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  • Essay / A Critical Analysis of the “Reverse Sonnet”

    Handsome, charming and highly intellectual, Rupert Brooke was one of the first soldier-poets of the First World War. His poems are anchored in the ideals and fears of generations at a time of cultural transitions. His literary works are extremely influenced by social, cultural and political issues. The society's rural imagery and classical tradition are compared to bustling urban life. His many poems and sonnets were written based on the themes; patriotic, death, love, social and cultural conflicts (Rogers, 1997). Steven (2009) argues that his poetry is primarily related to death for love, which results in the loss of love rather than success. Jamieson (2018) claimed that the characteristics of the sonnet are that it is fourteen line poems, written in iambic pentameter and rhyming. Over time, different types of sonnets evolved with variations in rhyme scheme and metrical pattern. Rupert Brooke's “Inverted Sonnet” was written in 1911, before the war broke out, and is unusual in form. This essay would critically examine new sonnet forms and explore them based on themes, social contexts, and uses of literary devices. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay In this poem, it is observed that the poet breaks the traditional rules of sonnet formation. There is no uniformity in the formation of quatrains and couplets. Abrams (2007) confirmed that the sonnets are analyzed thematically in two sections. The first section presents the problems and tribulations, and the second part shows the solution of the problems and problems. Later it is followed by the verse which gives thoughts and complete answers to the problems. In this sonnet, Brooke strangely begins her sonnet with a verse that is traditionally used at the end, to provoke thoughts and emotions. It is followed by the adventures and controversial parts of the sonnet. He breaks the traditional structure of the sonnet by not respecting certain rules. Brooke tends to focus only on the positive aspects of the couple's life, leaving aside the undesirable aspects of life. The sonnet also negates the Petrarchan aspects of life where society is involved in courtly love and everything must follow conventions. Brooke's first verse shows the new twist on the idea as an introduction to a sonnet. His sonnet begins with wonderful remarks where the couples are presented as having strong relationships. It begins with the celebration of love, kindness, and morality, as exemplified in “Trembling Hand to Hand: The Amazing Lights/Of Heart and Eye.” They stood on supreme heights” (Brook, 1911). This conventional sonnet begins with a heroic couplet that symbolically compares itself to “amazing lights” because light is the source of goodness, reality, and purity. The verse begins with two lovers who have embarked on their honeymoon and are on “supreme heights” and imagining superiority and power. The word “tremble” in the first line suggests extreme emotion and love to be expressed powerfully, and it seems like nothing can disrupt the union. On the other hand, it reflects the power and strength of the middle class dominating the third class. Helmer (2017) argued in his case study that there had been class and racial divisions in the 19th century. Third class people were mistreated by the middle class because they were unskilled workers. People from the British underclass had to do tedious tasks and there was nohad no other alternative to protect them. The sonnet describes the couples descending into city life. It also expresses the lifestyles of couples and its developments. The term “crazy” honeymoon indicates that the excited expression of love begins and ends very quickly because life is too short for them. This overexcitement and goodness becomes furious when excited dreams become an illusion. Likewise, the couple's life seems to be "strange" and remains a distant memory of love, where couples are ready to settle down into their usual lifestyle. The couple experiences an extreme and stereotypical emotional idea of ​​love which is expressed in the sonnet as Cardwell (1996) defines stereotype as "a fixed and overgeneralized belief about a group or a particular class of people.” The word “Cityward daily” clearly indicates that they feel authoritarian and live in a standardized world. The couple is also proud of the change in lifestyle from the countryside to the city. The poet opposes the power of money associated with the rich. The couples are portrayed ironically as powerful, wealthy, and representing the level that everyone wants to reach. Couples are “rather satisfied” with work and social pleasures. They have become rich and powerful where no one can compete. The word “again” is used several times in the sonnet in order to take readers into city life. Barzun (1961) rightly stated that the love of the modern era is the love of the exotic, an exaggeration and a science. Brooke's realistic view of love is suggested as the most exciting and optimistic as she describes the richness of the couple's life as follows: "Their money was in Can.Pacs. B. Debentures,/And in Antofagastas. He still left” (Brooke, 1911). The couples are used metaphorically as a middle class family associated with wealth. Their “money” refers to wealth and yet they generate and save it in different places. Brooke also indicates minor radical feminism in her sonnet. Mitchell (2000) explains: "Radical feminists believe that there is a male-based structure of authority and power that is responsible for oppression and inequality, and that as long as the system and its values will be in place, society cannot be significantly reformed. In understanding radical feminism, it is true that there is an indication of radical feminism in the sonnet. The male couple is integrated as authority and power, and the female couple lives at home “respecting” certain traditional norms and beliefs. In this sonnet, the male couple is conscious of their work in the city and the woman stays at home. The poet is interested in the world of modernity and social revolution. With the development of arts and fashion, people are trying to be sophisticated and get rid of the traditions and values ​​of the past. Here, middle-class couples try to work and have social pleasures in the city, forgetting traditional values ​​and beliefs. Lemaître (1947) stated that before the 20th century there was the advent of modernity and social revolution with many art forms and technologies emerging at odds with the traditions and values ​​of the past. People began to explore other cultures, traditions and lifestyles. Society has become more outspoken and revealed many changes in tradition and culture. This is due to modernity and the development of nations. Brooke proclaims in the sonnet that death is a universal truth of life. He was concerned about the death he saw during the war. The poet is trying to say that death would come to.