Sonnet 16 - John Milton
Sonnet 16 – On His Blindness by John Milton
John Milton is considered to be the most significant English author after William Shakespeare. Although his chief work is “Paradise Lost”, he also wrote other wonderful poems, prose, as well as sonnets, in which he tackles a number of subjects which range from religious to political. Rarely is one piece of writing limited to one or the other of those fields.
Among all the sonnets, Sonnet 16 is special because it refers to Milton’s blindness. It was written soon after the poet became blind and starts with a mood of discouragement and grief “When I consider how my light is spent…” but ends in a note of resignation for the situation occurred:
“They also serve who only stand and waite.”
The sonnet has four main themes. One of theme is limitation. Milton believes that his blindness will leave him with few chances to use his creative skills as he once did. Without his sight, writing poetry becomes more difficult for him. It is perhaps not accidental that similar limitations affected other personalities, such as Beethoven, who, as composer, lost his hearing, Michelangelo, who as an artist lost also his sight, or Jorge Luis Borges, whose blindness didn’t prevent him from writing.
The next theme is light, strongly related with the theme of limitation. Light represents what can be perceived with the eyes, but it also has the meaning of spiritual light. The poet expresses his frustration at being prevented from serving God the way he desires to. In Milton’s opinion, a poet is useless when he loses his sight. Though, his burning desire to serve God urges him to write more than ever. Milton understands that if he buries his talent to use it at a later date, it might become hidden forever, and the poet will be cast into God’s darkness. Milton’s message is that although his life has not expired, his life of poetry has vanished.
The other themes present in Sonnet 16 are duty and
John Milton is considered to be the most significant English author after William Shakespeare. Although his chief work is “Paradise Lost”, he also wrote other wonderful poems, prose, as well as sonnets, in which he tackles a number of subjects which range from religious to political. Rarely is one piece of writing limited to one or the other of those fields.
Among all the sonnets, Sonnet 16 is special because it refers to Milton’s blindness. It was written soon after the poet became blind and starts with a mood of discouragement and grief “When I consider how my light is spent…” but ends in a note of resignation for the situation occurred:
“They also serve who only stand and waite.”
The sonnet has four main themes. One of theme is limitation. Milton believes that his blindness will leave him with few chances to use his creative skills as he once did. Without his sight, writing poetry becomes more difficult for him. It is perhaps not accidental that similar limitations affected other personalities, such as Beethoven, who, as composer, lost his hearing, Michelangelo, who as an artist lost also his sight, or Jorge Luis Borges, whose blindness didn’t prevent him from writing.
The next theme is light, strongly related with the theme of limitation. Light represents what can be perceived with the eyes, but it also has the meaning of spiritual light. The poet expresses his frustration at being prevented from serving God the way he desires to. In Milton’s opinion, a poet is useless when he loses his sight. Though, his burning desire to serve God urges him to write more than ever. Milton understands that if he buries his talent to use it at a later date, it might become hidden forever, and the poet will be cast into God’s darkness. Milton’s message is that although his life has not expired, his life of poetry has vanished.
The other themes present in Sonnet 16 are duty and