Throughout William Shakespeare’s sonnets, there are many highs and lows in his love life. Shakespeare encounters jealousy, heartbreak, utter bliss, and everything in between. All of the first 126 sonnets are addressed to a man. This man is Shakespeare’s rival poet, but also his younger, extremely handsome lover. However, this lover is not faithful and gives Shakespeare as much grief as he does pleasure. The poem I chose to analyze is Sonnet 71. The organization of the sonnet and the meaning behind Shakespeare’s thoughts of death and his proximity to it will be discussed as we dissect Sonnet 71.
The Shakespearean poem, Sonnet 71, has the common format of three variants of a central idea and then a couplet to finish the sonnet. The three variants, …show more content…
As Shakespeare continuously claims, he wants the reader of the poem to not think or mourn for his poor soul once he is dead. This is illustrated by the following lines, “No longer mourn for me when I am dead” (l. 1), “Nay, if you read this line, remember not / The hand that writ it, for I love you so” (ll. 5-6). However, this is counterintuitive since the lover who reads this poem will automatically think of none other than, Shakespeare. In turn, every time the lover reads the poem he will end up doing the exact opposite of what the poem says. Secondly, the way that Shakespeare constantly refers to himself in progressively vaguer terms. Amongst the three quatrains, he starts with “I”, then “the hand”, and ends with “verse”. This progressively diminishes the thought of Shakespeare into just the written work he has created. Subliminally, the reader will only associate Shakespeare, and his death, with his written verses, making it harder to forget him. Ultimately, this sonnet successfully makes the reader think more about Shakespeare even when the lines protest for the …show more content…
Shakespeare describes his fate and where he will be put in the end, “From this vile world with vilest worms to dwell” (l. 4). The denotation of this line is that he is leaving this cruel world to be put in the ground for the worms to eventually consume him. However, some of the bitterness that Shakespeare must have for the world, for taking him so young as well as not giving him the love he desired, is felt here. He curses this miserable world for his unfortunate love life and he acts as though he is ready to be put in the ground to die. This line especially broadcasts his displeasure and his troubles with love. At this point, dying is all that is left for him to succumb
The Shakespearean poem, Sonnet 71, has the common format of three variants of a central idea and then a couplet to finish the sonnet. The three variants, …show more content…
As Shakespeare continuously claims, he wants the reader of the poem to not think or mourn for his poor soul once he is dead. This is illustrated by the following lines, “No longer mourn for me when I am dead” (l. 1), “Nay, if you read this line, remember not / The hand that writ it, for I love you so” (ll. 5-6). However, this is counterintuitive since the lover who reads this poem will automatically think of none other than, Shakespeare. In turn, every time the lover reads the poem he will end up doing the exact opposite of what the poem says. Secondly, the way that Shakespeare constantly refers to himself in progressively vaguer terms. Amongst the three quatrains, he starts with “I”, then “the hand”, and ends with “verse”. This progressively diminishes the thought of Shakespeare into just the written work he has created. Subliminally, the reader will only associate Shakespeare, and his death, with his written verses, making it harder to forget him. Ultimately, this sonnet successfully makes the reader think more about Shakespeare even when the lines protest for the …show more content…
Shakespeare describes his fate and where he will be put in the end, “From this vile world with vilest worms to dwell” (l. 4). The denotation of this line is that he is leaving this cruel world to be put in the ground for the worms to eventually consume him. However, some of the bitterness that Shakespeare must have for the world, for taking him so young as well as not giving him the love he desired, is felt here. He curses this miserable world for his unfortunate love life and he acts as though he is ready to be put in the ground to die. This line especially broadcasts his displeasure and his troubles with love. At this point, dying is all that is left for him to succumb