Fourteener (poetry) Fourteener (poetry) In poetry, a fourteener is a line consisting of 14 syllables, which are usually made of seven iambic feet for which the style is also called iambic heptameter. It is most commonly found in English poetry produced in the 16th and 17th centuries. Fourteeners often appear as rhymed couplets, in which case they may be seen as ballad stanza or common metre hymn quatrains in two rather than four lines. The term may also be used as a synonym for quatorzain, a 14-line poem, such as a sonnet. Poulter's measure is a meter consisting of alternate Alexandrines combined
Sonnet 57 undertone of forbidden love (reminiscent of Petrarch's signature poetry) and discusses the many double meanings present throughout the sonnet. Through his signature rhyme scheme and careful word choice Shakespeare not only creates a darkly lustful sonnet that resonates with many of his readers, but also manages to establish a connection between many of his sonnets and therefore weave an intricate and sophisticated story with many derived and extrapolated components. Literary critics such as David Schalkwyk see this sonnet as playing out a relationship with unequal power. He sees this relationship in Sonnets 26, 57, 58 and notes that it is