What Does sonnet Mean
The Latin term sonus (which can be translated as "sound" ) derived from the Italian word sonetto . The etymological evolution would lead us, in our language , to the word sonnet , which is used to name a class of poetry made up of fourteen hendecasyllable verses , which are divided into four stanzas: two that have four verses ( quartets ) and two that have three verses ( triplets ).
It is interesting to know, in order to know the formation of this type of poetic composition, that the famous Spanish writer of the Golden Age Lope de Vega made a funny and burlesque sonnet where he explains it step by step. We are referring to the one entitled "Sudden Sonnet."
Typically, the first verse rhymes with the fourth, while the second verse rhymes with the third. The consonances , in all cases, have to be the same. Another characteristic shared by most of the sonnets is that, throughout their verses, an introduction, a central knot and an ending can be seen as a conclusion. The poet, therefore, will seek to introduce a theme, develop it and give it a closure through a thought or reflection.
The history of the sonnet must be said that it goes back in time. Specifically, it is considered that after Petrarca or Dante used it with mastery and frequency, it arrived in Spain in the 15th century at the hands of the figure of the Marquis of Santillana. From that moment it began to be practiced by many feathers of that time and of later dates. However, those who are considered as "fathers" of the sonnet in that country are Garcilaso de la Vega and Juan Boscán.
One of the most important moments that this type of poetic composition has had was in the period between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. Specifically, it became widespread and once again recovered its splendor from the authors of the so-called “Generation of 27”. Among them were both Rafael Alberti and Jorge Guillén or even Gerardo Diego.
Works of this type exist many and very varied. However, it is interesting to know the book entitled "One Hundred Sonnets of Love." This was published in 1959 and has become one of the best known and most famous works of the Chilean writer Pablo Neruda, who is considered by many to be the poet of the 20th century around the world.
Sonnets are present in all languages. Miguel de Cervantes , Francisco de Quevedo , Rubén Darío and Federico García Lorca are just some of the poets who wrote important sonnets in Spanish. In other languages, authors such as Dante Alighieri (in Italian), William Shakespeare (English), Luís de Camões (Portuguese) and Charles Baudelaire (French) stood out with their sonnets .
When a sonnet is made up of verses of minor art (which means that they have eight syllables or less), it loses its status and is classified as a sonnet . This modality, in Spanish, became popular with the so-called modernism (a movement that had its heyday at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century).