Sonnet 18

Petrarch’s sonnets consist of four parts: two quatrains (groupings of four lines) and two tercets (groupings of three lines). The two quatrains together are called an octave (eight-line section), and the two tercets together are called a sestet (six-line section). Between the octave and the sestet is a turn, or volta—a change in the avenue of thought.

The first line of “Sonnet 18” references a turning, both nodding to the formal poetic element and positioning the speaker in relation to his beloved. The speaker, usually understood as Petrarch himself, writes, “[w]hen I have turned my eyes to that place” (Line 1). The poem begins in a moment when he “turned” (in Italian, volto, a conjugation of the same word as volta), or a moment when he changed position. This attempt at confirming the beloved’s position is a feature of the courtly love tradition that informs Petrarch’s poetry, such as Lancelot being able to overcome an enemy when he turns to face his beloved Guinevere.

The first quatrain, or four lines, focuses on building the metaphor (comparison) of his beloved’s beauty as a light. Turning to look at her is like turning to look at the shining sun; the “lady’s lovely face shines” (Line 2).