Volta Poetry

Although you might think the term 'volta' is associated with science and electricity (with its volts and voltages), it is in fact a poetic device. Many poets use the volta in their poetry, but what is this literary device? The volta is the 'turning point' of a poem that can transform its meaning entirely. These elegant transitions not only serve to surprise and captivate the reader but also give a glimpse into the poet's dynamic thought process. From Shakespeare's heartfelt sonnets to Petrarch's passionate verses, the volta's vital role in literature and its influential examples have etched a timeless mark in the realm of poetry.

What is the meaning of volta in poetry?

A volta, often used in sonnet form, is the turn of thought or argument seen in the lines of a poem. This turning point usually occurs just before or after the halfway point in the poem and introduces a new theme or shifts the perspective or argument. The volta is a key element of sonnet structure, typically occurring between the octave and the sestet in a Petrarchan sonnet and before the final couplet in an English sonnet. However, a volta can be found in other types of poems as well.

The word 'volta' in Italian literally means 'turn', a good mnemonic device to remember its meaning in poetry as a turning point in the poem. A volta can be identified in any type of poem and can be found anywhere, though it is most typically at the end (we will go into detail on where they are placed specifically later).

Voltas are also known by other names such as fulcrum and 'turning point'.

Fig. 1 - Voltas mark a turning point in thought or argument in a poem.

What are some examples of volta in poetry?

Voltas can occur in almost any line of a poem. Some examples of classic voltas include William Shakespeare's 'Sonnet 130' where the volta occurs at the beginning of the final couplet, marking the shift from the poet's earlier criticism of his beloved's appearance to a heartfelt proclamation of his love.

Petrarch's 'Sonnet' 18 demonstrates the volta in the ninth line, which marks the speaker's shift from mourning his unrequited love to questioning how he continues to live despite his anguish.

Let's take a look at more examples:

Volta example: U. A. Fanthorpe's 'A Minor Role;

U.A. Fanthorpe’s poem 'A Minor Role' follows an individual with a chronic illness and their commentary on the role society forces them to play. The poem is filled with theatrical images to further highlight the theme of social roles. These lines are taken from the final two stanzas

The volta occurs in Fanthorpe’s poem when the speaker engages with the quote from Oedipus Rex by exclaiming, 'No it wouldn’t!' This changes the tone from melancholy to firm and adamant in the speaker's continued existence, despite the fact it will end soon.

Volta example: Tim Turnball's 'Ode to a Grayson Perry Urn'

Here are the final stanzas to Tim Turnball’s 'Ode to a Grayson Perry Urn', another poem with a volta. It is written as a modernised version of John Keats’s 'Ode to a Grecian Urn'. It describes contemporary artist Grayson Perry's artwork depicting a late 20th-century scene of youth and chaos and drinking.

The volta is in the final stanza, at the instance when Turnball's speaker contemplates the impact the urn will have on the future’s imagination of the past. He concludes the poem with the realization that truth and beauty are in the beholder’s eyes and despite his critical perception of the urn as being 'kitschy', the future might perceive it as an example of 'beauty.'

Volta example: Simon Armitage's 'Remains'

Simon Armitage’s poem, 'Remains', also uses a volta. Armitage uses it to explore the impact war has on individuals. His volta is partway through the poem, after describing what the speaker was commanded to do with looters and what happened.

The volta in Armitage's poem occurs when the speaker realises that the memory of what happened will never leave him. The poem continues for several stanzas to describe how the story hasn't really reached the "end" as the poem's voice is left traumatised and mentally scarred by the experience.

Volta in poetry: sonnets

Although voltas aren’t always placed in specific parts of poems, they are in certain types of poems. Most sonnets have a volta, but depending on the type of sonnet the poem is, the volta will be placed differently. Here we will go into a few examples of sonnets and look at where the voltas are placed.

Petrarchan volta

Petrarchan voltas are found in Petrarchan and Italian sonnets. These voltas occur after the octave (a stanza of 8 lines) and at the start of the sestet (a stanza of 6 lines).

John Milton’s 'Sonnet 19: When I consider how my light is spent' illustrates this sort of volta. The poem describes the thoughts of Milton as he contemplates his blindness in relation to God, but realises in a revelation that he doesn’t need sight to love God.

Shakespearean volta

Shakespearean voltas occur in Shakespearean sonnets. The voltas are usually found in either the final rhyming couplet or in lines 8-9.

'Sonnet 20' exemplifies a volta in line 9, when the speaker mourns how the love interest was by nature made a man for women, despite his feminine features. This turns the tone of the speaker from admiration to sadness as the pair cannot be together in Tudor society.

Other types of volta

It can also be argued that a haiku traditionally has a volta, as it undergoes a transition and juxtaposition from one idea into another. The break of this transition is marked by what is called a kireji, a word that acts as the interaction between something older and something more transient.

Unfortunately, it is difficult to mark where this would occur in traditional haikus because they have to be translated into English, which alters other structures haikus have, such as syllables.

Here's Matsuo Basho’s famous haiku (in the West, at least): 'Old Pond and Frog'.

In this example, the action of jumping resonates in the pond and acts as the kireji. The old pond is no longer still and stationary, but is suddenly disturbed and turned into a moving surface by the frog.

How can you spot a volta in poetry?

Voltas can be made easier to find in a poem when you know what to investigate. You can spot voltas in poetry by looking at the poem's structure, tonal change, or specific words that are used as a signpost in a volta.

Fig. 2 - Once you know the structure and purpose of a volta they are easy to find!

Volta: word signposts

In many cases, you might be notified of the presence of a volta through transition words, whether they indicate:

• A transition in argument, for example 'but', 'yet', 'except' or 'still'.

• A change of time, for example 'then', 'next' or 'now'.

For example, Shakespeare’s 'Sonnet 130' uses 'yet' as a transition in argument from him initially criticising the lover’s appearance in comparison to stereotypical beauty standards to admitting that his love helps him redefine beauty.

Similarly, Seamus Heaney's poem 'Death of a Naturalist' conveys a transition of time through the word 'then' that highlights how the boy’s perception of the frogs suddenly changes as he and they grow older. They appear to grow more hostile towards the speaker as they move from frogspawn and tadpoles to aggressive frogs.

However, these words cannot be our sole indicator for a volta, as they may be used without actually signalling the presence of one. As we cannot be dependent solely on this, we might also look out for other features.

Volta: tonal signposts

Perhaps most significant as a notifier of a volta’s presence is the shift in tone that a poem undergoes. If there is a transition of emotion, for example, there is almost certainly a volta.

Take Milton’s poem again, where the semantic field begins as hopeless and isolated with words such as 'dark', 'useless', 'bent', 'chide', 'death', and 'hide'. The passages later change to being more hopeful as the voice finds hope in knowing that God still loves him.

Similarly, Shakespeare’s 'Sonnet 130' goes from comparing the lover's physical appearance to stereotypical perceptions of beauty. This makes the beginning of the poem seem critical of the lover until the final couplet where the narrator finally admits that their love makes the lover’s appearance the idealism of beauty.

Votla: structural signposts

You have already learnt where voltas can be found in certain sonnets, but to find them, you must first recognise the sonnet structure. As we already know where to find the voltas in Petrarchan and Shakespearean sonnets, we will describe their structures so you can find them independently.

Petrarchan sonnet

All sonnets can be spotted easily because they have 14 lines. However, Petrarchan sonnets have a distinct rhyme scheme and form. The lines are split into certain sized stanzas, the first is an octet, rhyming as ABBAABBA, and the second a sestet, rhyming as either CDCDCD or CDECDE.

Shakespearean sonnet

Shakespearean sonnets differ from other sonnets because of their form as well. They follow the rhyme scheme of ABABCDCDEFEFGG. The physical presentation of the structure can differ, but it usually consists of three quatrains and a couplet to end. However, they can also be found in 1 stanza, or perhaps 4 stanzas of 3 with a couplet.

What is the purpose of volta in poetry?

Voltas show a transition from one idea to another perspective of it, creating a contrast between the initial belief and the newly discovered one. This transition and change can create a resolute tone, by the end, after the initial uncertainty of their thoughts, as well as adding other tones as well, such as hope, fear, distress, or happiness.

Voltas also act as a concluding section for a poem because of the way the narrator’s thoughts shift to a new perspective. This new perspective could be:

• Ironic - what has been discussed is suddenly changed by the narrator and undercut by them.

• Concessional - after the narrator reveals a problem, they argue against it.

• Elegiac - when an emotional transition occurs, either from grief to consolation, from grief to denying consolation, or from grief to different grief.

• Emblematic/symbolic - from a description of an object or symbol to meditation on it.

• Descriptive/meditative - a description of a scene that contemplates it, the narrator’s own contemplation of it, and then a return to the original scene with a new perspective.

• Retrospective/ prospective - a consideration of the past that then alters the perspective of the present or the future.