Order It: Greeting autumn with Sonnet 73
Mark the recent equinox and the start of autumn in the northern hemisphere with a look at Sonnet 73. Take this quiz to see if you can correctly order the lines.
Excerpt: "Shakespeare without a Life" by Margreta de Grazia
Did Shakespeare give much thought to how his works would survive after his death? Margreta de Grazia argues that his sonnets show he did.
Order It: Sonnet 29
Sonnet 29 (“When in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes”) is a famous example of Shakespeare’s sonnets. Try our quiz to see if you can put its lines in order.
Order It: Sonnet 98
It’s springtime, and Sonnet 98 is a wonderful seasonal selection from Shakespeare. Take this quiz to see if you can put the sonnet’s 14 lines into their correct order.
Order It: Sonnet 116
Sonnet 116 is one of Shakespeare’s most famous love sonnets. Take our quiz to see if you can put the lines of the sonnet in the correct order.
Excerpt – ‘All the Sonnets of Shakespeare’ edited by Paul Edmondson and Stanley Wells
Read an excerpt from the introduction of a new book that assembles all of Shakespeare’s sonnets in their probable order of composition. The editors argue that readers can gain insight into Shakespeare’s personal experiences and emotions through the sonnets.
How to think like a sonnet, or, fourteen ways of looking around a room
A sonnet packs a lot of meaning into a tiny space. Here are fourteen ways (one for each line) of approaching Shakespeare’s most well-known poems.
Savor Shakespeare's sonnets with Patrick Stewart
Need some quality poetry to help you through these difficult times? Sir Patrick Stewart has been reading a Shakespeare sonnet a day on Twitter.
Excerpt: The Afterlife of Shakespeare's Sonnets
Why weren’t Shakespeare’s sonnets included in the First Folio? And what was the effect on the way that later readers and critics considered Shakespeare’s total body of work? Jane Kingsley-Smith of Roehampton University, London, explores these questions in the below…
Shakespeare's muses: The magic in his method
Shakspere / . 1832. Folger ART Box R167 no.1 (size L)It’s a tantalizing mystery: What was Shakespeare’s inspiration? What was the source of his talent? How on earth did he do what he did? Were his abilities and success the…