A Fixed Idea

1. Amy Lowell’s “A Fixed Idea” is Petrarchan sonnet, meaning a sonnet that follows a fixed rhyme scheme—ABBA ABBA CDC DCD—with a turn that divides the first eight and last six lines of the poem. Read the poem aloud to yourself a few times. Where do you find yourself pausing? Where does your pace pick up? 
    
2. Where does the pronoun “you” first appear in this poem? What do you notice about its placement? 
    
3. Are there any shifts in mood in this poem? Any lines where you feel more or less tension? Are there any word choices that stick out to you? 
    
4. In the traditional Petrarchan sonnet, pain and pleasure are often mixed. Here, Lowell writes, “to find / That all recurring joy is pain refined.” Why might it be painful to find joy? What kind of situation do you think the speaker is describing?  
    
5. In line 9, the speaker uses a simile: “You lie upon a heart as on my nest.” What or who is the you of the poem compared to here? Look for all the words in the poem, both before and after line 9, that suggest the same central comparison or metaphor. What is the significance of this comparison?    
   
   Writing activity: Consider a conflict you’ve had with another person in your life. Write a poem to that person, describing the situation without explaining it literally. Try to find a central point of comparison (metaphor) for your poem, one you can develop gradually over your lines. As a nod to Amy Lowell’s Petrarchan sonnet “A Fixed Idea,” incorporate at least a couple rhymes at the ends of your lines. 

Useful Link

Description of the sonnet form, including the Petrarchan variation: https://poets.org/glossary/sonnet