So I have been putting this particular blog post off for a while mainly due to the fact that I don't find sonnets that entertaining. I don't think they're bad or anything, they are just sometimes boring and difficult to decipher at times. I'd much prefer a novel where the plot keeps flowing and keeps me interested. However, I found this sonnet that I thought was very intriguing and it captured my attention immediately. This is Acquainted with the Night by Robert Frost.
I have been one acquainted with the night.
I have walked out in rain—and back in rain.
I have out walked the furthest city light.
I have looked down the saddest city lane.
I have passed by the watchman on his beat
And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain.
I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet
When far away an interrupted cry
Came over houses from another street,
But not to call me back or say good-by;
And further still at an unearthly height,
One luminary clock against the sky
Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right.
I have been one acquainted with the night.
When I first saw this sonnet, the thing that got to be was the structure. Sure it follows the simple ABAB rhyming structure with an occasional twist to finish the section, but I thought it was interesting was that it would break off after the third line rather than the fourth. It's interesting to see an odd number of lines each time and I also found it enjoyable that the rhyme from the second line was continued on into the beginning of the next section. Now the sonnet itself tells a very interesting story. It uses imagery very well to paint the image of a city at night into your mind, almost bringing you into a rainy city. Overall, I gravitated toward the idea of city lights and even the sound of a baby crying as it really cemented you into the city it was describing.
I still don't understand sonnets or a lot of poetry for that matter (and yet I'm taking AP Lit. Quite a predicament) but I truly enjoyed reading this one and I look forward to more poetry that is able to create such vivid images in my mind.
Nice post Austin! I really enjoy this sonnet as well. The nighttime imagery is perfectly done. Just reading the poem elicits feelings of cold and darkness. I feel the same way when it comes to sonnets too. They are very hard to analyze and often seem quite cryptic. They are also extremely tough to write. However, I think as we go through the year of AP Lit, we will improve and hone our sonnet related skills.
ReplyDeleteI would argue that the rhyme scheme of this poem is more complicated than the standard ABAB CDCD EFEF GG that most sonnets have. I think it's more like ABA BCB CDC DED EE which is far more compelling than the traditional. You're right in saying that it's very unique how it breaks off after three lines instead of four. I wonder why the author chose to do that? Perhaps it is a representation of the mystery of nighttime.
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