The Presentation of Women in Shakespeare’s Sonnet 130 and Griffin’s

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The Presentation of Women in Shakespeare’s Sonnet 130 and Griffin’s Sonnet 39 What attitude do their presentations of women reflect? Discuss in detail how the poets’ choice & use of language influences your reading of poems. It is evident in both Griffin’s poem and Shakespeare’s poem that their love for their beloved is matchless; however the presentations and the personal interpretations of the two poets give a totally different message to its readers. It is often in Shakespeare’s sonnet 130 that we realize he ridicules his mistress and praises her in a way that misleads its readers to believe that Shakespeare doesn’t love her. Whereas, in Griffin’s Sonnet 39, he puts his lady as the central motive of the poem and this is obvious as almost every line in his poem begins with the word “her.” Without a doubt, the first line in both poems portrays a direct contrast from each other. In Griffin’s poem, he compares his lady’s hair to “threads of beaten golds” (line 1), which suggests the high status and attractiveness of his lady. On the contrary, Shakespeare begins his sonnet by depreciating the status of his mistress as she is “nothing like the sun” (line 1). This is also seen in the latter lines of the sonnet; her lips are not as red as coral, her breasts are dun-colored and the black wires growing on her head. (lines 2-4). In Griffin’s sonnet, we can see how he praises the beauty of his lady and her perfection with the use of figurative languages. Although the two sonnets seems to be similar, both admiring the beauty of their lovers, it is still apparent that the two women in the two sonnets are presented in different ways and the fact that there is a contrast between the two of them. The poem, Son... ... middle of paper ... ...the way how Griffin presents his lady may sound the world’s perfect woman. Nonetheless, because of his hyperbolical statements and exaggerations, it may sound perfect to its readers, but then again, the lady becomes an idealize character and her beauty is only artificial. Through a detail study within the two poems, it is obvious that the two women presented in both poems are not similar. The poets’ viewpoints differ as they have personal opinions with regards to the qualities possess by their mistress or lady, whether they’re goddess-like or genuine in nature. As readers, we’re greatly influenced by the words written by the poets; we are dependent on their language and words to reveal the implications and the underlying message. [1] James P. Wolf. Pimbley's Dictionary of Heraldry – G [Online] Available http://www.digiserve.com/heraldry/pimb_g.htm

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