
中图分类号:I06 文献标识码:A 文章编号:
Part I Introduction
Evolved from the Italian “sonetto”, sonnet has beautiful patterns, rigorous rhythm. It is defined as a lyric poem comprising 14 rhyming lines of equal length: iambic pentameters in English. Western scholars generally believe that a Sicily poet in medieval Italy is the first to adopt this kind of form, and has made the strict rules of it. It, together with ballad and lyric, is the most popular genre of Italian lyrics. In the Renaissance Period of Italy, Francesco Petrarch carried on the work of the Sicily poet and his sonnets were artistically better and had significant influence on the development of sonnet. Thus the Italian sonnet is also known as the Petrarchan sonnet. In the early 16th century, sonnet was introduced to Britain. Then Shakespeare, through adapting the pattern made by Petrarch, created the English sonnet(Shakespearean sonnet). Shakespeare made much more advances on sonnet writing Above all, Shakespeare made some changes in the pattern. It is through the pattern or form that the emotion is expressed. Therefore, the poet must pay a lot of attention to composition of the poem. Thus, this paper tries to analyze the overall beauty of the form of Shakespearean sonnet in comparison to Petrarchan sonnet.
Part II A Comparison between Shakespearean sonnet and Petrarchan sonnet
Petrarchan sonnet is written in iambic pentameter and is composed of two quatrains and two tercets. The first eight lines are called the octave and the last six the sestet. The rhyme scheme of the octave is usually fixed in an a b b a, a b b a pattern. The sestet may be written in different rhyming schemes, including c d c, c d c, or c d e, c d e. On the aspects of form and meaning, the octave often contains a conflict or dilemma, and the sestet usually offers some sort of resolution. From the octave and the sestet there is a clear shift or turn in thought. While Shakespearean sonnet, is also written in iambic pentameter but has the following rhyme scheme: a b a b, c d c d, e f e f, g g. As indicated by its rhyme scheme, The Shakespearean sonnet is composed of tree quatrains and a couplet. Therefore the pattern of thought is shift from an octave-sestet pattern in Italian sonnet to a four part argument on a single thought or emotion. Usually each of the quatrains contains a separate development of the sonnet’s central idea, with the couplet providing a conclusion, climax, or resolution.