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On Interpretation
Working the sonnet
By Nancy Taylor


Next week we will be discussing sonnets written in the late 16th century by Sir Philip Sidney and by William Shakespeare. As you probably know, the sonnet is an enduring form; they have been and still are being composed in many languages. Somewhere along the line a teacher may have asked you to write one. Well, not today. For this workshop you will work on sonnets, exchanging and pooling your knowledge and insights. Form groups of four. Appoint a note-taker.

There are several steps. It may take you the whole time to get through the process with the Shakespeare sonnet. If you finish before 10:40, see one of us for a 20th century sonnet to work on.

1. Read the sonnet twice silently to yourself and then aloud to yourself. Now read it aloud to one other member of your group. Listen as that member reads it aloud to you. Jot down: what difference it seemed to make saying the poem aloud; listening to the poem read.

2. In your group, discuss the following questions about the sonnet:

a. Who is speaking? To whom?
b. What is the situation? Can you tell where or when or why?
c. State the main idea of the sonnet in one sentence.
d. When you close your eyes and think of the sonnet, what images appear? How would you illustrate the sonnet?
e. What is the grammatical structure of the sentences? Where are the sentence ends?

3. Scan the lines, mark the feet and mark the rhyme scheme. Characterize the rhythm. What do you find interesting or remarkable about the way the sound of the poem moves?

4. Working together, make a careful, coherent but line by line paraphrase of the sonnet. That is, re-state each line in a simpler, more direct language. Reduce figurative language to literal language; reduce metaphors to similes; use your own language. Be sure your note taker has an accurate record of your paraphrase. Now, discuss the differences between your paraphrase and the sonnet. Make a comprehensive list of the differences between the poem and the same thing said in more ordinary language. Have someone read the sonnet aloud again. What is your experience of hearing the sonnet now?

5. Prepare one of your group to perform your collective understanding of the poem.

6. At 10:40 return to the large group, and we will hear some interpretations.