Literary Analysis of Shakespeare's Sonnet 18: Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day?
“Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?”
William Shakespeare Many poems can convey am attitude of the poet towards the subject of the poem. William Shakespeare’s “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?” shows the poets high regard of the subject’s beauty. The regard is portrayed through the alternating cacophonous and euphonious diction. The sonnet form helps express the poet’s regard toward the subject’s beauty. The literary device of metaphor aids in depicting the poet’s regard of the subject’s beauty as well. The poet’s regard towards the subject’s beauty in Shakespeare’s “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?” can be seen through the alternating cacophonous and euphonious diction. When describing summer, the poet uses more negative descriptions to portray the nature of summer. More positive descriptions, however, are used to describe the subject. The poet tells the subject that “rough winds so shake the darling buds of May.” By using “rough” the poet is able to paint a disturbing image of the wind. This image is of the wind being something of a destroyer rather than being a protector or anything good. The wind’s description allows the poet to show that summer is not always good and is not liked at times. Summer’s bad side is also seen through the poet’s description of the summer being “too hot” at times and much “too short.” Descriptive “too” allows the poet to express his discontent with summer. When describing the subject, the poet mentions the fact that the subject is “more lovely” and “more temperate” than summer. The “more” show that although the poet thinks summer is lovely and temperate, he thinks the subject exceeds these good qualities. The descriptions of summer and the subject show that the poet feels more strangely for the subject’s beauty than for summer’s beauty. Because the poet thinks so highly of the subject’s beauty, “the pronoun ‘this’” is used “to carry the weight of meaning and gives no verbal referent to the pronoun. Yet in
William Shakespeare Many poems can convey am attitude of the poet towards the subject of the poem. William Shakespeare’s “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?” shows the poets high regard of the subject’s beauty. The regard is portrayed through the alternating cacophonous and euphonious diction. The sonnet form helps express the poet’s regard toward the subject’s beauty. The literary device of metaphor aids in depicting the poet’s regard of the subject’s beauty as well. The poet’s regard towards the subject’s beauty in Shakespeare’s “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?” can be seen through the alternating cacophonous and euphonious diction. When describing summer, the poet uses more negative descriptions to portray the nature of summer. More positive descriptions, however, are used to describe the subject. The poet tells the subject that “rough winds so shake the darling buds of May.” By using “rough” the poet is able to paint a disturbing image of the wind. This image is of the wind being something of a destroyer rather than being a protector or anything good. The wind’s description allows the poet to show that summer is not always good and is not liked at times. Summer’s bad side is also seen through the poet’s description of the summer being “too hot” at times and much “too short.” Descriptive “too” allows the poet to express his discontent with summer. When describing the subject, the poet mentions the fact that the subject is “more lovely” and “more temperate” than summer. The “more” show that although the poet thinks summer is lovely and temperate, he thinks the subject exceeds these good qualities. The descriptions of summer and the subject show that the poet feels more strangely for the subject’s beauty than for summer’s beauty. Because the poet thinks so highly of the subject’s beauty, “the pronoun ‘this’” is used “to carry the weight of meaning and gives no verbal referent to the pronoun. Yet in