Paper #1: He Said/(S)he Said

“For love is not easily moderated. In the guise of limerence, it moves us to extremes of both feeling and behaviour. There is a hint, perhaps, that love is inherently a state of unbalance—disruptive and perhaps even unhealthy” (de Sousa, Ch.2).

RESPONSE: For this paper, I want you to find two sonnets that seem to create a “he said/she said” dynamic (or he/he or she/she). That is, a poem that sounds like it is somehow responding to another poem, either by answering it, denying it, expanding upon it, or clarifying it. Imagine that the sonnets are spoken by two different lovers, and together, they create a snapshot of a relationship. What do they say about the nature of love? How are they trying to woo or flatter each other? What are they arguing about? How has one betrayed the other? What secrets does one keep from the other? How does one know the other one truly loves him/her? What’s going right—or what went wrong?

REQUIREMENTS: I want you to do two things in this paper: (a) close read the two poems to show us how they connect and sketch out the back-and-forth of a real relationship; and (b) quote a passage or two from de Sousa’s book to aid your discussion. Use his ideas to help you see a connection between the sonnets, or help unravel the relationship buried in the language of the sonnets. Be sure to quote a passage and explain it—show how it connects to the sonnets in question. Don’t just say “this reminds me of Chapter 2 in de Sousa’s book, because it says the same thing.” Be specific and help us see and understand how you read the poems.

MLA CITATION: Remember to following MLA in-text citation rules, and introduce quotations in your paper like so:

In Sonnet 1, Lover #1 says that “thou, contracted to thine own bright eyes,/Feed’st thy light’s flame with self-substantial fuel” (5-6) OR (3): either line numbers of the page number in your edition of The Sonnets.

NOTE: Be sure, also, to respond to quotations—don’t quote a passage and move on. Explain why you quoted it or how you read it. As a writer, you’re the tour guide and the teacher—you have to guide us through the poem. Don’t assume that the reader gets it or even understands the poetry.

LENGTH: At least 3-4 pages double spaced, along with a Works Cited page.

DUE:  In-class on Thursday, February 7^th (in two weeks)