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Love in shakespeare's sonnets essay
Sonnet analysis
Analysis of shakespearean sonnet 12
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In Sonnet 54, the speaker, an older man, probably in his thirties or forties, addresses the youth, a young man most likely in his late teens or early twenties. In his address to the young man, he contends that the young man’s beauty and truth are similar to the fragrance contained within a rose, and he argues that those two qualities will be forever preserved in the poet’s sonnet, in the same way that the sweet scent of the rose is forever preserved in perfumes. The poet develops two key images throughout the sonnet; that of the rose and that of the canker blooms. Canker blooms are identified as dog roses or wild roses that lack a sweet scent. These two flowers are compared and contrasted in terms of their looks and their fragrances; the rose and the canker bloom are both stated to be extremely beautiful. However, the rose is considered to be additionally beautiful due to its sweet fragrance, while the canker bloom is scentless, and is not mourned when its blossoms die. On the other hand, the scent of the rose is preserved in perfumes, and because of this the rose is, mourned, and even more importantly, never forgotten. In addition to the imagery used in the sonnet, the tone of sonnet LIV as a whole affects how the reader digests the sonnet and sets the mood. The tone of a poem is an important tool for a poet to consider while writing. It can help the reader understand the speaker, can emotionally involve the reader, sets the mood for the sonnet, and tells the reader how to feel when reading the poem. In Sonnet LIV by William Shakespeare, the tone of the speaker, an older man, is sincerity and passion. “But for virtue is their only show, they live unwoo’d and unrespected fade, die to themselves” (Shakespeare, 9) The speaker ex... ... middle of paper ... ...he same goes for you divine and lovely youth. When your beauty starts to fade away, my poem will forever preserve your splendor for others to enjoy. Shakespeare used extended metaphor to develop the theme of preserving the beauty of the youth and power of verse by comparing true beauty of youth and to a rose. Shakespeare will capture truths in his sonnets; he is not satisfied by making superficially pleasant sonnets, but instead will make sonnets with everlasting truths about superior things. True and inwardly beauty leaves a lasting impression. Works Cited Hylton, Jeremy. "Sonnet LIV." Sonnet LIV. TheTech, n.d. Web. 03 Jan. 2014. "Shakespeare's Sonnets By William Shakespeare Summary and Analysis Sonnet 54." Sonnet 54. HOUGHTON MIFFLIN HARCOURT, n.d. Web. 03 Jan. 2014. "Shakespeare's Sonnets." Shakespeare's Sonnets. Oxquarry Books Ltd, n.d. Web. 03 Jan. 2014.
Billy Collins, the writer of Sonnet, uses a comical effect to make fun of old sonnets, how they were written and the older poets, through the use of literary terms. The fact that Billy Collins speaks with a mockery tone of Petrarch, causes readers to understand how he feels about the old sonnet writers and their work. Collins' tone expresses a negative look on old sonnets, but also looks on the bright side of them. He addresses the issue of how older sonnets were written by old poets in order to explain to readers why he wants to change the face of sonnets today. He is trying to get this main point across to readers so that they understand why he wants this change.
"Poetry is the revelation of a feeling that the poet believes to be interior and personal [but] which the reader recognizes as his own." (Salvatore Quasimodo). There is something about the human spirit that causes us to rejoice in shared experience. We can connect on a deep level with our fellow man when we believe that somehow someone else understands us as they relate their own joys and hardships; and perhaps nowhere better is this relationship expressed than in that of the poet and his reader. For the current assignment I had the privilege (and challenge) of writing an imitation of William Shakespeare’s "Sonnet 87". This poem touched a place in my heart because I have actually given this sonnet to someone before as it then communicated my thoughts and feelings far better than I could. For this reason, Sonnet 87 was an easy choice for this project, although not quite so easy an undertaking as I endeavored to match Shakespeare’s structure and bring out his themes through similar word choice.
In fact, the contrasting strategies of Sonnet 29 and extreme claims made in Sonnet 116 combine in a intellectual manner throughout Sonnet 130. The speaker of this sonnet incorporates numerous ironic contrasts with his love’s beauty and a few unattainable measures (SHAKESPEARE’S SONNETS). Unlike in previous sonnet the author does not directly state the true beauty of his love, however he expresses what she is
This is an enjoyable sonnet that uses nature imagery, found extensively in Petrarca, that Shakespeare uses to get his point across. Not much explication is needed, aside the sustained images of nature, to fully understand its intent, but I would like to point out a peculiar allusion. When reading line 3, "the violet past prime" has made me think of Venus and Adonis. In the end, Adonis melts into the earth and a violet sprouts where his body was, which Venus then places in her heart, signifying the love she has for him. Reading this into the poem makes the few following lines more significant. Having Adonis portrayed as the handsome youth, Shakespeare is alluding to the death of youth (in general and to the young man) through the sonnet. In the next line, it is not certain if "sable" is an adjective or a noun and if "curls" is a noun, referring to hair (which is plausible) or a verb modifying "sable." Invoking the allusion to Adonis here, Shakespeare portends that if Adonis did live longer, he too would have greying hair; thus, Shakespeare sees ["behold"] an Adonis figure, the young man, past his youth.
..., D. E. (2009, November 7). The Sonnet, Subjectivity, and Gender. Retrieved October 11, 2011, from mit.edu: www.mit.edu/~shaslang/WGS/HendersonSSG.pdf
A sonnet is a lyric poem of fourteen lines, following one of several set of rhyme-schemes. Critics of the sonnet have recognized varying classifications, but the two characteristic sonnet types are the Italian type (Petrarchan) and the English type (Shakespearean). Shakespeare is still nowadays seen as in idol in English literature. No one can read one of his works and be left indifferent. His way of writing is truly fascinating. His sonnets, which are his most popular work, reflect several strong themes. Several arguments attempt to find the full content of those themes.
Spencer, Edmund. “Amoretti: Sonnet 54”. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Gen. ed. David Simpson. 8th ed. Vol. 1. New York: Norton, 2006. 904. Print.
This is beneficial to sonnet simply because it allows it to flow better and gives it rhythm. To Shakespeare, youth is seen as the pinnacle of your lifetime. In reality, this peak of youthful beauty is only a slight moment of perfection. Before you know it, time swallows your youth, and things begin to change. He elaborates on the beauty and the decay of youth through style, technique and structure.
Sonnet 71 is one of 154 sonnets written by William Shakespeare, and although it may rank fairly low on the popularity scale, it clearly demonstrates a pessimistic and morbid tone. With the use of metaphors, personification, and imagery this sonnet focuses on the poet’s feelings about his death and how the young should mourn him after he has died. Throughout the sonnet, there appears to be a continual movement of mourning, and with a profound beauty that can only come from Shakespeare. Shakespeare appeals to our emotional sense of “feeling” with imagery words like vile, dead, be forgot, and decay, and we gain a better understanding of the message and feelings dictated by the speaker.
Shakespeare's Sonnet 73 well fills and fits the three quatrains and single couplet of the Elizabethan sonnet. We can be sure there is no doubt to believe that some of Shakespeare's sonnets, like Sonnet 73, were well known and he was surely placed at the head of the dramatists and high among the non-dramatic poets. As Bender and Squier claimed (75), in the sixteenth century, Shakespeare is England's greatest playwright and the best of the Elizabethan sonneteers.
Shakespeare, William, "Sonnet 42." The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Eds. M.H. Abrams and Stephen Greenblatt. 7th ed. 2 vols. New York: Norton, 2000. 1:1033.
In addition, the sonnet is a statement of respect about the beauty of his beloved; summ...
Shakespeare's Exploration in Sonnet 2 of the Themes of Age and Beauty. Look closely at the effects of language, imagery and handling of the sonnet form. Comment on ways in which the poem’s methods and concerns are characteristics of other Shakespeare sonnets you have studied. The second of Shakespeare’s sonnets conveys an argument the poet is. making somewhat implicitly to a subject whose identity is hazy and unknown to the reader, even in retrospect.
Shakespeare, William. "Sonnet 130." The Longman Anthology of British Literature: compact edition. Ed. David Damrosch. Addison-Wesley, 2000. 556.
During the Renaissance period, most poets were writing love poems about their lovers/mistresses. The poets of this time often compared love to high, unrealistic, and unattainable beauty. Shakespeare, in his sonnet 18, continues the tradition of his time by comparing the speakers' love/mistress to the summer time of the year. It is during this time of the year that the flowers and the nature that surround them are at there peak for beauty. The theme of the poem is to show the speakers true interpretation of beauty. Beauties worst enemy is time and although beauty might fade it can still live on through a person's memory or words of a poem. The speaker realizes that beauty, like the subject of the poem, will remain perfect not in the eyes of the beholder but the eyes of those who read the poem. The idea of beauty living through the words of a poem is tactfully reinforced throughout the poem using linking devices such as similes and metaphors.