The Sonnet

The sonnet is a lyrical form of poetry, therefore it speaks about intimate feelings. In Europe it was first used by Francesco Petrarca in Italy. Petrarca's connet became the model for all future sonneteers. As the word shows the sonnet heavily relies on sound devices. Therefore in the analysis of a sonnet it's really important to consider the level of sound that, together with the other levels of connotation, largely contributes to the meaning. 

The sonnet form is organize/arranged into fourteen lines. The English sonnet is the result of the gradual transformation from the Petrarchan model to the English sonnet, which is generally called either the Shakespearean sonnet or the Elizabethan sonnet. 

Even modern poets are compelled to use fourteen lines when writing sonnets. Later he or she can choose between the Petrarchan or the Elizabethan model. 

The privileged theme of the sonnet is Love, not religious love but Secular love. 

Gradual Transformation of the English Sonnet

Thomas Wyatt, who lived in the first half of the 16th century, followed the Petrarchan model mainly translating Italian sonnets into English. But soon enough, English poets realized that the English lenguage was not suitable to the Italian model. Indeed, while the Italian language rhythm is based on syllables, the English rhythm is based on stresses. This made the main translation from Italian into English very difficult and it proved not appropriate to the English language. Therefore Mr. Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, decidet to transform and modify the structure of the sonnet. This is the way of the Elizabethan structure of the sonnet. He transformed the Petrarchan model into a structure arranged into three quatrains and a rhyming couplet.