Shall I Compare Thee to a summer
Shakespeare - Sonnet 18 This sonnet is by far one of the most interesting poems in the book. Of Shakespeare's sonnets in the text, this is one of the most moving lyric poems that I have ever read. There is great use of imagery within the sonnet. This is not to say that the rest of the poems in the book were not good, but this to me was the best, most interesting, and most beautiful of them. It is mainly due to the simplicity and loveliness of the poem's praise of the beloved woman that it has guaranteed its place in my mind, and heart.The speaker of the poem opens with a question that is addressed to the beloved, Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? This question is comparing her to the summer time of the year. It is during this time when the flowers are blooming, trees are full of leaves, the weather is warm, and it is generally thought of as an enjoyable time during the year. The following eleven lines in the poem are also dedicated to similar comparisons between the beloved and summer days. In lines 2 and 3, the speaker explains what mainly separates the young woman from the summer's day: she is more lovely and more temperate. (Line 2) Summer's days tend toward extremes: they are sometimes shaken by rough winds (line3) which
happens and is not always as welcoming as the woman. However in line 4, the speaker gives the feeling again that the summer months are often to short by saying, And summer's lease hath too short a date. In the summer days, the sun, the eye of heaven (line 5), often shines too hot, or too dim, his gold complexion dimmed (line 6), that is there are many hot days during the summer but soon the sun begins to set earlier at night because autumn is approaching. Summer is moving along too quickly for the speaker, its time here needs to be longer, and it also means that the chilling of autumn is coming upon us because the flowers will soon be withering, as every fair from fair sometime declines. (Line 7) The final portion of the sonnet tells how the beloved differs from the summer in various respects. Her beauty will be one that lasts forever, Thy eternal summer shall not fade. (Line 9), and never end or die. In the couplet at the bottom, the speaker explains how that the beloved's beauty will accomplish this everlasting life unlike a summer. And it is because her beauty is kept alive in this poem, which will last forever. It will live as long as men can breathe or eyes can see. (Line 13)On the surface, the poem is on the surface simply a statement of praise about the beauty of the beloved woman and perhaps summer to the speaker is sometimes too unpleasant wit
Some common words found in the essay are:
Shakespeare Sonnet, breathe eyes, live forever, Word Count, eternal summer fade, lovely temperate, breathe eyes line, line 2, beloved woman, summer's day, summer fade, speaker explains, beauty beloved, eternal summer,
Approximate Word count = 917
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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