When Creative Writing was added as a course to the bachelor’s program curriculum “Worlds of English” in the Department of English at the University of Klagenfurt, I began thinking about ways to challenge students with new ways of writing formal poetry. I knew I wanted students to take up the challenge of writing sonnets, and I thought Shakespearean sonnets would be a good start. I didn’t want to overwhelm students with too many forms, so I decided not to cover Petrarchan or Spenserian sonnets.
Somehow, Shakespearean sonnets didn’t seem “enough” though—I wanted the students to have a form that was new, that allowed them to engage with the form in a way that was not overly constrained by centuries of poetry that might be seen as too limiting.
Thus was born the Carinthian sonnet form. The inspiration for the form is twofold: First, Carinthia itself offers numerous dichotomies that allow themselves to be exploited for discussion: the geography (mountain and valley, life in the city and the countryside), language (German and Slovene, signed language and spoken), inhabitants (citizens and non-citizens, Europeans and non-Europeans), and religion (Catholic and Protestant) among others. These pairings (by virtue of being a pair) exclude so much but still invite the writer of a Carinthian sonnet to establish for themselves a pairing that raises questions in their lives. Take language, for instance: The writer could choose German and English as their pairing or any of the many other languages spoken here. Perhaps their parents speak different languages (maybe neither speaks German either?)—the writer can consider how they experience the world through their parents’ languages.
Essentially, I wanted students in the class to be able to pose a significant question to themselves and come up with two answers. The poem challenges the writer to articulate two viewpoints in order to begin a longer contemplation of the question by first establishing answers that are polar opposites to one another. The form is intended to serve as a starting point for internal dialogue by allowing the writer to negotiate possible beliefs, opinions, and actions. The two poles allow the writer to consider intermediary points (or either pole) as possibilities—the binary sestets are not necessarily the answer though ultimately may prove to hold an answer after the process of writing the sonnet has been completed.
The form of this sonnet is as follows: Fourteen lines in iambic pentameter are divided into an introductory couplet followed by two sestets. The couplet should be formed as a question that allows for a binary answer—it is recommended that it be phrased as a direct question and not an embedded question. The rhyme scheme was chosen to show that (seemingly) polar answers to a question share elements that (when viewed from some remove perhaps) can serve as a basis of mutual understanding; it is as follows: aa bcdbcd dcbdcb. The sestets are inverted rhymes of one another; this sharing of rhymes in an inverted sense encourages the writer (and reader) to see how polarities need a common point in order to be seen as polarities. Finding this point is crucial for dialogue and resolution.
Below find the initial sonnet I wrote as an example:
In all the stories heard today is there
a tale you’d share that speaks of peace somewhere?
Alas, of such a tale I fear too few
exist for me to share—’tis solely war
which troubles minds and hearts of ev’ry soul
on this fair sphere. And so we turn anew
to finding ways to kill and maim. This gore
no longer shocks and yet achieves its goal.
Forsooth—this goal is not yet met—extolt
the virtue peace and seek its gems therefore!
No greater treasure found has matched its true
and pure renown. To those war’s met console
and offer them this cherished gem so more
of peace’s wealth is shared and can accrue.
The sestets do not have to follow a particular order, i.e., the affirmative or positive response does not have to come last as it does in the example. The order of the sestets allows the author to impart to the reader a hint as to which answer is preferred or expected. Satirical forms of the sonnet would offer further opportunity to enable the author (and the reader) to see how an answer to a question might be understood differently if one’s own viewpoint is framed in a satirical light. As with any sonnet, the dense nature of the text invites a guiding theme or image in order to establish coherence. The answer in each sestet should be clear and contained within its own sestet.
As I continue teaching the class and this sonnet form and as circumstances allow in the classroom, I intend to expand how the sonnet offers a chance for dialogue. For instance, in a group of three, each student can write a question couplet with the other two students offering stanzas to answer it. The outcome of this exercise would be three Carinthian sonnets co-written by three authors who have engaged in dialogue in order to plan the texts. The interaction between these authors allows for negotiation of meaning, compromise in terms of content and form, and accomplishment through joint effort.