Sonnet CXVI

A detailed Summary of Sonnet CXVI


By looking closely at the sonnet, consider to what extent its particular techniques add to the impact of its subject matter.

The sonnet 'Let me not to the marriage of true minds' written by Shakespeare is about constant love. There are three quatrains that are about the three stages in true love and a final couplet.

The poem is a sonnet because it has fourteen lines in iambic pentameter. In the fourteen lines of the sonnet there are three quatrains and a final couplet. This is the structure of all sonnets. The rhyming scheme was fixed with the pattern of abab cdcd efef gg. The three quatrains were all on the subject of love and how it is kept constant.

In the first quatrain Shakespeare uses alliteration with the letter 'm'. He wrote "Let me not to the marriage of true minds admit impediments." The 'm' sound is smooth, and makes the beginning of the quatrain be in a relaxed mood and in harmony, so it is like the start of a relationship. Also in this quatrain repetition is used with 'love', 'remove' and 'alter'. These also make the poem sound smooth and also secure because words are used twice. Using repetition also reinforces the idea of constancy, which is like the love in this sonnet.


I think that all the techniques used in the sonnet make it sound smoother, which is the same as the type of love Shakespeare has written about in this sonnet. I especially think the alliteration with 'm' does because 'm' is such a smooth sound. Also I think the run-on lines make the poem sound and run very smoothly too. I think the metaphors about ships added to the meaning in quatrain two which was about overcoming problems because ships are often associated with having problems in storms in the sea, but they usually manage to overcome them as the storms die down, and a lighthouse guides them. In love there may be arguments but if love is still there then people can overcome them. If there isn't a lighthouse for a ship and love for a person then there is no guide for help and a relationship ends or a ship sinks.

echnique is metaphors, using sea imagery. Shakespeare says love is "an ever-fixed mark that looks on tempests and is never shaken". He is comparing love to a lighthouse, as however stormy the sea is for ships, the lighthouse will always be there to guide them, and even though in a relationship there may be arguments, there will still be love. With a similar idea Shakespeare says, "It [love] is the star to every wandering bark". He is saying that a star guides a lost ship in the right direction, this is

Some common words found in the essay are:
Time's Fool, , marriage true, edge doom, poem sound, run-on lines, final couplet, marriage true minds, true saying, words love, beats makes, true minds, shakespeare love,

Approximate Word count = 893
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels

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