My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;
Coral is far more red than her lips' red;
If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;
If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head,
I have seen roses damasked, red and white,
But no such roses see I in her cheeks;
And in some perfumes is there more delight
Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.
I love to hear her speak, yet well I know
That music hath a far more pleasing sound;
I grant I never saw a goddess go, -
My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground.
And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare
As any she belied with false compare.
-William Shakespeare
I have to be honest, I really like this poem! It's actually quite funny! The way Shakespeare completely destroys his lover in the first part by continually insulting her indicates his harsh tone until it completely changes in the end. In the first part, he talks about her physical appearance, such as "black wires [that] grow on her head" and "no such rose... in her cheeks". Then he proceeds to say that he breath reeks and that her voice is unpleasant and how she ungracefully walks. Everything he states in the first 12 lines points to the fact that he is repulsed and disgusted by his so called lover. But then he continues and says that his "love [is] as rare as any she belied with false compare". The couplet gives away the whole entire sonnet. He loves her no matter what and he basically says that these characteristics are true but it doesn't effect him. This couplet completely changes the tone of the poem to be a loving or admiring tone. The fact that he doesn't just simply say she is perfect shows that his love is truly rare because he isn't blinded by the the excitement of love. It shows raw love that seems unrealistic because of the way he describes his lover, yet it is so real. I love it! Shakespeare is brilliant when creating his poetry because of his ability to change the tone. The actual tone within this passage is loving, but he twists it to make the reader perceive it as something different.
You nailed it Carissa! I TOLD you-- you so GET Shakespeare! :)
ReplyDeleteThe tone for the first part is, exactly as you called it, humorous, insulting-- I think "harsh" and "disgusted" is a bit strong in describing the tone-- his use of modifiers like, "nothing like," "far more," why then," soften his descriptions a little bit. He doesn't actually blast her-- he just touches on common cliches used to flatter women, and says that his love is none of those things. But you're absolutely right in that he sets us up for one expectation-- that he's not really that impressed with his love's beauty-- and then flips it in the couplet.
And you nailed the couplet! AND, you therefore identified entirely the overall meaning of the poem, and the power of it. Great "so what" factor here, Carissa-- "The fact that he doesn't just simply say she is perfect shows that his love is truly rare because he isn't blinded by the excitement of love." He sees her with OPEN eyes, with objectivity-- and thus, loves her all the more.
Perfect!
10/10