The speaker uses a number of metaphors associated with time to induce a sense of pity and love from his lover. He draws comparisons of himself, a man in his final years, to mainly three objects that represent the approach of death: autumn, the twilight of an autumn day, and a self-destructive fire. The implication of the first metaphor, autumn, is self-evident; it depicts the time of the year of decaying and withering of living things in the natural world and the advent of the cold, lifeless winter, which parallels his own conditions. Specifically, the imagery of a few "yellow leaves...[that] hang

The repetition of the phrases also contributes to the pathos of the old man's conditions. Throughout the sonnet, the speaker repeatedly uses the words "in me" and "see" to call out to his beloved one. By using the words "in me," the speaker not only reveals that his lover may perceive the images of autumn, sunset and fire, but that both his physical attributes and his inner world are occupied by these three elements that all indicate death and decay. He repeatedly asks his young lover to see past his physical appearance and into his heart that is still vibrant and "glowing" despite the approach of death. Phonetically, the repetition of words also produces the effect of the readers experiencing and hearing the old man speak, as it mimics the tendency of elders to reiterate when speaking to others. Semantically, such reiteration of words also indicates the speaker's helplessness and desolation in his encounter with death as he cries out to the again and again, almost beseeching the beloved one to witness that the love that he has for him has not withered away like his body.

To love that well which thou must leave ere long.

/ Upon those boughs which shake against the cold" (lines 2-3) vividly portrays the declining man who is "hanging" on to his life like the leaves are to the tree branch. The branch, moreover, is compared to "bare ruined choirs" (line 4), and further creates a sense of desolation and solitude that the speaker is perhaps experiencing as he approaches the end of his life. The speaker actually never even mentions the word "autumn," but instead refers it to "That time of year" (lines 1-3), as if the word "autumn" is a synonym of death and the direct speaking of it should be euphemized. The second metaphor, twilight, builds upon the first metaphor and marks his death even more clearly. Whereas autumn denotes the coming of the end of a year, twilight signifies the end of a day, and this shortening of time reference from the first to the second metaphor alludes to the actual shortening of the old man's life. Death is also more dominant at this stage where the twilight is gradually being devoured by the "black night" (line 7), which is portrayed as "death's second self" (line 8). Not only is death directly mentioned at this point, but the description of night "seal[ing] up all in rest" (line 8) also helps to generate a sense of closure and ending of one's life. The third metaphor, fire, continues this progression. Here, the speaker attempts

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1666
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)