World, in hounding me . . .
by Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz
LITERARY FOCUS: SONNET
A sonnet is a fourteen-line poem that follows a strict structure. The writer
Petrarch (1304-1374) created the model for what is now referred to as the
Petrarchan, or Italian, sonnet. Here are the characteristics of a Petrarchan
sonnet:
• The first eight lines, or octave, ask a question or pose a problem.
• The rhyme scheme of the octave is abba abba. (The first and fourth lines
rhyme, as do the second and third, and so on.)
• The last six lines, or the sestet, respond to the question or problem.
• The sestet may contain the rhyme scheme cde cde or cdc dcd.
Sor Juana’s “World, in hounding me . . .” is a Petrarchan sonnet. Note that
some of the rhymes are approximate, because of the translation from
Spanish to English.
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
READING SKILLS: FINDING UNITS OF MEANING
In many poems the speaker’s ideas do not end at the ends of lines. Instead,
those ideas may fill up two, three, four, or even more lines. When you read
poetry, look for punctuation clues like commas, periods, and question marks
to help you identify units of meaning.
Look at the following example from “World, in hounding me . . .” The
end punctuation clues are circled. The other marks are underlined. This
passage from the poem contains two complete thoughts over four lines
of poetry.
World, in hounding me, what do you gain?
How can it harm you if I choose, astutely,
rather to stock my mind with things of beauty,
than waste its stock on every beauty’s claim?
Use the Skill
As you read “World, in hounding me . . .,” look for
capitalization and punctuation clues that indicate the beginning and
ending of the speaker’s ideas.
Literary Skills
Understand the
characteristics of
a Petrarchan
sonnet.
Reading
Skills
Find units of
meaning.
World, in hounding me . . .
19
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz
translated by Alan S. Trueblood
BACKGROUND
The Mexican writer Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz was in many
ways a remarkable woman of her day. A devout nun and a
trained scholar, Sor Juana did not restrict herself to a quiet
life. She wrote plays and song lyrics and presided over
a salon_a regular gathering of well-known literary figures.
In 1974, almost three hundred years after her death, Sor
Juana was awarded the title First Feminist of the Americas.
What idea is expressed in
line 5?
World, in hounding me, what do you gain?
Underline what Sor Juana
describes as her “only happiness” (lines 6-7). What does
she mean?
How can it harm you if I choose, astutely,
rather to stock my mind with things of beauty,
than waste its stock on every beauty’s claim?
5
Costliness and wealth bring me no pleasure;
derives from setting treasure in my mind,
and not from mind that’s set on winning treasure.
I prize no comeliness.° All fair things pay
10
Re-read the last six lines, or
sestet, of the sonnet. What
belief does Sor Juana express?
to time, the victor, their appointed fee
and treasure cheats even the practiced eye.
Mine is the better and the truer way:
to leave the vanities of life aside,
not throw my life away on vanity.
°comeliness: beauty.
“World, in hounding me, what do you gain?” from A Sor Juana Anthology, translated by Alan
S. Trueblood. Copyright © 1988 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College. Published by
Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. Reprinted by permission of the publisher.
20
Part 1
Collection 1: Encounters and Foundations to 1800
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
the only happiness I care to find
World, in hounding me . . .
Reading Skills: Finding Units of Meaning
In a Petrarchan sonnet, the
octave poses a question or problem, and the sestet answers the question or
solves the problem. Sor Juana’s “World, in hounding me . . .” is reprinted below.
Examine each section of the sonnet, and complete the right-hand column with
details from the poem.
Octave
Problems or Questions Posed
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
World, in hounding me, what do you gain?
How can it harm you if I choose, astutely,
rather to stock my mind with things of beauty,
than waste its stock on every beauty’s claim?
Costliness and wealth bring me no pleasure;
the only happiness I care to find
derives from setting treasure in my mind,
and not from mind that’s set on winning treasure.
Sestet
Conclusion or Answers to Problem
I prize no comeliness. All fair things pay
to time, the victor, their appointed fee
and treasure cheats even the practiced eye.
Mine is the better and the truer way:
to leave the vanities of life aside,
not throw my life away on vanity.
World, in hounding me . . .
21
18
Part 1
And I shall behold them no more.
My pleasant things lie in ashes
When I oft past by the ruins
I, starting up, did spy the light
In silent night when I took rest
Restatement of Inversion
Collection 1: Encounters and Foundations to 1800
“And them behold no more shall I.”
(line 28)
“My pleasant things in ashes lie,” (line 27)
“When by the ruins oft I past” (line 21)
“I, starting up, the light did spy,” (line 7)
“In silent night when rest I took” (line 1)
Example of Inversion from Poem
Reading Skills and Strategies: Analyzing Text Structures
“Upon the
Burning of Our House” contains many instances of inversion, in which words
appear in an unusual order. The left-hand column of the chart below lists
several examples of inversion from the poem. In the right-hand column, write
the inverted words or phrases in normal word order.
Here Follow Some Verses upon the
Burning of Our House, July 10, 1666
Use the Skill
As you read “World, in hounding me . . .,” look for
capitalization and punctuation clues that indicate the beginning and
ending of the speaker’s ideas.
than waste its stock on every beauty’s claim?
rather to stock my mind with things of beauty,
How can it harm you if I choose, astutely,
World, in hounding me, what do you gain?
Look at the following example from “World, in hounding me . . .” The
end punctuation clues are circled. The other marks are underlined. This
passage from the poem contains two complete thoughts over four lines
of poetry.
Reading
Skills
Find units of
meaning.
19
Literary Skills
Understand the
characteristics of
a Petrarchan
sonnet.
World, in hounding me . . .
In many poems the speaker’s ideas do not end at the ends of lines. Instead,
those ideas may fill up two, three, four, or even more lines. When you read
poetry, look for punctuation clues like commas, periods, and question marks
to help you identify units of meaning.
READING SKILLS: FINDING UNITS OF MEANING
Sor Juana’s “World, in hounding me . . .” is a Petrarchan sonnet. Note that
some of the rhymes are approximate, because of the translation from
Spanish to English.
A sonnet is a fourteen-line poem that follows a strict structure. The writer
Petrarch (1304-1374) created the model for what is now referred to as the
Petrarchan, or Italian, sonnet. Here are the characteristics of a Petrarchan
sonnet:
• The first eight lines, or octave, ask a question or pose a problem.
• The rhyme scheme of the octave is abba abba. (The first and fourth lines
rhyme, as do the second and third, and so on.)
• The last six lines, or the sestet, respond to the question or problem.
• The sestet may contain the rhyme scheme cde cde or cdc dcd.
LITERARY FOCUS: SONNET
by Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz
World, in hounding me . . .
Collection 1
Student pages 18–19
Student Pages with Answers
11
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
12
The Holt Reader: Teacher’s Manual
20
Part 1
pursuits.
10
5
“World, in hounding me, what do you gain?” from A Sor Juana Anthology, translated by Alan
S. Trueblood. Copyright © 1988 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College. Published by
Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. Reprinted by permission of the publisher.
°comeliness: beauty.
not throw my life away on vanity.
to leave the vanities of life aside,
Mine is the better and the truer way:
and treasure cheats even the practiced eye.
to time, the victor, their appointed fee
I prize no comeliness.° All fair things pay
and not from mind that’s set on winning treasure.
derives from setting treasure in my mind,
the only happiness I care to find
Costliness and wealth bring me no pleasure;
than waste its stock on every beauty’s claim?
rather to stock my mind with things of beauty,
How can it harm you if I choose, astutely,
World, in hounding me, what do you gain?
The Mexican writer Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz was in many
ways a remarkable woman of her day. A devout nun and a
trained scholar, Sor Juana did not restrict herself to a quiet
life. She wrote plays and song lyrics and presided over
a salon_a regular gathering of well-known literary figures.
In 1974, almost three hundred years after her death, Sor
Juana was awarded the title First Feminist of the Americas.
BACKGROUND
Collection 1: Encounters and Foundations to 1800
on more worthwhile
vanity and spend time
It is better to cast aside
Re-read the last six lines, or
sestet, of the sonnet. What
belief does Sor Juana express?
to her is her mind.
What matters the most
Underline what Sor Juana
describes as her “only happiness” (lines 6-7). What does
she mean?
make her happy.
material things don’t
Sor Juana says that
What idea is expressed in
line 5?
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz
translated by Alan S. Trueblood
I prize no comeliness. All fair things pay
to time, the victor, their appointed fee
and treasure cheats even the practiced eye.
Mine is the better and the truer way:
to leave the vanities of life aside,
not throw my life away on vanity.
Sestet
World, in hounding me, what do you gain?
How can it harm you if I choose, astutely,
rather to stock my mind with things of beauty,
than waste its stock on every beauty’s claim?
Costliness and wealth bring me no pleasure;
the only happiness I care to find
derives from setting treasure in my mind,
and not from mind that’s set on winning treasure.
Octave
World, in hounding me . . .
Beauty is no treasure. The speaker
decides not to waste her life on vain
pursuits.
Conclusion or Answers to Problem
The world expects the speaker to focus
on beauty and wealth, but the speaker
would rather focus on improving her
mind.
Problems or Questions Posed
Reading Skills: Finding Units of Meaning
In a Petrarchan sonnet, the
octave poses a question or problem, and the sestet answers the question or
solves the problem. Sor Juana’s “World, in hounding me . . .” is reprinted below.
Examine each section of the sonnet, and complete the right-hand column with
details from the poem.
World, in hounding me . . .
21
Collection 1
Student pages 20–21
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
Name
Selection:
Class
Date
Author:
Sonnet
A sonnet is a fourteen-line poem, usually written in iambic pentameter.
The Elizabethan, or Shakespearean, sonnet has three quatrains (four-line units) and
ends with a couplet. Its rhyme scheme is typically abab cdcd efef gg.
The Italian, or Petrachan, sonnet makes a point in the first eight lines (octave) and
responds to it in the last six lines (sestet). Its rhyme scheme is typically abba abba cde cde.
DIRECTIONS: In the chart below, identify the sonnet’s rhyme scheme. Then, answer the
following questions about the sonnet.
1. What is the sonnet’s rhyme scheme?_______________________________________________
2. What is the sonnet’s subject? _____________________________________________________
3. What image, metaphor or idea does the sonnet develop? ____________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
4. What does the sonnet first say about its subject?____________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
5. What comment or response does the sonnet then make on the subject? _______________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
6. What type of sonnet does this selection most closely follow? _________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
7. If the sonnet is a variation on a traditional form, how does it differ?__________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
Graphic Organizers
217