Mocking the Sonnet Katie Rodriguez 12th Grade

When it comes to literature, individual stylistic preferences can differ radically. Some people like long, flowery, detailed pieces of elaborate writing, while others prefer short and simple ones. As a poet himself, Billy Collins is at times quite blunt about his tastes. In "Sonnet ", Collins presents his dislike of sonnets through satire that is based on his diction, allusions, and disregard for typical sonnet form.

Collins presents the poem with a very casual choice of words and creates a sense of friendly conversation within his first line, in how he starts out with "All we need is fourteen lines, well, thirteen now". By initiating his poem with "we" he creates a sense of inclusion, making it seem as though the reader is a close friend with whom he is engaging in small talk. The subsequent "well" also provides this sense by making a quick turn in what the reader was just saying. This adds to the casual feeling by making it appear as though the author is offhandedly changing his mind—as though this is not a published poem. He later contributes to this sense of casualness in line nine when he says "but hang on here while we make the turn". This is a common attention grabber that someone will use in modern conversation when the...