Compare and contrast two pre-twentieth century sonnets by Shakespeare. Ensure you consider the significant aspects of the poet's style, including his intention and the tradition of the sonnet.
A sonnet, from the Italian 'sonneto' meaning "little song", has been a dominant form of verse since the thirteenth century. Sonnets have a fixed form consisting of fourteen lines of iambic pentameter and a specific rhyme scheme depending on the type of sonnet it is. The three types are Spenserian, Petrachian or Shakespearian. In the sixteenth century, Shakespeare deviated from the form and created his own form of sonnet. He wrote over one hundred and fifty in his lifetime and became a master of the genre. Though usually written on the subject of love, sonnets are sometimes also written about beauty and nature.
The themes of sonnet 130 - my mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun'- are masked underneath Shakespeare mocking the unrealistic comparisons written by other poets of the time. It is only in line's 13 and 14 we realise that he is in fact praising his lover for being real and unlike the woman who are described in unrealistic fashions. However, in sonnet 18 -'shall I compare thee to a summer's day?' the theme of love is introduced from the opening line of the poem. This distinctly questioning line shows how Shakespeare uses a question to deviate from the conventional sonnet layout and add interest to his sonnet. The audience can immediately recognise that Shakespeare is writing about love and will compare his lover to the epitome of beauty- summer.
Though written by the same poet, the two sonnets have very different audiences and intentions. Though both proclaiming love for the recipient, they do so in very different fashions. Sonnet 18 was written to immortalise Shakespeare's subject and to proclaim a love towards them by comparing them to the most beautiful part of the year- summer. Shakespeare also wants to digress from the conventions of other poems, shown by the way the sonnet starts by posing a question, engaging the reader and putting forward the idea that Shakespeare isn't quite sure himself. By using a question, Shakespeare has deliberately digressed from convention and continues to do so throughout the following lines. If it were a conventional poem it would continue proclaiming the beauty of his subject and compare it to various aspects of summer and abundance. However, he brings in negative aspects of the summer such as its brief season, winds and the inevitable fading of nature's beauty. However, a twist occurs in line 9, the start of the 'e,f' quatrain, the short argumentative word 'but' starts off the quatrain, proclaiming that the recipients beauty shall live eternally because as long as men shall live, the poem shall be read and the subject will remain beautiful. Therefore, the intention of this sonnet was to immortalise his subject and exalt their beauty by saying it exceeds the beauty of summer. Though written by the same poet, sonnet 130 is written for a completely different purpose. Though also proclaiming a love for a person, it is written to mock other writers who praise lovers in unrealistic fashions. Shakespeare wishes to speak about a woman he loves and state his love for her by telling the truth about her, flaws and all. This is reflected by language used when firstly using cliché's and then dismissing them and bluntly describing his own real love. The subject of the poem in sonnet 18 is imagined to be superior to nature throughout the poem whereas in sonnet 130 the subject is seen as inferior to the best parts of nature- snow, roses, coral and perfumes. Shakespeare love's his mistress however, as in sonnet 130 he refers to her as 'my mistress' and he adores her for her solid reality.
A sonnet, from the Italian 'sonneto' meaning "little song", has been a dominant form of verse since the thirteenth century. Sonnets have a fixed form consisting of fourteen lines of iambic pentameter and a specific rhyme scheme depending on the type of sonnet it is. The three types are Spenserian, Petrachian or Shakespearian. In the sixteenth century, Shakespeare deviated from the form and created his own form of sonnet. He wrote over one hundred and fifty in his lifetime and became a master of the genre. Though usually written on the subject of love, sonnets are sometimes also written about beauty and nature.
The themes of sonnet 130 - my mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun'- are masked underneath Shakespeare mocking the unrealistic comparisons written by other poets of the time. It is only in line's 13 and 14 we realise that he is in fact praising his lover for being real and unlike the woman who are described in unrealistic fashions. However, in sonnet 18 -'shall I compare thee to a summer's day?' the theme of love is introduced from the opening line of the poem. This distinctly questioning line shows how Shakespeare uses a question to deviate from the conventional sonnet layout and add interest to his sonnet. The audience can immediately recognise that Shakespeare is writing about love and will compare his lover to the epitome of beauty- summer.
Though written by the same poet, the two sonnets have very different audiences and intentions. Though both proclaiming love for the recipient, they do so in very different fashions. Sonnet 18 was written to immortalise Shakespeare's subject and to proclaim a love towards them by comparing them to the most beautiful part of the year- summer. Shakespeare also wants to digress from the conventions of other poems, shown by the way the sonnet starts by posing a question, engaging the reader and putting forward the idea that Shakespeare isn't quite sure himself. By using a question, Shakespeare has deliberately digressed from convention and continues to do so throughout the following lines. If it were a conventional poem it would continue proclaiming the beauty of his subject and compare it to various aspects of summer and abundance. However, he brings in negative aspects of the summer such as its brief season, winds and the inevitable fading of nature's beauty. However, a twist occurs in line 9, the start of the 'e,f' quatrain, the short argumentative word 'but' starts off the quatrain, proclaiming that the recipients beauty shall live eternally because as long as men shall live, the poem shall be read and the subject will remain beautiful. Therefore, the intention of this sonnet was to immortalise his subject and exalt their beauty by saying it exceeds the beauty of summer. Though written by the same poet, sonnet 130 is written for a completely different purpose. Though also proclaiming a love for a person, it is written to mock other writers who praise lovers in unrealistic fashions. Shakespeare wishes to speak about a woman he loves and state his love for her by telling the truth about her, flaws and all. This is reflected by language used when firstly using cliché's and then dismissing them and bluntly describing his own real love. The subject of the poem in sonnet 18 is imagined to be superior to nature throughout the poem whereas in sonnet 130 the subject is seen as inferior to the best parts of nature- snow, roses, coral and perfumes. Shakespeare love's his mistress however, as in sonnet 130 he refers to her as 'my mistress' and he adores her for her solid reality.
