Imagery in Sonnet 116 by William Shakespeare - 627 Words

The romantic poet William Shakespeare speaks about love in his poem â€Å"Sonnet 116†. He starts out by saying what love is not; love never stops, changes, or dies. He then goes on to tell how love doesn’t terminate with old age and loss of beauty, it guides people through tough times. Finally, Shakespeare threatens his own reputation by saying, â€Å"If this be error, and upon me proved, I never writ, nor no man ever loved†. The theme of this poem is that love is a truly powerful force that cannot be changed. Shakespeare builds the theme of love through employing powerful imagery, metaphors, and alliteration. Through imagery, Shakespeare helps one to imagine the power of love. For example, Shakespeare exclaims, â€Å"Let me not to the marriage of true minds† in the first line of â€Å"Sonnet 116†. Instead of using something like body or heart, Shakespeare uses mind to get his idea across. This shows how he wants the reader to connect true love wi th harmony on the mind, not just whim or hormones. Also, he compares through imagery how love does not change throughout time unlike physical rosy cheeked beauty that will eventually fade in line nine. One can notice that Shakespeare can call upon powerful images while only using a limited number of words as apparent when he says, â€Å"†¦Within his bending sickle’s compass come†. A picture of the grim reaper, sickle in hand, looming comes to mind. The clear imagery used builds upon the poems theme of love by giving clear pictures of what love is andShow MoreRelatedComparing And Contrasting Two Sonnets1141 Words   |  5 Pages Comparing and Contrasting Two Sonnets ‘Sonnet 116’ by William Shakespeare and ‘What Lips My Lips Have Kissed, And Where, And Why† by Edna St. Vincent Millay are both sonnets that discuss companionship and a glimpse of each poet’s experiences. In ‘Sonnet 116’, Shakespeare illustrates how capability is weakened by its metaphysical stereotype and ideals such as, love, while on the contrary, in ‘What Lips My Lips Have Kissed, And Where, And Why† Millay feeds on the chaos between the idealRead MoreThe Beauty Of Love In Shakespeares Sonnet 1161112 Words   |  5 Pagesof the most famous sonnets in its entire sequence of its time and modern day, are â€Å"Sonnet 130† and â€Å"Sonnet 116†. Both poems, written by William Shakespeare, revolve around the theme of love. â€Å"Sonnet 130†, compares the imperfect physical attributes of the speaker’s mistress in essence of his extraordinary love for her. â€Å"Sonnet 116†, expresse s the speaker’s idea of infinite and genuine love through defining what love is and is not. Throughout both compositions, William Shakespeare communicates the beautyRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Poetry Of Love1612 Words   |  7 Pageswill focus on the poetry of William Shakespeare. 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Yet for allRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Sonnet 116944 Words   |  4 Pages ‘Sonnet 116’ by William Shakespeare and ‘What Lips My Lips Have Kissed, And Where, And Why† by Edna St. Vincent Millay are both sonnets that discuss companionship and a glimpse of the poets’ experiences. In ‘Sonnet 116’, Shakespeare illustrates how capability is weakened by its metaphysical stereotype and ideals such as, love which never seems to wither away according to Shakespeare while on the contrary, in ‘What Lips My Lips Have Kissed, And Where, And Why† Millay feeds on the chaos betweenRead MoreClose Reading of Sonnet Essay example1391 Words   |  6 PagesClose Reading of Sonnet 116 Written by William Shakespeare 2011 â€Å"Sonnet 116† written by William Shakespeare is focusing on the strength and true power of love. Love is a feeling that sustainable to alterations, that take place at certain points in life, and love is even stronger than a breakup because separation cannot eliminate feelings. The writer makes use of metaphors expressing love as a feeling of mind not just heart as young readers may see it. To Shakespeare love is an immortalRead MoreEssay about Copmaring Shakespeares Sonnets 116 and 1471489 Words   |  6 PagesCopmaring Shakespeares Sonnets 116 and 147 Light/Dark. Comfort/Despair. Love/Hate. These three pairs of words manage to sum up William Shakespeares Sonnet 116 and Sonnet 147, while also demonstrating the duality of Shakespeares heart. Sonnet 116 reveals to a careful reader the aspects of Shakespeares concept of what ideal love is. However, Sonnet 147 shows the danger of believing in this ideal form of love. These two sonnets perfectly complement and clarify each otherRead MoreSonnet 116 Love Essay1167 Words   |  5 PagesLove is a central theme in William Shakespeares sonnets, yet the means by which love is expressed and the form in which it takes differs across various sonnets. In sonnet 116, Shakespeare lavishes the reader with beautiful imagery of love in its most idyllic form. On the other hand, in sonnet 130, he adopts a more realistic approach to love as it is experienced by everyday people. In both cases, the poet is able to artfully convey the theme of love in its various forms such that the reader is ableRead MoreTheme Of Sonnet 116714 Words   |  3 Pages109 words, William Shakespeare characterizes devotion. The speaker in â€Å"Sonnet 116† converses with us to refute ideas previously associated with love and to establish his own take on the emotion. To do this, Shakespeare uses structure, diction, and figurative language to reveal the speaker’s attitude toward love and to persuade us to accept his definition of love. To help convey the speaker’s message about love, Shakespeare employs a familiar structure -- that of the Shakespearean sonnet. SpecificallyRead More Uncovering Worth Unknown: The Constancy of Love in Sonnet 1162370 Words   |  10 Pageswriter of all time, William Shakespeare became famous for his plays and for his sonnets. These sonnets discuss everything from the importance of children to the troubles of rival poets, and have even been divided into two distinct subgroups—those of the â€Å"Fair Youth† and those of the â€Å"Dark Lady†Ã¢â‚¬â€because of the differences between the two. However, a common theme that runs throughout nearly all of them is that of love. Illustrating and exemplifying love, Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116 provides a classic