Attached Link: http://www.utm.edu/departments/english/everett/sonnet.htm

From A Guide to the Sonnet The Italian, or Petrarchan sonnet, named after Francesco Petrarch (1304-1374), the Italian poet, was introduced into English poetry in the early 16th century by Sir Thomas Wyatt (1503-1542). Its fourteen lines break into an octave (or octet), which usually rhymes abbaabba, but which may sometimes be abbacddc or even (rarely) abababab... OK, forgive me for sounding stupid, but just how does this octave (being 8) fit into a 14 line poem? Later they give an example of an English sonnet and it, mercifully, breaks down into a rhyme of abab cdcd efef gg, which conveniently adds up nicely to 14. Just how does one end up with 14 lines when writing an Italian sonnet? Just curious, since it did not make any sense to me. I'm trying to use these challenges as learning exercises. :-) jon

 
~jon
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