ENGL 145

Prof. A. Eastwood

Sonnet Exercise

STEP ONE:

Choose a Shakespearean sonnet that speaks to you in some way.  You may use any text, but it would be a bit easier for you to use an annotated version from any collection of Shakespeare’s works (e.g., the Norton, the Arden, the Pelican, the Riverside, etc.).  The text of all of the sonnets is available online from www.opensourceshakespeare.org (accessible from my webpage). 

STEP TWO:

After you have selected your sonnet, write a few paragraphs in which you answer the following questions:

1. What is the dramatic setting of the poem?

2. What is the emotional center of the poem?  (For example, fear of death, fear of loss, pleasure being with someone, etc.

3. What does the speaker want? 

STEP THREE:
Imagine you are the speaker.  Rehearse the poem by reading it aloud so that the meaning and emotion that you perceive comes across. 

STEP FOUR:

Write a paragraph reflecting on how you attempted to convey the central meaning of the poem through your dramatic reading.

Be prepared to discuss this process in class on Tuesday, January 31st