The poem
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate. Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date. Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimmed; And every fair from fair sometime declines, By chance, or nature's changing course untrimmed. But thy eternal summer shall not fade Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st; Nor shall death brag thou wand'rest in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st, So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
I've never truly read this before until I had an assignment which involved analyzing this poem, along with Song of Solomon from the Bible. After reading this though, it took me a minute, but I finally understood. I had always thought that Shakespeare WAS comparing the woman to a summer's day, but in fact, he's saying that he can't, because a summer day is too windy, and too short, but no matter what, her shine will never fade, not even on her deathbed, and that's what gives her life. That's what makes him love her. And I think that it's writings like this that prove that Shakespeare is undoubtedly one of the most talented writers in history. [Why can't men write like this now??]
Love it!!! ive read it a thousand times and i never get sick of it! its clearly the best love sonnet ever written!!!! praise Shakespeare!!!!xxxxxx
If anyone is trying to analyze this poem, you should know that it wasn't written to a female. Shakespeare wrote it to his best friend, a male. Think I'm lying? Line 11. Death will wander in HIS shade. His friend is more lovely than a summer day, and he comments on his loved one's beauty. His assertion that his loved one will live forever in his poem actually says more about his TALENT and reputation than about his loved one's beauty.
When it talks about HIS complaexion, shakespeare is not talking about a man. He is talking about the sun, when the sun sets.
Okay, take it from an English teacher... This sonnet falls in to the "young man" section of Shakespeare's sonnets. One of the popular opinions is that is was written to/for his patron of the time. (Of course, the patron was also rumored to be a lover, but that is a different story.) In any case, the sonnet is written to/about a MALE friend of Shakespeare's. Line 6: "his golden complexion" does refer to the sun. Line…
Read the whole commentOkay, take it from an English teacher...
This sonnet falls in to the "young man" section of Shakespeare's sonnets. One of the popular opinions is that is was written to/for his patron of the time. (Of course, the patron was also rumored to be a lover, but that is a different story.) In any case, the sonnet is written to/about a MALE friend of Shakespeare's.
Line 6: "his golden complexion" does refer to the sun.
Line 11: "his shadow" refers to death's shadow.
The poem does not state overtly that it was written for a male friend. However, given the time it was written, commentary made by Shakespeare's contemporaries, and the sonnet's placement, is how scholar's determine it was written for a male.
one must be aware of the fact, that Shakespeare was a man, who constantly self celebrated himself - it led to many critics saying that the sonnets were dedicated to "william himself". this poem is a perfect example of his supreme self celebration. an apparent reading may seem that the sonnet is written to his beloved, but the couplet reveals that Shakespeare was in reality praising the worth and supreme quality of…
Read the whole commentone must be aware of the fact, that Shakespeare was a man, who constantly self celebrated himself - it led to many critics saying that the sonnets were dedicated to "william himself". this poem is a perfect example of his supreme self celebration. an apparent reading may seem that the sonnet is written to his beloved, but the couplet reveals that Shakespeare was in reality praising the worth and supreme quality of his poetry - "so long as men can breathe or eyes can see;
so long lives this and this gives life to thee".
The beauty of the beloved will remain preserved in the quality of his verse, and will be remembered through his poetry.
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