Sonnet Tradition · English Literature

Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, is credited with which major innovation in the English sonnet tradition?

  1. The introduction of the 'volta' shift at line 9 of the poem
  2. The invention of the three-quatrain-and-couplet rhyme scheme
  3. Writing the first explicitly religious devotional sonnets in English
  4. Establishing dactylic hexameter as the standard meter for English sonnets
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Correct answer: The invention of the three-quatrain-and-couplet rhyme scheme

While Wyatt brought the form to England, Surrey refined the rhyme scheme into the three-quatrain and couplet structure. This became the standard 'English' or 'Shakespearean' sonnet.

Difficulty: Medium Question 13 of 20

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