The Subjects of Shakespeares Sonnets - 579 Words

Though William Shakespeare’s sonnets were not in a sequence as per the style of his contemporaries and those before him, such as SIr Philip Sidney and Edmund Spenser, they still parallel each twist and turn of his love life, as he wrote them as they occurred. The first subject of his sonnets--among which are some of his most famous--are the â€Å"Fair Youth† (believed to be a young nobleman) of apparent beauty, and the second, the â€Å"Dark Lady†, a woman of perhaps equal or greater beauty to him. Interestingly, they were both much younger than him, as he makes a point to mention on several occasions, which is probably why he reiterates that his love for them will live on, and thus the themes of time and death taking away what one holds dear appear repeatedly. He habitually returns to the sadness he feels when he is without his love, and usually follows up with either the sentiment that he doesn’t care so long as he is able to love them, or that his poems are his exclamations of affection and his reprieve. As for the latter, a prime example is his ninety-eighth sonnet. As it is before the introduction of the Dark Lady, this sonnet is about the Fair Youth. In the first line, we learn that the topic of the poem is separation from one’s love or lover: â€Å"From you have I been absent in the spring†. He then tries to blame personifications of nature for his state, as he often does. Saturn (in Roman myth, the Titan of time) â€Å"laughed and leapt† (4) with April, or spring, as they turnedShow MoreRelatedShakespeare s Sonnets Of William Shakespeare1006 Words   |  5 Pageswell-renowned. One could say that through his work, the subjects of which he wrote and the author himself have become immortalized, receiving acclaim from scholars around the world. One such collection of work that has gained fame and admiration is his sonnets. Shakespeare’s 154 sonnets have received much speculation and criticism over t he years regarding their intent and subjects. Although some believe Shakespeare to be the narrator of the sonnets, with the perspective and views reflecting his personalRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare and Edmund Spenser771 Words   |  4 Pagesencompass different writing styles, as well as different topics that relate to each other in their own unique ways. In Shakespeare’s â€Å"Sonnet 18† and Spenser’s â€Å"Sonnet 75†, both poets speak of love in terms of feelings and actions by using different expressive views, allowing the similar topics to contain clear distinctions. Although Edmund Spenser’s â€Å"Sonnet 75† and William Shakespeare’s â€Å"Sonnet 18† relate in the sense that love is genuine and everlasting, Spenser suggests love more optimistically, whereasRead More Immortality Through Verse in Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18 and Spenser’s Sonnet 751681 Words   |  7 PagesImmortality Through Verse in Shakespeareà ¢â‚¬â„¢s Sonnet 18 and Spenser’s Sonnet 75  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   Desiring fame, celebrity, and importance, people for centuries have yearned for the ultimately unattainable goal of immortality. Poets, too, have expressed desires in verse that their lovers remain as they are for eternity, in efforts of praise. Though Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18 and Spenser’s Sonnet 75 from Amoretti both offer lovers this immortality through verse, only Spenser pairs this immortality with respectRead MoreComparing the Sonnets of Petrarchan and Shakespearean in Style, Structure and Subject Approach1180 Words   |  5 PagesShakespeare and Petrarch, two poets popular for their contributions on the issue of love, both tackle the subject of their work through sonnet, yet there are key contrasts in their style, structure, and in the way, each approaches their subjects. Moreover, it is clear that in Sonnet 130, Shakespeare in fact parodies Petrarchs style and thoughts as his storyteller describes his mistress, whose eyes are in no way as the sun (S hakespeare 1918). Shakespeare seems, by all accounts, to mock the exaggeratedRead MoreComparison: Petrarchan and Shakespearean Sonnets1188 Words   |  5 PagesThrough the form of sonnet, Shakespeare and Petrarch both address the subject of love, yet there are key contrasts in their style, structure, and in the manner, each approaches their subjects. Moreover, in Sonnet 130, Shakespeare, in fact, parodies Petrarchs style and thoughts as his storyteller describes his mistress, whose eyes are in no way as the sun (Shakespeare 1918). Through his English poem, Shakespeare seems to mock the exaggerated descriptions expanded throughout Petrarch’s work byRead MoreShakespeare s Differing Opinions Of Preservation1058 Words   |  5 Pages Sonnet 17 and Sonnet 55: Shakespeare’s Differing Opinion of Preservation Two constant themes throughout this collection of sonnets is death and preservation. Shakespeare battles with the idea of how to preserve not only the beauty of his subject, but also his work without losing value and merit. Sonnet 17 and Sonnet 55 share the common idea that preservation is necessary and important, but each take different approaches to this preservation. From Sonnet 17 to Sonnet 55, Shakespeare grows confidentRead MoreA Very Brief Biography of William Shakespeare1609 Words   |  6 Pageswhole life writing some of the finest and well known plays and poems that are still highly valued in the present literary world. Shakespeare’s conventional themes for most of his plays and poems are about universal matters such as love, jealousy, and beauty which were common focus during the Renaissance era. During this period, Shakespeare’s poems, Sonnet 29 and Sonnet 130, demonstrates his views and morals regarding love to convey the theme of triumph of true love ove r beauty and wealth. WilliamRead MoreShakespeares Exploration in Sonnet 2 of the Themes of Age and Beauty1459 Words   |  6 PagesShakespeares Exploration in Sonnet 2 of the Themes of Age and Beauty  · Look closely at effects of language, imagery and handling of the sonnet form. * Comment on ways in which the poem’s methods and concerns are characteristic 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. The simplifiedRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Sonnets : The Greatest Of All Love Poems1465 Words   |  6 PagesWilliam Shakespeare’s sonnets are considered the greatest of all love poems. The collection contains 154 poems portraying themes of love such as beauty, lust, and estrangement. First published in 1609, these works have remained a popular subject in the world of literature for centuries to come. â€Å"Shakespeare has completely dominated the English-speaking state over the last four hundred years.† When thinking of Shakespeare, his famous plays such Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet are usually the first toRead MoreHow Shakespeare And Rossetti Engage With The Sonnet1241 Words   |  5 Pagesengage with the sonnet form, through Rossetti’s â€Å"A Sonnet† and Shakespeare’s â€Å"Sonnet 52†. Both poets arguably subvert the traditional Petrarchan sonnet genre, though in different ways. Rossettiâ⠂¬â„¢s ‘A Sonnet’ explores the sonnet as an art form rather than as a means of currency, as sonnets were seen to be at the time, and how if treated as a commodity, the value of a sonnet is diminished. Similarly, Shakespeare’s ‘Sonnet 52’ explores the connection between frequency and worth. However, ‘Sonnet 52’ adheres