Sonnet Reflection: 130

This is another Dark Lady sonnet.  In this sonnet, Shakespeare describes a mistress of his.  He begins by describing the way she looks.  The first two lines are self explanatory; the woman isn’t as bright and beautiful as certain things, like the sun and coral.  In line three, Shakespeare writes “If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun”.  Dun means dark, like a brown or blackish hue.  In other words, her skin is not white like snow.  This is important because women at this time prized themselves on being pale and white.  Shakespeare’s mistress does not look like the pretty women of the time.  He goes on to say how he doesn’t see a flush in her cheeks like that of roses, and that he doesn’t smell the goodness that perfume has.  He says how listening to music is better than listening to her speak.  Lastly, he says he knows very well how goddess’ never touch the ground, and rather than walking they float.  He admits that when she moves her feet hit the ground, so she is no such goddess.  This sonnet is very much different than most other poems, because they are usually used to compliment a person, and this does just the opposite. Between the last line of the third quatrain and the beginning of the couplet there is a shift.  “And yet by heaven I think my love as rare As any she belied with false compare”.  Shakespeare is indicating that other poets make false comparisons between mistresses and their beauty.  His point of view is refreshing because he says he loves the woman even though she isn’t perfect, and rather than trying to build her up to be perfect, he loves her for who she is.     

Sonnet Reflection: 129

This sonnet is one of the first of the Dark Lady sonnets.  This sonnet is interesting in that it is a bit different than most others.  In this sonnet, tenses change often.  Usually, writers keep the same tense, so this is interesting.  In line 10, three different tenses are used: “Had, having, and in quest to have, extreme”.  The use of three different tenses in one line is a dramatic way of driving the meaning of the line home.  Shakespeare is also dramatic in his description of lust.  It is referred to as murderous, bloody, blameful, savage, extreme, rude, cruel, and conniving… All these words mean the same thing.  Something must have happened to Shakespeare to cause him to feel this strongly about love and lust.  He seems to be ranting because there is no period until right before the couplet.  Shakespeare seems personally shaken because his writing is so poignant and full of feeling.  Lastly, the couplet reads: “All this the world well knows yet none knows well To shun the heaven that leads men to this hell”.  This is the idea of always wanting what is bad for us.  We often know the consequences, but choose to do things anyways because we are enticed by the corrupt.

Sonnet Refelction: 99

Sonnet 99 is very complex in that it is full of descriptions.  The sonnet mentions many different flowers, like violets, roses, lilies, and marjoram.  These flowers are all paired with different aspects of who can be assumed to be the young man.  Shakespeare scolds all these flowers for stealing their beauty from the young man.  “The purple pride” is used to describe the violet, which Shakespeare says stole its sweet smell from the man.  The lily is said to have stolen its color from the skin of the man, and the marjoram, known for its sweet smell, stole its smell from the young man’s hair.  Roses are also mentioned, and their colors are important to note.  Line 9 says “One blushing shame, another white despair”.  The rose that blushes, shameful of stealing its beauty from the man, is red.  The rose that cowers with despair is white.  Line 13 reads “A vengeful canker eat him up to death”.  This evil menace could be anything or anyone, but regardless, it is a very powerful way of saying that the flower got what it deserved by being destroyed.  Shakespeare is saying that he believes the flowers to be thieves because they stole their beautiful colors, smells, and presence from the boy.  The flowers hold no true beauty whatsoever because their beauty is stolen.  

Sonnet Reflection: 87

Sonnet 87 appears to be a very personal sonnet about Shakespeare and how he treasures the young man.  In sonnet 87, the speaker says goodbye to the young man because he believes the man is too good for him.  Shakespeare writes that the beauty of the young man makes him too valuable to hold on too.  He says the young man has every right to leave because he is worth so much.  He cannot justify being able to cherish something so valuable because he doesn’t view himself as worthy.  In line 10, Shakespeare writes “Thy self thou gav’st, thy own worth then not knowing, Or me, to whom thou gav’st it, else mistaking”.  He believes the only reason that he ever had the young man to treasure was because the young man didn’t know how great he was, or he didn’t know how great Shakespeare wasn’t.  In line 12 he says that now he must give the great gift that is the young man back now that the young man is able to make better judgments.  Lastly, the couplet reads “Thus have I had thee as a dream doth flatter, In sleep a king, but waking no such matter”.  Here, Shakespeare sums up how he feels by saying that when he had the man, he felt like he was grand.  At last he realized this was not so, and could never be so.  In this sonnet it seems as if Shakespeare pities himself.  

Sonnet Reflection: 73

In this sonnet, Shakespeare seems to be describing himself and his decline as he ages.  In the beginning he discusses fall.  We know that fall gives away to winter, and winter is synonymous with old age.  Lines 7 and 8 discuss the decline in life that accompanies aging: “Which by and by black night doth take away, Death’s second self that seals up all the rest”.  The discussion of darkness and Death indicates a decline in life.  It is important to note that Death is capitalized.  This personification is very powerful.  The last quatrain focuses on fire and the way it eventually dies out.  The words seem to be describing a candle; line 12, in particular, stands out:  “Consumed with that which it was nourished by”.  A candle is such a paradox because its end is caused by what once kept it alive.  Once the wicker is lit, it melts away into nothing, and by melting, it consumes itself.  The last line of the sonnet is “To love that well which thou must leave ere long”.  Shakespeare might be asking (or pleading to, rather) the young man to love him before he is gone.  These later sonnets seem to focus more on the speaker’s feelings for the young man, rather than urging the young man to have children.

Sonnet Reflection: 55

This sonnet focuses on the concept of immortality.  Line 1 says “Not marble nor the gilded monuments Of princes shall outlive this pow’rful rhyme”.  The use of the words “marble” and “gilded” indicate wealth and power.  Statues are usually erected to commemorate important people, so when Shakespeare says that these things can’t outlive the simple fourteen line rhyme that he has written, it commands our attention immediately.  In line four “sluttish” is used to describe time.  The meaning we know of today is much different than what is meant.  In Shakespeare’s time, a slut was a kitchen maid and sluttish described someone who was dirty and unkempt.  By using such a word to describe time, Shakespeare makes it clear that there is something about time that he despises.  In the following lines Shakespeare makes it clear how the young man’s memory will live forever.  Shakespeare must think of himself as pretty powerful, because he seems to believe that his words will make the young man immortal.  The last line of the sonnet again nods to Mr. W.H.’s immortality.  “You live in this, and dwell in lovers’ eyes”.  The memory of the young man will live in the eyes and the hearts of all those who ever love.  

Sonnet Reflection: 18

Sonnet 18 is perhaps the most well known sonnet in American culture.  Here, Shakespeare is comparing the young man to a summer’s day.  Yet, rather than saying how he is like summer, like we would expect, he says how the young man is nothing like summer.  There are things about summer that aren’t perfect: it is too short, it can sometimes be too hot, it is not always bright, and like all good things, it comes to an end.  What Shakespeare is trying to say through all this is that summer is not perfect, and Mr. W.H is, so they can’t be compared.  Line 9 says “But thy eternal summer shall not fade”.  Unlike summer, the young man’s beauty will never fade.  The sonnet ends with “So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee”.  Again, Shakespeare is talking about things lasting eternally.  This seems to be a common theme for his sonnets.  Shakespeare says that by writing this for the young man, he will never be forgotten.  This talk of having a legacy again reminds us of how a child would help Mr. W.H.’s beauty to last forever.  

Sonnet Reflection: 12

Many of Shakespeare’s sonnets use topics such as time and weather to drive home a certain belief.  Sonnet 12 is a seasonal sonnet.  Shakespeare uses many mentions of seasons.  Lines 4 through 8 are an indication of winter, which we have already learned is synonymous with old age.  Line 5 is particularly important; “When lofty trees I see barren of leaves”.  Here, barren can mean bare, but it can also mean something entirely different.  It can also be interpreted to mean infertile, or unable to have children. Because Shakespeare is urging the young man to have children, this is an important line.  Line 8 is also very important because it has a double meaning: “Borne on the bier with white and bristly beard”.  One meaning of the word bier is wheelbarrow; the other is corpse.  Because of this double meaning, this could be describing a deceased old man (white and bristly beard) that is being taken away on a wheelbarrow. The couplet says “And nothing ‘gainst Time’s scythe can make defence Save breed to brave him, when he takes thee hence”.  Nothing can stop a person from being taken by death.  When they are gone, they are gone forever.  The abrupt nature of this poem (the corpse, the scythe) might be an attempt of Shakespeare’s to shock the young man with the hope that he will be swayed to have a child.

Sonnet Reflection: 2

This sonnet, like the first, urges Mr. W.H. to have children.  In this sonnet, weather is used to describe Mr. W.H.  Rather than simply stating he will grow old, Shakespeare uses winter to say so.  The cold and bleak nature that is associated with winter helps to drive home the point that old age will soon befall the young man, and that he needs to have children before his time is up.  Shakespeare then says "Then being asked, where all thy beauty lies...  To say within thine own deep-sunken eyes, Were an all-eating shame and thriftless praise."  Here Shakespeare is asking where Mr. W.H.'s beauty will go if he doesn't have a child.  Then, he goes on to say how much more praise he would receive if he had a child.  When asked where his beauty is, he could proudly say "This fair child of mine".  The child, in a way, could be an outlet for all his beauty.  His beauty would live on through the child, no matter how old he would become.  The couplet says "This were to be new made when thou art old, And see thy blood warm when thou feel'st it cold".  By this, Shakespeare is saying that the new life (a child) that would come from the old (Mr. W.H.) would further prove his beauty.  Even when Mr. W.H. is gone, he won't be, in a sense, because the child will keep his beauty alive eternally.

Sonnet Reflection: 1

This sonnet is our first look into the dynamic between Mr. W.H. and the speaker (who could be Shakespeare, but we can't be sure of this).  This sonnet is encouraging Mr. W.H. to put his beauty to good use and have a child.  Line 1 says "From fairest creatures we desire increase".  This can be interpreted to mean a number of things.  I think it means that as humans, we have a natural desire to want more of what is beautiful.  Shakespeare's words are urging the young man to produce offspring so that the beauty that he has can be shared with the world through his child.  He refers to the man as "the world's fresh ornament", speaking yet again to his beauty.  He finishes with saying "Pity the world, or else this glutton be, To eat the world's due, by the grave and thee."  By this he means that he needs to be selfless and have a child, and if he doesn't then he is being selfish.  If he is not sharing his beauty with the world, then it is simply a shame.