1 00:00:20,920 --> 00:00:24,800 Hello everyone, welcome back. As you can see, 2 00:00:25,160 --> 00:00:30,920 today we speak about the sonnet, and in particular 3 00:00:30,920 --> 00:00:35,060 Shakespearean sonnet. The sonnet, probably you've 4 00:00:35,060 --> 00:00:37,740 heard about the sonnet before. It's one of the 5 00:00:37,740 --> 00:00:41,620 most famous, most important poetic forms of all 6 00:00:41,620 --> 00:00:51,310 time. Now the sonnet, generally, is a fourteen 14 7 00:00:51,310 --> 00:00:59,870 line poem each line having 10 syllables and the 8 00:00:59,870 --> 00:01:05,350 theme of the sonnet is generally love so what is 9 00:01:05,350 --> 00:01:13,650 the sonnet it's a love poem of 14 lines each line 10 00:01:13,650 --> 00:01:20,790 has 10 syllables the sonnet originated in Italy. 11 00:01:22,250 --> 00:01:26,430 Italy with an I, not Y. It sounds ugly with an I, 12 00:01:26,570 --> 00:01:30,610 with a Y, sorry. It started in Italy in the 13th 13 00:01:30,610 --> 00:01:33,790 century with a very famous poet, you should all 14 00:01:33,790 --> 00:01:38,750 know, named Dante. Dante. But it became more 15 00:01:38,750 --> 00:01:43,310 famous thanks to an Italian poet named Petrac. 16 00:01:44,730 --> 00:01:50,450 Notice how the name is? written Petrarch. Petrarch 17 00:01:50,450 --> 00:01:55,230 is an Italian poet who wrote so many sonnets. 18 00:01:58,050 --> 00:02:00,710 The sonnet started in Italy in the Renaissance 19 00:02:00,710 --> 00:02:06,040 Italian Renaissance in the 13th century. And 20 00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:10,640 again, it shows how more themes started to be 21 00:02:10,640 --> 00:02:14,440 included in poetry. It's no longer about religion 22 00:02:14,440 --> 00:02:17,980 and God and heroism. There are themes of 23 00:02:17,980 --> 00:02:21,740 relationships of women and love, et cetera. Now, 24 00:02:21,820 --> 00:02:26,160 in a way, the sonnet migrated to England through 25 00:02:26,160 --> 00:02:30,740 two famous people. The first one is named Sir 26 00:02:30,740 --> 00:02:33,640 Thomas Wyatt, and the second one is Henry Howard. 27 00:02:33,880 --> 00:02:35,740 We'll know the names later on. They're not that 28 00:02:35,740 --> 00:02:40,100 important for now to us. So we have Henry Howard 29 00:02:40,100 --> 00:02:44,920 and Sir Thomas Wyatt. They brought, they imported, 30 00:02:45,300 --> 00:02:50,960 kind of, the sonnet from Italy to England. What 31 00:02:50,960 --> 00:02:53,360 did they do to the sonnet? They translated it. 32 00:02:53,440 --> 00:02:56,560 They brought and they adapted it. They, in a way, 33 00:02:56,640 --> 00:02:59,480 made it look English. Because there are 34 00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:02,540 differences between Italian and English language. 35 00:03:03,360 --> 00:03:07,300 We have many English poets who wrote the sonnet. 36 00:03:07,420 --> 00:03:12,040 But the most famous of them is Shakespeare. 37 00:03:14,900 --> 00:03:19,790 How many sonnets did he write? One, five, four, 38 00:03:19,970 --> 00:03:22,210 more or less. Some people say, like, a couple of 39 00:03:22,210 --> 00:03:24,110 them are not Shakespearean, written by someone 40 00:03:24,110 --> 00:03:28,670 else. It's not a big deal. Again, to us, because 41 00:03:28,670 --> 00:03:31,390 some people, they spend like years and years 42 00:03:31,390 --> 00:03:34,110 examining which sonnet is Shakespearean and which 43 00:03:34,110 --> 00:03:36,250 one is not Shakespearean. 44 00:03:37,900 --> 00:03:43,600 Again, 14 lines. 14 lines. However, Shakespeare 45 00:03:43,600 --> 00:03:49,020 did two things to change about the sonnet. What 46 00:03:49,020 --> 00:03:52,500 did he change? Before we begin talking about 47 00:03:52,500 --> 00:03:55,620 Shakespeare, let's go back again to the Italian 48 00:03:55,620 --> 00:03:59,460 sonnet to Petrarch. 14 lines. You can't change the 49 00:03:59,460 --> 00:04:03,880 14 lines, because if it is 13 or 15, it's not a 50 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:07,450 sonnet. It's not considered. So that's why it's 51 00:04:07,450 --> 00:04:10,010 usually important when you want to analyze a poem, 52 00:04:10,110 --> 00:04:13,010 understand the poem, count the lines. Are there 53 00:04:13,010 --> 00:04:16,490 14? It's a sonnet. Not 14? Not a sonnet. Because 54 00:04:16,490 --> 00:04:19,710 if it is a sonnet, we'll say what the sonnet is 55 00:04:19,710 --> 00:04:24,610 and how important the sonnet is. Now, the Italian 56 00:04:24,610 --> 00:04:30,070 sonnet was, again, 14 lines and about love, the 57 00:04:30,070 --> 00:04:32,010 theme. There's something important about this, 58 00:04:32,230 --> 00:04:33,150 which is the rhyme. 59 00:04:36,380 --> 00:04:40,980 scheme. The rhyme scheme or the structure, the 60 00:04:40,980 --> 00:04:45,920 rhyme structure, how the music at the end of the 61 00:04:45,920 --> 00:04:50,080 lines of the song. The Italian sonnet sounds like 62 00:04:50,080 --> 00:05:06,220 this A B B A A B B A sorry C D C D C D We'll 63 00:05:06,220 --> 00:05:08,940 explain this more, we'll show you examples in a 64 00:05:08,940 --> 00:05:18,080 bit. Again we have A B B A, A B B B A and then C D 65 00:05:18,080 --> 00:05:22,160 C D C D. How many? If you count them these are 14 66 00:05:22,160 --> 00:05:27,750 because a sonnet has only 14 lines. Now these are 67 00:05:27,750 --> 00:05:31,270 divided into two groups number one the first eight 68 00:05:31,270 --> 00:05:36,250 lines which look similar in a way A B B A A B B A 69 00:05:36,250 --> 00:05:41,230 these are eight lines in English eight lines are 70 00:05:41,230 --> 00:05:45,110 called an octave you know an octopus because the 71 00:05:45,110 --> 00:05:50,550 octopus has eight octave means eight eight lines 72 00:05:50,550 --> 00:05:54,530 and here we have the remaining lines are assisted 73 00:05:57,330 --> 00:06:01,230 It could be C, D, E, C, D, E or different 74 00:06:01,230 --> 00:06:05,250 variation but this is the most common. C, D, C, D, 75 00:06:05,450 --> 00:06:11,530 C, D. How many lines? Six lines, eight lines, 76 00:06:11,830 --> 00:06:15,450 fourteen. The eight lines are called the octave. 77 00:06:17,690 --> 00:06:20,110 Now what happens in the eight lines and this is 78 00:06:20,110 --> 00:06:26,000 significant. The problem is discussed. He's 79 00:06:26,000 --> 00:06:31,340 elaborated. The poet exposes us to some problem 80 00:06:31,340 --> 00:06:34,840 between him and his beloved, and why he can't have 81 00:06:34,840 --> 00:06:37,360 her, why he should have her, why she's the most 82 00:06:37,360 --> 00:06:42,900 beautiful woman on earth. In the six lines, we 83 00:06:42,900 --> 00:06:47,120 have some kind of resolution, the conclusion. What 84 00:06:47,120 --> 00:06:50,240 happens next? Life is complicated. There's this 85 00:06:50,240 --> 00:06:54,160 problem. And in six lines, we have some sort of a 86 00:06:54,160 --> 00:06:58,860 resolution. something to solve this problem to get 87 00:06:58,860 --> 00:07:03,880 the poet out of the trouble. So this is again 88 00:07:03,880 --> 00:07:08,510 generally the Italian sonnet 14 lines check Love 89 00:07:08,510 --> 00:07:15,150 theme, also check. The rhyme scheme is A B B A A B 90 00:07:15,150 --> 00:07:20,390 B A C D C D C D The first eight lines are called 91 00:07:20,390 --> 00:07:24,510 the octave and then the sixth. Sixth is from six, 92 00:07:25,150 --> 00:07:30,880 okay? Now, what did Shakespeare do to change, to 93 00:07:30,880 --> 00:07:34,100 experiment? Remember we said Shakespeare, in a 94 00:07:34,100 --> 00:07:36,380 way, he's considered the most important classical 95 00:07:36,380 --> 00:07:43,040 playwright and poet of English history. But 96 00:07:43,040 --> 00:07:46,700 Shakespeare also wanted to change in many ways, to 97 00:07:46,700 --> 00:07:49,160 change in the language, to change in the form, to 98 00:07:49,160 --> 00:07:51,320 change in the themes. What did he do to the 99 00:07:51,320 --> 00:07:51,660 sonnet? 100 00:08:06,600 --> 00:08:10,260 okay number one thank you very much he changed the 101 00:08:10,260 --> 00:08:12,740 form or the structure 102 00:08:15,410 --> 00:08:18,610 What is the form, the structure of the poem? It's 103 00:08:18,610 --> 00:08:21,970 how the poem looks. When you look at the poem from 104 00:08:21,970 --> 00:08:25,810 afar, how does it look? It's short. It has these 105 00:08:25,810 --> 00:08:29,850 stanzas, et cetera. So Shakespeare, number one. It 106 00:08:29,850 --> 00:08:31,370 didn't start with Shakespeare, but Shakespeare 107 00:08:31,370 --> 00:08:35,390 made this structure famous. And his famous rhyme 108 00:08:35,390 --> 00:08:40,310 scheme, almost all his 154 sonnets have the same 109 00:08:40,310 --> 00:08:51,680 structure. Rhyme structure. A B A B C D C D E F E 110 00:08:51,680 --> 00:08:59,880 F G G G G. Do you know GG? You know GG? Yeah? I 111 00:08:59,880 --> 00:09:06,640 don't know. Anyway GG Without listen without 112 00:09:06,640 --> 00:09:10,020 reading the poem when we see this happening G G. 113 00:09:10,140 --> 00:09:13,780 It's the same sound two lines Yeah, it tells us 114 00:09:13,780 --> 00:09:15,940 it's a couplet. So what is Shakespeare doing 115 00:09:15,940 --> 00:09:22,660 number one? four lines and then four lines and 116 00:09:22,660 --> 00:09:26,520 then four lines and then a couplet It's easy to 117 00:09:26,520 --> 00:09:32,100 know the couplet What's the couplet again Yes 118 00:09:34,960 --> 00:09:39,860 Two lines of verse about one subject with the same 119 00:09:39,860 --> 00:09:43,980 rhyme scheme. Two lines with the same rhyme 120 00:09:43,980 --> 00:09:48,200 scheme. We'll give you a lot of examples in a bit. 121 00:09:48,400 --> 00:09:52,300 But the four lines here are called quatrains. 122 00:09:54,980 --> 00:09:58,900 So he has three quatrains and a couplet. 123 00:10:02,210 --> 00:10:08,130 Quatrain one, quatrain means four, four. A, B, A, 124 00:10:08,230 --> 00:10:12,890 B, they alternate, and then C, D, C, D, E, F, E, 125 00:10:12,930 --> 00:10:16,950 F, and finally we have G, G. That's number one. 126 00:10:17,150 --> 00:10:23,610 Shakespeare changes, expands the structure. What 127 00:10:23,610 --> 00:10:26,970 is interesting here, look at this. The poet here 128 00:10:26,970 --> 00:10:32,450 generally again has the problem in eight lines and 129 00:10:32,450 --> 00:10:35,410 the resolution in six. Now Shakespeare complicates 130 00:10:35,410 --> 00:10:41,500 the whole life and everything in 12 lines. In 12 131 00:10:41,500 --> 00:10:44,960 lines, he just shows you that life is complex. 132 00:10:45,280 --> 00:10:47,400 This is the end of the world. Life is destructive. 133 00:10:47,640 --> 00:10:50,840 Time kills us all. And then when you are about to 134 00:10:50,840 --> 00:10:54,780 give hope, he twists. In two lines, he gives us 135 00:10:54,780 --> 00:10:58,000 some kind of hope or resolution. No one can do 136 00:10:58,000 --> 00:11:01,200 this like Shakespeare. He's a master of this. No 137 00:11:01,200 --> 00:11:04,020 one can complicate everything. And then in only 138 00:11:04,020 --> 00:11:08,380 two lines, can change everything to the very 139 00:11:08,380 --> 00:11:12,060 opposite gives you a closure a resolution or at 140 00:11:12,060 --> 00:11:14,700 least some kind of hope for for the future like 141 00:11:14,700 --> 00:11:17,600 the example the examples we will be seeing in a 142 00:11:17,600 --> 00:11:22,260 bit now also Shakespeare changed the theme I 143 00:11:22,260 --> 00:11:25,700 wouldn't say change because he kind of expanded he 144 00:11:25,700 --> 00:11:28,720 added more themes so the sunnah for Shakespeare is 145 00:11:28,720 --> 00:11:34,680 also a love poem it's about beauty Not nature 146 00:11:34,680 --> 00:11:37,020 exactly, like in the romantic sense. It's about 147 00:11:37,020 --> 00:11:44,620 loss. It's about the passing of time. So he 148 00:11:44,620 --> 00:11:48,720 included more themes, more subjects. Many people 149 00:11:48,720 --> 00:11:52,480 still say, no, he didn't, because beauty, loss, 150 00:11:52,660 --> 00:11:55,700 and the passing of time are still themes that can 151 00:11:55,700 --> 00:11:58,120 go under the theme of love, in a way. 152 00:12:01,810 --> 00:12:04,150 If you notice, before I give you the examples 153 00:12:04,150 --> 00:12:09,370 here, when I say the sonnet has to have a certain 154 00:12:09,370 --> 00:12:13,650 number of lines and a certain rhyme scheme, it 155 00:12:13,650 --> 00:12:17,750 tells us that the sonnet is strict. If you write 156 00:12:17,750 --> 00:12:20,810 13 lines, see I wrote this sonnet, I say sorry 157 00:12:20,810 --> 00:12:24,210 this is not a sonnet. 15 lines, sorry this is not 158 00:12:24,210 --> 00:12:28,190 a sonnet. So the form of the sunnah is very 159 00:12:28,190 --> 00:12:32,830 strict, very fixed, very rigid. It doesn't change 160 00:12:32,830 --> 00:12:36,510 for team lines. For Shakespeare, it's almost 161 00:12:36,510 --> 00:12:41,870 always A, B, A, B, C, D, C, D, E, F, E, F, G, G. 162 00:12:42,250 --> 00:12:46,330 Now what's going on? According to critics, they 163 00:12:46,330 --> 00:12:48,550 say Shakespearean, like many people, many critics, 164 00:12:48,670 --> 00:12:52,430 many poets, they have realized that life is chaos, 165 00:12:52,570 --> 00:12:56,940 chaotic. Life doesn't follow a system, right? It's 166 00:12:56,940 --> 00:13:00,600 random sometimes. It's so sad that good people 167 00:13:00,600 --> 00:13:05,220 die, that beauty declines, that no good thing 168 00:13:05,220 --> 00:13:09,220 remains forever, right? So in a way life is 169 00:13:09,220 --> 00:13:12,360 haphazard, chaotic. There's no system. It's full 170 00:13:12,360 --> 00:13:16,180 of disorder. So critics believe that Shakespeare 171 00:13:16,180 --> 00:13:20,500 was trying to control life. by squeezing it into 172 00:13:20,500 --> 00:13:25,140 this tiny rigid form love poem of the sonnet where 173 00:13:25,140 --> 00:13:28,160 usually at the end there is hope that he will live 174 00:13:28,160 --> 00:13:30,760 forever, that she will live forever, his beloved 175 00:13:30,760 --> 00:13:34,080 or his addressee and that his poetry will live 176 00:13:34,080 --> 00:13:37,420 forever. So no matter what happens, no matter how 177 00:13:37,420 --> 00:13:42,070 harsh life is, The form of the sonnet is going to 178 00:13:42,070 --> 00:13:44,250 control it. The rigid form of the sonnet, the 179 00:13:44,250 --> 00:13:45,930 number of the lines, the number of the syllables 180 00:13:45,930 --> 00:13:48,610 and the fixed rhyme scheme is going to control 181 00:13:48,610 --> 00:13:53,130 life and give it a form and give it a shape where 182 00:13:53,130 --> 00:13:56,310 only Shakespeare can control this. In a sense, 183 00:13:56,770 --> 00:13:59,750 Shakespeare is telling us he is the master of his 184 00:13:59,750 --> 00:14:03,460 own world. He is creating his own world. And 185 00:14:03,460 --> 00:14:06,440 there's a question here. Like, do great people 186 00:14:06,440 --> 00:14:09,500 like Shakespeare realize they're doing great 187 00:14:09,500 --> 00:14:13,620 things? Yeah. Did he realize, did he know he was 188 00:14:13,620 --> 00:14:15,720 writing great things, that he will be famous all 189 00:14:15,720 --> 00:14:19,580 around the world? Did he? At the time he wrote it, 190 00:14:19,620 --> 00:14:22,200 he doesn't think that, because he just feels like 191 00:14:22,200 --> 00:14:26,420 this is what he is. Exactly. Later on, yeah? Yes. 192 00:14:26,680 --> 00:14:31,940 He shows what his works affects people. Is there 193 00:14:31,940 --> 00:14:35,140 evidence in his poetry where he says something 194 00:14:35,140 --> 00:14:38,740 about his poetry outliving all the harsh realities 195 00:14:38,740 --> 00:14:43,660 of life? There is a lot of evidence. Remember last 196 00:14:43,660 --> 00:14:48,880 time probably I posted a sonnet on the Facebook 197 00:14:48,880 --> 00:14:52,340 group where he ends with, so long as men can 198 00:14:52,340 --> 00:14:57,100 breathe or eyes can see, so long lives this, this, 199 00:14:57,560 --> 00:15:02,350 my poetry. My sonnet, my verse. And this gives 200 00:15:02,350 --> 00:15:06,290 life to thee. So yes, beauty declines, fairness 201 00:15:06,290 --> 00:15:13,970 declines. Life ends. Death dominates. But as long 202 00:15:13,970 --> 00:15:18,030 as you are in my poem, in my sonnet, you will live 203 00:15:18,030 --> 00:15:20,290 forever and ever, and people will remember you, 204 00:15:20,370 --> 00:15:24,970 and you will grow. Because simply? His poems are 205 00:15:24,970 --> 00:15:32,240 alive. His poetry. His sonnet will outlive all 206 00:15:32,240 --> 00:15:35,980 these difficulties. So long as men can breathe, or 207 00:15:35,980 --> 00:15:39,220 eyes can see, so long lives this, and this gives 208 00:15:39,220 --> 00:15:42,520 life to thee. And this is actually the couplet to 209 00:15:42,520 --> 00:15:45,380 probably Shakespeare's most famous sonnet, Sonnet 210 00:15:45,380 --> 00:15:48,580 18, you will see in a bit. So in brief, it's 211 00:15:48,580 --> 00:15:50,900 originally an Italian, European thing that was 212 00:15:50,900 --> 00:15:55,040 brought to England, adapted, and things happened 213 00:15:55,040 --> 00:15:59,570 to it. Shakespeare made it in a way what it looks 214 00:15:59,570 --> 00:16:03,290 like now. But again, not all sonnets are written 215 00:16:03,290 --> 00:16:06,470 like this or like this. But this is called the 216 00:16:06,470 --> 00:16:09,350 Shakespearean sonnet, the English sonnet. And this 217 00:16:09,350 --> 00:16:11,770 is called the Italian sonnet. There are so many 218 00:16:11,770 --> 00:16:16,210 forms, but these are the most famous forms of the 219 00:16:16,210 --> 00:16:20,350 sonnet. Before... Yeah, go on. Is there a reason 220 00:16:20,350 --> 00:16:25,780 behind choosing the number 14? I don't know. I'm 221 00:16:25,780 --> 00:16:32,000 not sure, but is 14 the magic number? Because it's 222 00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:35,420 seven and seven and seven. Many people love the 223 00:16:35,420 --> 00:16:39,840 number seven. It's my favorite number. Why 14? I 224 00:16:39,840 --> 00:16:43,460 think it's haphazard. It's not a big deal. But why 225 00:16:43,460 --> 00:16:47,420 14? Yeah, I don't know. if there is a reason 226 00:16:47,420 --> 00:16:50,760 probably we can look it up online somewhere before 227 00:16:50,760 --> 00:16:53,960 I go on give you examples look at these middle 228 00:16:53,960 --> 00:16:57,520 English words these are very important to know 229 00:16:57,520 --> 00:17:04,700 remember we have thou meaning you for subject thee 230 00:17:04,700 --> 00:17:10,580 you for object in the past they would add th 231 00:17:10,580 --> 00:17:16,990 instead of s for he she it so had It has doth, 232 00:17:17,450 --> 00:17:25,670 comes, and they would usually add st for thou. It 233 00:17:25,670 --> 00:17:31,370 is, we will see that. Thy and thine both mean 234 00:17:31,370 --> 00:17:33,930 your. Your, but the difference is like the 235 00:17:33,930 --> 00:17:38,470 difference between a and an. You say a book, an 236 00:17:38,470 --> 00:17:41,970 apple. When we have a vowel sound, you add the one 237 00:17:41,970 --> 00:17:46,870 with the N. Same here. Say, frailty, Hamlet says, 238 00:17:47,110 --> 00:17:52,110 frailty thy name is woman. Thy name. But when we 239 00:17:52,110 --> 00:17:59,050 have a vowel here, I vowel I thine eyes thine eyes 240 00:17:59,050 --> 00:18:06,770 your your eyes thou art you are it is it is why 241 00:18:06,770 --> 00:18:09,510 remember it's because of the number of syllables 242 00:18:09,510 --> 00:18:15,210 and the music thyself easy yourself ear means 243 00:18:15,210 --> 00:18:18,170 before what's the difference between ear and 244 00:18:18,170 --> 00:18:18,490 before 245 00:18:22,380 --> 00:18:24,740 Yeah, look at the words. 246 00:18:27,600 --> 00:18:33,680 Okay, so what does it mean? How many syllables are 247 00:18:33,680 --> 00:18:38,760 there in before? Two syllables. Syllable one, 248 00:18:38,940 --> 00:18:43,340 syllable two, before. But here, one syllable. So 249 00:18:43,340 --> 00:18:46,880 this is what we call sometimes poetic license you 250 00:18:46,880 --> 00:18:49,760 know driving license you have a license to drive 251 00:18:49,760 --> 00:18:54,820 now poets have a license poetic license if you 252 00:18:54,820 --> 00:18:57,540 want to change something just to make things fit 253 00:18:57,540 --> 00:19:03,120 near same here with never never two syllables but 254 00:19:03,120 --> 00:19:08,560 near one ear ever last time we had overthrown 255 00:19:08,560 --> 00:19:14,750 overthrown originally over overthrown Please don't 256 00:19:14,750 --> 00:19:18,950 forget that, thou, thee, hath, doth, just these 257 00:19:18,950 --> 00:19:24,770 major words. Thou means you, thee means also you 258 00:19:24,770 --> 00:19:30,910 for objects, doth and hath, does and has. Doesn't 259 00:19:30,910 --> 00:19:34,430 the change in language complicate poetry? It 260 00:19:34,430 --> 00:19:37,730 doesn't, of course. If before they had the word 261 00:19:37,730 --> 00:19:41,370 er, and nowadays we change it to before, it would 262 00:19:41,370 --> 00:19:44,730 change the Yeah, that's why it's good to know 263 00:19:44,730 --> 00:19:48,010 these words and study the sonnets, the poems in 264 00:19:48,010 --> 00:19:50,810 the language they were written in to really 265 00:19:50,810 --> 00:19:53,850 appreciate the beauty. When you modernize this, 266 00:19:54,230 --> 00:19:57,830 you're going to change a lot about the music and 267 00:19:57,830 --> 00:20:02,910 everything. So I'll probably post this on Facebook 268 00:20:02,910 --> 00:20:05,850 so you can get the slides to summarize the main 269 00:20:05,850 --> 00:20:11,100 ideas here. But don't forget again, the sonnet is 270 00:20:11,100 --> 00:20:15,040 a very important form where the form, remember the 271 00:20:15,040 --> 00:20:16,960 form, the shape, the number of lines and the rhyme 272 00:20:16,960 --> 00:20:20,680 scheme helps the idea, the meaning. Where again, 273 00:20:20,740 --> 00:20:24,640 the poet is struggling to control life, to give 274 00:20:24,640 --> 00:20:28,860 meaning to life, to make sense out of the chaotic 275 00:20:28,860 --> 00:20:32,900 nature of life. For Shakespeare, in a way he was 276 00:20:32,900 --> 00:20:38,810 trying to outsmart and outlive. life itself. In 277 00:20:38,810 --> 00:20:42,190 the sonnet, finally, the form, what is the form? 278 00:20:42,870 --> 00:20:47,410 The 14 lines, the number of these syllables here, 279 00:20:47,590 --> 00:20:51,710 the number of the stanzas here, and the rhyme 280 00:20:51,710 --> 00:20:55,890 scheme. What is the content? The theme. Is it 281 00:20:55,890 --> 00:20:59,070 about love? About loss? About passing of time? Et 282 00:20:59,070 --> 00:21:03,070 cetera. Let's see more applications. 283 00:21:06,990 --> 00:21:11,590 This is Sonnet 17. We'll do it very quickly, but 284 00:21:11,590 --> 00:21:15,510 we'll talk more about Sonnet 18. How many lines? 285 00:21:16,070 --> 00:21:19,910 40. Look at the shape. The last two lines are 286 00:21:19,910 --> 00:21:22,890 sometimes indenting, like they're pushed this way. 287 00:21:23,230 --> 00:21:25,810 But look at the rhyme here. We have time and 288 00:21:25,810 --> 00:21:33,430 rhyme. That's GDR. Shakespeare. Someone read? 289 00:21:34,860 --> 00:21:43,640 Okay, speak up yeah Okay, 290 00:21:44,280 --> 00:21:46,640 probably next time you sit here yeah go on who 291 00:21:46,640 --> 00:21:49,860 will believe my verse in time to come if if it 292 00:21:49,860 --> 00:21:54,080 were filled with your most high desert Desert 293 00:21:54,080 --> 00:21:59,260 though yeah heaven knows it knows it it is but a 294 00:21:59,260 --> 00:22:04,190 thumb a tongue tomb which hides your life and 295 00:22:04,190 --> 00:22:07,570 shows not half your parts. If I could write the 296 00:22:07,570 --> 00:22:11,570 beauty of your eyes and in fresh numbers number 297 00:22:11,570 --> 00:22:15,510 all your graces, the age to come would say this 298 00:22:15,510 --> 00:22:21,170 poet lies. Such heavenly touches near touch 299 00:22:21,170 --> 00:22:25,510 earthly faces. Should my papers, yellowed with 300 00:22:25,510 --> 00:22:30,350 their age, be scorned like old men of less truth 301 00:22:30,350 --> 00:22:34,830 than tongue? And your true rights be termed a 302 00:22:34,830 --> 00:22:41,330 poet's rage and stretched meter for antique song. 303 00:22:42,110 --> 00:22:47,150 Antique song. Antique song. But for some child of 304 00:22:47,150 --> 00:22:53,450 yours alive that time, you should live twice in it 305 00:22:53,450 --> 00:23:00,210 and in my rhyme. Okay, one more please. Who will 306 00:23:00,210 --> 00:23:04,030 believe my verse in time to come, if it were 307 00:23:04,030 --> 00:23:08,750 filled with your most high desires. I'll just, 308 00:23:09,510 --> 00:23:11,570 while you're reading, I'll try to do the rhyme 309 00:23:11,570 --> 00:23:13,850 scheme. Remember, the rhyme scheme follows the A, 310 00:23:14,090 --> 00:23:20,830 B, C, D, the first sound is A. Why A? The first 311 00:23:20,830 --> 00:23:23,750 letter of the alphabet. If the second repeats the 312 00:23:23,750 --> 00:23:28,150 same sound, we give it A. If it's a new sound, B. 313 00:23:29,170 --> 00:23:35,400 So, come, desert, Look at, listen, tomb, the B is 314 00:23:35,400 --> 00:23:38,100 silent, so it's not there, the sound, we care 315 00:23:38,100 --> 00:23:42,860 about the sound. But it's not, it's not, it's not, 316 00:23:42,900 --> 00:23:49,020 oh, sorry. It's not as perfectly pronounced, like 317 00:23:49,020 --> 00:23:52,440 perfectly pronounced as come. This is come, and 318 00:23:52,440 --> 00:23:58,100 this is tomb, tomb, grave. This is still A, but 319 00:23:58,100 --> 00:24:01,890 it's called imperfect rhyme. it rhymes but 320 00:24:01,890 --> 00:24:07,950 imperfectly like love and prove okay and then 321 00:24:07,950 --> 00:24:14,490 parts goes with deserts a 322 00:24:14,490 --> 00:24:23,000 b a b go on if i got the Write the beauty of your 323 00:24:23,000 --> 00:24:27,460 eyes and in fresh numbers number all your guesses 324 00:24:27,460 --> 00:24:32,720 that is to come what you would say this God lies. 325 00:24:33,660 --> 00:24:41,990 So we have eyes? C. Graces? D. Lies? C. And then 326 00:24:41,990 --> 00:24:43,890 D. Go on. 327 00:24:47,330 --> 00:24:48,330 Okay, 328 00:24:51,730 --> 00:24:52,610 with their age. 329 00:24:56,070 --> 00:25:05,270 And tongue. Different? E, F, Rage, E, and Song. 330 00:25:06,770 --> 00:25:08,770 And finally read the couplet. 331 00:25:17,950 --> 00:25:21,110 Okay, but where some child of yours alive that 332 00:25:21,110 --> 00:25:27,970 time, that's G, you should live twice in it and in 333 00:25:27,970 --> 00:25:34,110 my rhyme. My rhyme, my poetry. My verse and again 334 00:25:34,110 --> 00:25:42,200 the G. A, B, A, B. That's come and come, desserts 335 00:25:42,200 --> 00:25:47,500 and pots, and then eyes and lies, C, C, and graces 336 00:25:47,500 --> 00:25:53,840 and faces, D, D, age, rage, E, tongue, and song, 337 00:25:54,140 --> 00:25:59,040 F, time, rhyme. If I ask you a question in the 338 00:25:59,040 --> 00:26:01,440 exam, I bring you one of the sonnets, and it 339 00:26:01,440 --> 00:26:05,370 rhymes like this. And if you know this is a 340 00:26:05,370 --> 00:26:07,670 Shakespearean sonnet, Shakespearean couplet, if 341 00:26:07,670 --> 00:26:11,570 you know it by heart, you give it GG Rimsky. But 342 00:26:11,570 --> 00:26:14,350 if you don't and you give me AA, it's okay because 343 00:26:14,350 --> 00:26:19,450 it's still a sonnet. The next sonnet, a very 344 00:26:19,450 --> 00:26:23,450 famous sonnet by Shakespeare. Sonnet 18. Sonnet 345 00:26:23,450 --> 00:26:28,910 18. Sonnet 18. I'll read it first and see two or 346 00:26:28,910 --> 00:26:30,610 three of you reading it. 347 00:26:33,680 --> 00:26:38,100 Again, shall I compare thee to a summer's day, 348 00:26:39,080 --> 00:26:42,810 thou art more lovely and more temperate? Rough 349 00:26:42,810 --> 00:26:46,670 winds do shake the darling buds of May And 350 00:26:46,670 --> 00:26:50,890 summer's lease has all too short a date Sometime 351 00:26:50,890 --> 00:26:55,350 too hot the eye of heaven shines And often is his 352 00:26:55,350 --> 00:26:59,350 gold complexion dimmed And every fair from fair 353 00:26:59,350 --> 00:27:03,530 sometime declines By chance or nature's changing 354 00:27:03,530 --> 00:27:08,560 course untrimmed But thy eternal summer shall not 355 00:27:08,560 --> 00:27:12,760 fade, nor lose position of that fear thou ow'st, 356 00:27:13,580 --> 00:27:16,960 nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade, 357 00:27:18,100 --> 00:27:23,160 when in eternal lines to time thou grow'st. So 358 00:27:23,160 --> 00:27:28,880 long as men can breathe or eyes can see, so long 359 00:27:28,880 --> 00:27:35,400 lives this, and this gives life to thee. Yes? 360 00:27:38,630 --> 00:27:41,130 Can you speak up? Speak up. 361 00:27:46,010 --> 00:27:47,950 Thou art. 362 00:27:51,370 --> 00:27:54,630 Rough winds. 363 00:27:58,270 --> 00:27:59,430 Darling buds of May. 364 00:28:21,070 --> 00:28:25,110 By thy eternal summer. 365 00:28:31,070 --> 00:28:36,170 Eternal summer shall not fade, nor lose position 366 00:28:36,170 --> 00:28:41,770 of that firm thou art, nor shall deep death pray 367 00:28:41,770 --> 00:28:50,330 thou one last in his shed, when in eternal lines 368 00:28:50,330 --> 00:28:56,970 thy blood so long as men can breathe or eyes can 369 00:28:56,970 --> 00:29:02,880 see, so long life lives this, Very good. A better 370 00:29:02,880 --> 00:29:08,280 reading please. Yes. Shall I compare thee to a 371 00:29:08,280 --> 00:29:11,760 summer's days though are more lovely and more 372 00:29:11,760 --> 00:29:15,480 temporary? Shall I? Say again. Shall I compare? 373 00:29:16,200 --> 00:29:20,100 Shall I compare thee to a summer's days? No, not 374 00:29:20,100 --> 00:29:24,700 days. Day. Day. Go on. Say again. Shall I compare 375 00:29:24,700 --> 00:29:28,620 thee to a summer's day though are more lovely and 376 00:29:28,620 --> 00:29:33,140 more temporary? Rob went to shade the darling buds 377 00:29:33,140 --> 00:29:38,080 of May, and Summer's leaves have all too short a 378 00:29:38,080 --> 00:29:46,000 date, sometimes too hot the eye of Haven shines, 379 00:29:46,700 --> 00:29:52,120 and often is his dull complexion dimmed. 380 00:29:55,230 --> 00:29:59,350 And every fair confessed sometimes declines by 381 00:29:59,350 --> 00:30:03,510 chance or nature's changing course untrammed. 382 00:30:03,930 --> 00:30:09,610 Untrammed. Untrammed, yes. Like damned, untrammed. 383 00:30:10,950 --> 00:30:14,470 But thy eternal summer shall not fade, nor lose 384 00:30:14,470 --> 00:30:21,680 possession of that fair thou ow'st. Gnosis did 385 00:30:21,680 --> 00:30:26,200 brag thou wondrous in his shade, when in eternal 386 00:30:26,200 --> 00:30:30,540 lines to time thou rose, so long as men can 387 00:30:30,540 --> 00:30:35,720 breathe or eyes can see, so long life lives this, 388 00:30:35,800 --> 00:30:38,760 and this gives life to thee. Better. Can you? 389 00:30:40,060 --> 00:30:46,840 Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art 390 00:30:46,840 --> 00:30:53,250 more lovely and more tempting. Rough. Rough. Rough 391 00:30:53,250 --> 00:30:57,970 winds do shake the downland, particularly the 392 00:30:57,970 --> 00:31:02,350 main, and summer days have all too short a day, 393 00:31:02,750 --> 00:31:06,730 sometimes to have the eye of heaven shines, and 394 00:31:06,730 --> 00:31:12,240 often it's years goes from day to day. And every 395 00:31:12,240 --> 00:31:17,400 pear from pear sometimes declines by chance or 396 00:31:17,400 --> 00:31:23,000 nature's changing course and trend. But the 397 00:31:23,000 --> 00:31:28,940 eternal summer shall not fade, nor loss position 398 00:31:28,940 --> 00:31:31,220 of that pear that asked. 399 00:31:46,220 --> 00:31:48,720 This gives life to people. Can someone do the 400 00:31:48,720 --> 00:31:52,000 rhyme scheme here? Come here. 401 00:31:56,640 --> 00:31:59,700 And explain while you're doing the rhyme scheme, 402 00:31:59,800 --> 00:32:00,360 the structure. 403 00:32:04,270 --> 00:32:09,690 You don't have to read it. First line is always A. 404 00:32:10,530 --> 00:32:13,210 Temperate and day are not the same, so we can say 405 00:32:13,210 --> 00:32:21,110 B. May, of May, day, so we add A. Short and date. 406 00:32:21,250 --> 00:32:27,430 Date and temperate is also A, is also B. Shines 407 00:32:27,430 --> 00:32:29,390 has nothing to rhyme, so we add B. 408 00:32:32,500 --> 00:32:36,700 And that's the same, so we can add D. Declines and 409 00:32:36,700 --> 00:32:41,260 shines rhymes, so we can add C. Untrimmed and 410 00:32:41,260 --> 00:32:47,700 dimed is the same rhyme, so we can add D. Fade is 411 00:32:47,700 --> 00:32:50,120 a new rhyme, so we can say E. 412 00:32:53,090 --> 00:32:59,410 like oh because but remember he has has not a due 413 00:32:59,410 --> 00:33:03,050 but with you in the past they used to add st to 414 00:33:03,050 --> 00:33:05,790 the verb thank god they dropped this long time ago 415 00:33:05,790 --> 00:33:08,110 what would be what would be a nightmare for us so 416 00:33:08,110 --> 00:33:13,250 host is if shade and fade rhymes we can add e 417 00:33:13,250 --> 00:33:15,590 roast 418 00:33:19,430 --> 00:33:27,590 And then we come to our friend GG. This is a 419 00:33:27,590 --> 00:33:31,110 better explanation than mine. Thank you. Very good 420 00:33:31,110 --> 00:33:33,290 job. Now what is Shakespeare doing here? What is 421 00:33:33,290 --> 00:33:37,090 he saying? This is a sonnet, a love poem, but in 422 00:33:37,090 --> 00:33:41,180 this sonnet, he's again there's some kind of 423 00:33:41,180 --> 00:33:45,020 complaint there's a problem here he's by the way 424 00:33:45,020 --> 00:33:47,960 critics do not agree whether these poems were 425 00:33:47,960 --> 00:33:51,080 written to a man or a woman it could be an issue 426 00:33:51,080 --> 00:33:53,900 but not a big deal for us let's study the text 427 00:33:53,900 --> 00:33:56,740 itself shall I compare these two summers in 428 00:33:56,740 --> 00:34:01,260 England summer is the best season because it's not 429 00:34:01,260 --> 00:34:04,040 very cold because winter is really horribly cold 430 00:34:05,330 --> 00:34:07,670 So he says, shall I compare thee to summer's day? 431 00:34:07,730 --> 00:34:11,830 This is a rhetorical question. And then he says, I 432 00:34:11,830 --> 00:34:17,610 think I shouldn't because of many things. Because 433 00:34:17,610 --> 00:34:21,610 you're more beautiful than summer. You're more 434 00:34:21,610 --> 00:34:26,210 temperate. Summer is short. Summer doesn't last. 435 00:34:26,350 --> 00:34:28,610 Sometimes there is rough wind. 436 00:34:31,440 --> 00:34:35,380 that shakes the darling buds of May. So summer is 437 00:34:35,380 --> 00:34:37,560 not as beautiful as you are. You're more beautiful 438 00:34:37,560 --> 00:34:42,880 than that. And sometimes too hot the eye of heaven 439 00:34:42,880 --> 00:34:46,840 shines. And often is his gold complexion dimmed. 440 00:34:46,900 --> 00:34:50,000 The clouds sometimes cover everything and it's no 441 00:34:50,000 --> 00:34:52,740 longer beautiful. And this is probably one of the 442 00:34:52,740 --> 00:34:56,680 finest lines of Shakespeare. And every fair from 443 00:34:56,680 --> 00:35:03,080 fair sometime declines. Fair meaning beauty. Like 444 00:35:03,080 --> 00:35:07,320 a fair person, a fair woman is like the most 445 00:35:07,320 --> 00:35:12,210 beautiful there is. So these Things, these 446 00:35:12,210 --> 00:35:16,390 features do not last, the beauty, the beauties of 447 00:35:16,390 --> 00:35:19,910 the summer compared to you. Generally, every fear 448 00:35:19,910 --> 00:35:23,970 from fear sometimes declines. Beauty doesn't last 449 00:35:23,970 --> 00:35:28,970 forever. We are all going to grow old and ugly, 450 00:35:29,070 --> 00:35:31,310 and then we're going to die. Beauty will fade. 451 00:35:31,870 --> 00:35:35,290 Beauty will fade. Furnace will... Notice the 452 00:35:35,290 --> 00:35:38,150 repetition of the fa, fa, fa, fa, fa sound. It's 453 00:35:38,150 --> 00:35:45,860 like you're like... complaining, sad, angry, by 454 00:35:45,860 --> 00:35:48,320 chance, et cetera, et cetera. And then he says, 455 00:35:48,680 --> 00:35:53,600 but thy eternal summer, thy affairs shall not 456 00:35:53,600 --> 00:35:57,060 fade. You're more beautiful than summer itself. 457 00:35:58,100 --> 00:36:01,100 Nor lose possession of that fair thou ost, nor 458 00:36:01,100 --> 00:36:05,300 shall death brag thou wanderst in his ship. And 459 00:36:05,300 --> 00:36:07,640 this is, again, beautiful because Shakespeare is 460 00:36:07,640 --> 00:36:11,230 personifying death. Death is not a person. Death 461 00:36:11,230 --> 00:36:14,550 doesn't brag, doesn't show off. People brag. 462 00:36:15,830 --> 00:36:19,530 People show off. And this is personification. You 463 00:36:19,530 --> 00:36:23,090 said personification is when you give things, the 464 00:36:23,090 --> 00:36:25,870 features, the characteristics, the traits of human 465 00:36:25,870 --> 00:36:30,190 beings. It's personification. Death, even death 466 00:36:30,190 --> 00:36:33,530 will not brag about killing you because you're 467 00:36:33,530 --> 00:36:38,290 going to outlive everything. When in eternal 468 00:36:38,290 --> 00:36:42,550 lines, eternal lines, these lines that will live 469 00:36:42,550 --> 00:36:44,970 forever. This in part answers the question whether 470 00:36:44,970 --> 00:36:47,990 Shakespeare knew he was writing really, really 471 00:36:47,990 --> 00:36:50,850 good poetry, amazing poetry that will be famous 472 00:36:50,850 --> 00:36:53,250 all over the world. Maybe he knew he's going to be 473 00:36:53,250 --> 00:36:56,110 famous all across London and the UK, maybe in 474 00:36:56,110 --> 00:36:59,620 Europe. But did he know he's going to be here, 475 00:36:59,820 --> 00:37:04,880 studied in Gaza? No. Or in China, or in Africa? We 476 00:37:04,880 --> 00:37:07,600 don't know. Nobody knows. But certainly, those 477 00:37:07,600 --> 00:37:11,760 great minds, the giants, the canonical writers, 478 00:37:12,760 --> 00:37:14,120 they know. At least they know they're doing 479 00:37:14,120 --> 00:37:19,500 something great. And then finally, the couplet 480 00:37:19,500 --> 00:37:22,880 here gives us hope. What he does here is that, oh, 481 00:37:23,080 --> 00:37:27,860 we are all going to die. But then comes the hope, 482 00:37:28,100 --> 00:37:33,220 comes the closure. So long as men can breathe or 483 00:37:33,220 --> 00:37:38,280 eyes can see, so long lives this. This, my sonnet, 484 00:37:38,420 --> 00:37:42,600 my poetry, my verse, my rhyme. And this gives life 485 00:37:42,600 --> 00:37:46,260 to thee. And it's true. It's ironic we don't know 486 00:37:46,260 --> 00:37:50,220 who he wrote the poem for. But we know that 487 00:37:50,220 --> 00:37:53,860 whoever that person is, is still alive. People are 488 00:37:53,860 --> 00:38:00,720 talking about him or her. let's end with something 489 00:38:00,720 --> 00:38:07,600 from I downloaded this video from YouTube this is 490 00:38:07,600 --> 00:38:10,500 a recitation of shall I compare thee to summer 491 00:38:10,500 --> 00:38:15,420 days now 492 00:38:15,420 --> 00:38:18,780 I want you to listen to this and then there's a 493 00:38:18,780 --> 00:38:21,220 little girl who's going to also recite this I want 494 00:38:21,220 --> 00:38:22,840 you to see which one you like most 495 00:38:45,370 --> 00:38:48,830 Hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his 496 00:38:48,830 --> 00:38:53,690 gold complexion dimmed, And every fair from fair 497 00:38:53,690 --> 00:38:58,170 sometime declines By chance, or nature's changing 498 00:38:58,170 --> 00:39:03,930 course untrimmed. But thy eternal summer shall not 499 00:39:03,930 --> 00:39:08,070 fade, Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st, 500 00:39:09,020 --> 00:39:12,500 Nor shall death brag thou wanderest in his shade, 501 00:39:13,220 --> 00:39:19,260 When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st. So 502 00:39:19,260 --> 00:39:25,160 long as men can breathe, for eyes can see, So long 503 00:39:25,160 --> 00:39:33,260 lives this, and this gives life to thee. Let's see 504 00:39:33,260 --> 00:39:36,320 the little kid and then stop there. Is it this 505 00:39:36,320 --> 00:39:36,540 one? 506 00:39:45,680 --> 00:39:50,060 Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? 507 00:39:53,100 --> 00:39:58,020 Thou art more lovely and more temperate. The winds 508 00:39:58,020 --> 00:40:01,140 do shake the darling buds of May, and summer's 509 00:40:01,140 --> 00:40:06,380 leaves have all too short a date. Sometimes too 510 00:40:06,380 --> 00:40:10,680 hot the eye of Heather shines, and often it is 511 00:40:10,680 --> 00:40:16,550 cold complexion dims. And every fair thing there 512 00:40:16,550 --> 00:40:21,550 sometimes declines By chance or nature's changing 513 00:40:21,550 --> 00:40:26,830 course of trend. But thy eternal summer shall not 514 00:40:26,830 --> 00:40:31,790 fade, Nor this possession that there thou ow'st, 515 00:40:32,510 --> 00:40:36,590 Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade, 516 00:40:36,710 --> 00:40:40,590 When in eternal lines the times thou grow'st. 517 00:40:51,210 --> 00:40:52,650 Oh cute. 518 00:40:56,230 --> 00:41:00,190 Isn't she cute? It's beautiful how she renders 519 00:41:00,190 --> 00:41:05,250 Shakespeare to this little tiny recitation of the 520 00:41:05,250 --> 00:41:10,150 sonnet. We'll stop here and we'll see what if you 521 00:41:10,150 --> 00:41:12,650 have any question about Shakespeare about the 522 00:41:12,650 --> 00:41:13,010 sonnet