Imagery And Mood In Edna St Vincent Millay's 'Sonnet 30'

687 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Analysis of sonnet 29

Poems show their imagery and mood in many different ways. In sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare, he talks about his loved one which is compared to a summer's day. He also says she will forever, even after death, be beautiful. In sonnet 30 by Edna St Vincent Millay, she talks about how love is never easy or perfect, yet we would not give up anything in the world for it. The poems may seem very different since one seems more romantic than the other but, they are very similar if you look at it closely. The two poets are illustrating a theme of love and relationships within the literary similarities and differences of the two poems.
Imagery is using descriptive words for the reader to appeal to their five senses. In sonnet 18, Shakespeare says death …show more content…

In sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare, he makes the mood of the poem happy and romantic. He is comparing the beauty of his loved one to the beauty of summer days. As said in lines 1-2,” Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and temperate.” This immediately sets a romantic mood. He seems very in love and happy to be by her side to admire her beauty. In sonnet 30 by Edna St Vincent Millay, the mood seems sad but committing. Millay is saying love is not always easy, much less perfect. It is not easy to work with but it is still something we all want to keep. As said in line 1,” Love is not all; it is not meat nor drink.” Another example is lines 12-14,” I might be driven to sell your love for peace, or trade the memory of the night for food. It well may be. I do not think I will.” These lines demonstrate how the mood seems very committing. She is very committing towards her loved one. He may not be perfect and make her pass through bad times but, she is not willing to give up on him, on them. The overall mood in both poems would be romantic. They stay committed to the person they love. Comparing their loved one to beauty and staying committed to someone's side makes it very

Show More
Related

  • Examples Of Light And Dark Imagery In Romeo And Juliet

    644 Words  | 2 Pages

    Imagery are words or phrases that create pictures in the mind of the reader. It is a vivid and descriptive language that appeals to one or more senses. In Romeo and Juliet, there are numerous occasions where imagery is used, specifically light and dark imagery. Romeo represents darkness as he is depressed and thinks negatively. Juliet represents light since her beauty is as bright as the sun. In William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet, it is quite evident that one of the most profound forms of imagery is light and dark imagery, which is shown through the darkness of Romeo and the lightness of Juliet.

    Read More

  • Edna St. Vincent Millay’s sonnet What lips my lips have kissed and where and why

    518 Words  | 2 Pages

    Edna St. Vincent Millay’s sonnet, “What lips my lips have kissed and where and why”

    Read More

  • Imagery in Edward's Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

    534 Words  | 2 Pages

    Imagery is one of the components that were used by Edwards to make his story more persuasive. As the short story begins, the first sentence was an example of imagery. Edwards wrote when men are on God’s hands and they could fall to hell. “…natural men are held in the hands of God, over the pit of hell…” Knowing that you might fall into hell at any moment should scare you. God decided to save you until he wants to let you fall into an eternity of burning flames. Another example of imagery is when he talks abo...

    Read More

  • Imagery Differences in Texts

    655 Words  | 2 Pages

    Imagery is defined as language that appeals to one or more of the senses. It allows the writer to convey a deeper message while entertaining the reader at the same time. Often it is used to help the readers connect what the edification is to their own real life experiences. Imagery can be used to intrigue sight, smell, feel, taste, or hearing. Writing is considered not well written without imagery because people enjoy the feeling of a personal connection with the story. The Authors that are featured in Prentice Hall Literature Poetry Collection 4 do an exceptional job of involving imagery in their writings.

    Read More

  • Literary Devices Used In The Play David

    316 Words  | 1 Pages

    Imagery is a way to describe objects, scenarios, scenes, etc. by using language that would appeal to physical senses such as; smell, sight, touch, taste, and sound. For example, “Then the darkening firs And the sudden whirring of water of the knifed down a fern-hidden Cliff and splashed unseen into mist in the shadows.” (II. 5. 3-4) This quote is explaining how the day is turning into night, the trees are darkening, the water is swaying with the wind, and the trees vanishing behind the thick fog. “we slogged Through the

    Read More

  • Moon Rondeau And Woman Essay

    613 Words  | 2 Pages

    The majority of the poems conveys romantic on some authors poem. And some have imagery. The characteristic kind of mental images formed by a particular individual . The theme of this that In the poems "Simile", "Moon Rondeau", "Woman" the authors thoroughly demonstrated the ups and downs that takes place in relationships. The authors of the poem vividly showed how not all relationships are peaches and cream. In Simile, Scott Momaday gave an example of a couple who is mad at each other and is now going their own ways. This is a prime example of how all relationships might not go the way you planned.The poem” Moon Rondeau” , by Carl Sandburg, expresses a romantic notion that moon is a symbol of a couple's love. Love is the main idea of the “Moon Rondeau”Two lovers are sitting under the harvest moon. The poem “ Woman “ by nikki giovanni, is about a woman and the man in her life. The woman wants things in life, but the man will not let her.He refuses to be part of it. In the end she decides to be a woman but he is not ready to be a man. I think that is only possible for two people to remain close without sometimes

    Read More

  • Imagery And Symbolism In Hands, By Ted Kooser

    303 Words  | 1 Pages

    He uses imagery to reflect that the son sees his father as he says, “I have begun to see my father's hands out at the end of my arms.” Imagery is used to express the five senses, and to show what has happened or what the character has experienced. “I hear him singing, softly singing, the words buzzing deep in his chest.” The son is hearing his father sing peacefully as he is dying, this may have been the last thing the son could hear.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Imagery In The Masque Of The Red Death

    775 Words  | 2 Pages

    Imagery is the use of figurative or descriptive language to create a vivid mental picture. It involves at least one of the five senses--sight, sound, touch, feel, taste. It terrifies and worries the people of the masquerade ball. Poe’s use of imagery, more specifically the sense of sight, is to express the appearance of the Red Death figure. Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Masque of the Red Death” uses graphic imagery to offer a powerful statement about how death can’t be escaped.

    Read More

  • Use of Blood in Macbeth

    595 Words  | 2 Pages

    Imagery is the use of symbols to convey an idea or to create a specific atmosphere for the audience. Shakespeare uses imagery in Macbeth often, the most prevalent one, is blood. I believe he uses this as a way to convey guilt, murder, betrayal, treachery and evil, and to symbolize forewarning of events.

    Read More

  • Exploring the Theme of Love in Sonnets 57 and 58

    1313 Words  | 3 Pages

    Shakespeare uses many different methods of discourse to examine this theme of love. In both sonnets the lover is exerting his control over the narrator, but the narrator does not really mind being controlled in either sonnet. Both sonnets include many elements and references to time and waiting and all of these references relate to love by showing love’s long lifespan and varying strengths over time. The only major difference between the two sonnets lies in their addressing love. Sonnet 57 talks directly to it in a personifying manner, whereas sonnet 58 merely refers to it through other means. Through this variety of explorations of the theme of love, Shakespeare shows that love has many faces and ways of expressing itself.

    Read More

  • Comparing and Contrasting Shakespeare's Sonnet 130 and Clause McKay's The Harlem Dancer

    603 Words  | 2 Pages

    A sonnet is a fixed patterned poem that expresses a single, complete thought or idea. Sonnet comes from the Italian word “sonetto”, which means “little song”. Poem, on the other hand, is English writing that has figurative language, and written in separate lines that usually have a repeated rhyme, but don’t all the time. The main and interesting thing is that these two poems or sonnets admire and compare the beauty of a specific woman, with tone, repetition, imagery, and sense of sound.

    Read More

  • Comparing William Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 and Sonnet 130

    516 Words  | 2 Pages

    The two poems do seem to have a similar theme; both are focused around describing the poet’s muse. However, Sonnet 18 is not about love at all—Shakespeare makes no reference to love in the poem; he is merely describing how beautiful this individual is. Sonnet 130, on the other hand, is a true love poem, making direct mention to it in the couplet: “And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare / As any she belied with false compare.” Surprisingly enough, Sonnet 18 shows more the love Shakespeare has for himself and his writing ability. In the last three lines: “When in eternal lines to time thou growest: / So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, / So long lives this and this gives life to thee.” he is basically saying that in his eternal verse his muse will forever live. And although the couplet is sweet, a different approach to its meaning would be: “As long as people can read, they will read my poetry!” Sonnets were created to show-off a poet’s skill and not their love—in Sonnet 18 it is most apparent.

    Read More

  • William Shakespeare and Edmund Spenser

    759 Words  | 2 Pages

    Therefore, because William Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 18” and Edmund Spenser’s “Sonnet 75” share the idea that love is sincere and eternal, they can be looked upon as similar in theme. However, although similar in theme, Shakespeare’s intent is portraying the true everlasting beauty of his love, which is already achieved, whereas Spenser concentrates more on trying to entice his desired love, remaining optimistic throughout the entire poem.

    Read More

  • Comparison of Two Poems: Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day and If Thou Must Love Me

    1167 Words  | 3 Pages

    Both poems “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day” by William Shakespeare, and “If thou must love me” by Elizabeth Barrett Browning appear to share some things in common. Both share the same theme and tone of love. Shakespeare emphasizes more on “beauty” in his poem by comparing his admirer to that of “summer’s day” (1). He went further to indicate the level of love and beauty of his admirer by using this phrase, “thou art more lovely and more temperate” (2), showing that the person is more beautiful than the “summer’s day” because “summer’s day” might fade away. Both poems are sonnets (fourteen line poem), divided into three quatrains, with Shakespeare’s ending with a couplet. They a...

    Read More

  • Critical Analysis of Sonnet 29 by William Shakespeare

    2546 Words  | 6 Pages

    William Shakespeare (1564-1616) lived in a time of religious turbulence. During the Renaissance people began to move away from the Church. Authors began to focus on the morals of the individual and on less lofty ideals than those of the Middle Ages. Shakespeare wrote one-hundred fifty-four sonnets during his lifetime. Within these sonnets he largely explored romantic love, not the love of God. In Sonnet 29 Shakespeare uses specific word choice and rhyme to show the reader that it is easy to be hopeful when life is going well, but love is always there, for rich and poor alike, even when religion fails.

    Read More

More about Imagery And Mood In Edna St Vincent Millay's 'Sonnet 30'

Open Document