Sonnet Poems
London, 1802
by William Wordsworth
Milton! thou shouldst be living at this hour;
England hath need of thee: she is a fen
Of stagnant waters: altar, sword, and pen,
Fireside, the heroic wealth of hall and bower,
Have forfeited their ancient English dower
Of inward happiness. We are selfish men;
Oh! raise us up, return to us again;
And give us manners, virtue, freedom, power.
Thy soul was like a Star, and dwelt apart;
Thou hadst a voice whose sound was like the sea:
......
Ozymandias
by Percy Bysshe Shelley
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: 'Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear --
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
......
Bear Cubs in the Autumn Lake
by Kirsten Moreton
The water is cold but her fur is warm,
A cozy blanket I nuzzle in with my sister and brother.
As we watch the fireflies begin to swarm,
Safe from danger, on the back of our mother.
The firefly's glow like thousands of stars,
......
Breaking News (sonnet)
by Kirsten Moreton
Note: I have not even read over this yet, I wrote it quickly and just wanted to share. For context, Flamingo land nearly got planning permission to build a resort on Loch Lomond in Scotland. Loch Lomond is a huge part of Scotland's culture and we are a country proud of our scenery and natural environment and this caused outrage. The Poem is about this!
‘What kind of a place is a loch for flamingos?
Pink exotic birds in Stirling, no one would believe such a thing.’
No grannie, these are made of steel and faux.
They don't have a heart just mechanical parts not even a feather or a wing.
......
Sonnet 20: A Woman's Face With Nature's Own Hand Painted
by William Shakespeare
A woman's face with Nature's own hand painted
Hast thou, the master-mistress of my passion;
A woman's gentle heart, but not acquainted
With shifting change, as is false women's fashion;
An eye more bright than theirs, less false in rolling,
Gilding the object whereupon it gazeth;
A man in hue, all hues in his controlling,
Which steals men's eyes and women's souls amazeth.
And for a woman wert thou first created,
Till Nature, as she wrought thee, fell a-doting,
......
Breaking News (sonnet)
by Kirsten Moreton
Note: I have not even read over this yet, I wrote it quickly and just wanted to share. For context, Flamingo land nearly got planning permission to build a resort on Loch Lomond in Scotland. Loch Lomond is a huge part of Scotland's culture and we are a country proud of our scenery and natural environment and this caused outrage. The Poem is about this!
‘What kind of a place is a loch for flamingos?
Pink exotic birds in Stirling, no one would believe such a thing.’
No grannie, these are made of steel and faux.
They don't have a heart just mechanical parts not even a feather or a wing.
......
Bear Cubs in the Autumn Lake
by Kirsten Moreton
The water is cold but her fur is warm,
A cozy blanket I nuzzle in with my sister and brother.
As we watch the fireflies begin to swarm,
Safe from danger, on the back of our mother.
The firefly's glow like thousands of stars,
......
Sonnet 10: Self Worth
by Christen Kuikoua
If I proclaim my visage fair and true,
Who dares to counter what my lips declare?
If I resist the thoughts that evil brew,
Whose aim it is to strip my pride laid bare?
Who shall oppose the judgment I bestow,
When in my heart such certainty is found?
For I am shaped by hands that grace doth know,
By Heaven’s will, in beauty I am crowned.
......
Sonnets by Michael R. Burch (III)
by Michael R. Burch
These are sonnets by Michael R. Burch. Many of these sonnets are "heretical" sonnets in that they disobey the rules of orthodox sonnets and return to the original definition of "sonnet" as a "little song." Included are Shakespearean sonnets, Petrarchan sonnets, Spenserian sonnets, blank verse sonnets, free verse sonnets and experimental sonnets.
Lozenge
by Michael R. Burch
When I was closest to love, it did not seem
real at all, but a thing of such tenuous sweetness
it might dissolve in my mouth
like a lozenge of sugar.
......
Heretical Sonnets
by Michael R. Burch
I call these poems "heretical sonnets" because they don't follow the orthodox rules. I like the length of the sonnet for many poems, but I ignore all picky rules and have sonnets from 6 to 18 lines. I also have non-IP and free-verse-ish sonnets. I prefer the original definition of sonnet as a "little song" of indeterminate length and form. For example...
In this Ordinary Swoon
by Michael R. Burch
In this ordinary swoon
as I pass from life to death,
I feel no heat from the cold, pale moon;
I feel no sympathy for breath.
......
