A Critical Analysis of William Shakespeare's Sonnet 138

A detailed Summary of A Critical Analysis of William Shakespeare's Sonnet 138

In order for a poem to be classified as a sonnet, it must meet certain structural requirements, and Sonnet 138, "When my love swears that she is made of truth," is a perfect example. Shakespeare employs the traditional rhyme scheme of the English sonnet, the poem is made up of three quatrains and a rhyming couplet, and iambic pentameter is the predominant meter. However, it would be an error to approach this poem as a traditional Shakespearean love sonnet. It is a 'love' poem in the sense that a relationship between two lovers is the central theme, but the reader is offered a somewhat unexpected viewpoint. The stylistic constraints of the sonnet form are extremely advantageous here, for they serve as a backdrop against which the poem's content can be dramatically highlighted, as well as reinforcing the eventual impression that the poem describes an emotionally constraining relationship. In this essay I will investigate the tools with which Shakespeare constructs this unconventional love poem.

The sonnet has a definite sense of strophic development, and the frequent 'twists' in the narration necessitate a close examination of this. The sonnet begins with a "When" clause, launching the reader on a sentence of indeterminate length

Therefore I lie with her and she with me,

And wherefore say not I that I am old?"

But wherefore says she not she is unjust?

In this sonnet, Shakespeare provides the reader with an inventory of the deceits that keep a love affair alive, and his use of the first person helps to make this an extremely poignant poem. It highlights a universal tenet: that deceits exist in every relationship, be they "little white lies" or instances of infidelity. At times throughout the poem the speaker seems to be trying to "teach" the reader something: take, for example, the rhetorical questions asked at the beginning of the third stanza. They are aimed at producing an effect on listeners, and contribute greatly to the sense that, in retrospect, the entire poem seems to be something of a performance: aimed at an audience, rather than at the speaker's "love." Perhaps, then, the poem is partly a lesson in morality, taught by someone who has experienced firsthand the unseen, but potentially destructive damage that deceit in a relationship can cause.

Simply I credit her false-speaking tongue:

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1446
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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