Sonnets 101

All classes will involve reading sonnets from various poets in order to learn 'how they did it' as well as come to understand the elements of the forms, including meter, rhyme patterns, theme development, the all-important turn and the closing couplets.

Class discussion is an important feature of the class as are the peer reviews from other students in the class. Thus, we have discussions and not lectures.

Week 1 & 2: Shakespearean (English) Sonnet.
We will learn the structure for this poetic form and read several of Shakespeare's sonnets as well as English Sonnets written by other poets. We will then write several sonnets. We will also learn how to write a sonnet sequence.

Week 3: Spenserian Sonnet:
We will learn the structure for this poetic form and read examples of this poetic form. We will compare and contrast this form with the Shakespearean form and write several Spenserian Sonnets.

Week 4: Petrarchan Sonnet:
We will learn the structure of this poetic form and read examples of it from poets. We will write several Petrarchan sonnets during the class.


Instructor: Ray Griffin

About The Instructor: Ray earned his BA, with honors in a double major in history and political science and a minor in German (4 hours short of a third major) from Atlantic Christian College, now Barton. He earned his MA in public administration with a minor in city and regional planning, with honors, from North Carolina State University. He has also taken post-graduate work at the University of Virginia and University of Oklahoma-Norman in high performance organization results and economic development; respectively.

After graduation, and during his tenure in local government management, he served as an adjunct professor of Political Science at Webster University and University of North Carolina-Pembroke.

Ray has been writing poetry for many decades as well as specialized, technical writing. He has written three comprehensive genealogy/family history books and has had senryu published in Prune Juice, an on-line poetry magazine. He has also published many Chap Books featuring his favorite poetry. Ray writes extensively in blank verse, tanka and Shakespearean sonnet poetic forms. These are his favorite poetic forms in which to write, particularly blank verse. Ray has been an active member, poet and member of FanStory since 2009.