Sonnet 18 by Shakespeare

Sonnet 18 (Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?) By William Shakespeare Shall I compare thee to a summer s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer s lease hath all too short a date: Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimm d; And every fair from fair sometime declines, By chance, or nature s changing course, untrimm d; But thy eternal summer shall not fade Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow st; Nor shall Death brag thou wander st in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou grow st; So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee. Sonnet 18 (Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?) By William Shakespeare Directions: Work to paraphrase the poem into its literal meaning, identify the examples of figurative language and/or poetic devices, and determine the tone of the poem and the poem's theme. How to analyze figurative language: 1. Identify and state the type of figurative language is being used. (Simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, or alliteration) 2. Explain why it is an example of that device. If it is a comparison, include both the tenor and the vehicle. The tenor is the subject of the comparison, the vehicle is the image or idea that represents the subject. 3. Explain the idea the writer is expressing through the language. Don't just define the term, explain how and why it is used. Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Lines 1-4 (Vocabulary): Define the following: Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date: Lease: Label the rhyme scheme: Art (not the subject): Line 1: Type of figurative language: Line 1: Who is "thee"? What are two possible options? Tenor: Vehicle: Line 4: (Figurative Language) Type of figurative language: Whole Stanza: Why do you think the speaker chose summer to make the comparison? Why is "summer's lease" too short? Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimm'd; And every fair from fair sometime declines, By chance, or nature s changing course, untrimm'd; Label the rhyme scheme: Lines 5-6 (Figurative Language): Type of figurative language: Effect: Line 8: (Connotations) "Untrimm'd" is also a sailing term. Untrimmed sails on a ship are those which have not been adjusted to properly catch the wind. How does this give "untrimm'd" an opposite meaning from the obvious (made ugly by natural changes)? Lines 5-8 (Vocabulary): Define the following: Complexion: Dimm'd (or dimmed): Fair: Untrimm'd (or untrimmed): Lines 6-7 (Figurative Language): An anaphora is repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses. Identify the anaphora in these lines. What effect does it create? Line 8 (Figurative Language): Identify an example of alliteration in this line. What effect does it create? What is the tone of the poem up to this point? But thy eternal summer shall not fade Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow st; Nor shall Death brag thou wander st in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou grow st; Label the rhyme scheme: Line 10 (Connotations): Does the word "ow'st" mean owns or owes? Explain your opinion and the meaning of each in context. Lines 9-12: Notice that the word eternal appears twice in this quatrain. Circle them above What tone does the repetition of this word create? So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee. Label the rhyme scheme: Line 14 (Figurative Language): Identify the alliteration in this line. What effect does it create? Lines 9-12: Where does the Volta occur? How do you know? How does the speaker's mood change? Line 11: (Figurative Language) What is the figurative language used? What is the effect of the device? Line 12 (Figurative Language): Identify the metaphor in this line. Tenor: Vehicle: Meaning: Lines 13-14 (Figurative Language): Identify the anaphora. What effect does it create? Line 14 (Figurative Language): Identify the personification. The poem overall Who or what is the subject of this poem? Who is the speaker of the poem? Remember, the speaker of the poem is not always the poet. Who is the speaker speaking to (the audience) in the poem? How do you know? Pick two tone adjectives to describe the speaker's attitude towards the subject. Identify the poem's central theme. What is the purpose of the poem overall? What is Shakespeare suggesting about life or love? Line 11 contains a Biblical allusion to Psalm 23:4: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me." How does this information help shape the speaker's purpose? Do you think the speaker is right when he implies the poem keeps living as long as humans keep breathing? Explain. One a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, how strong of a love poem is this? Explain. Sonnet 18 Answer Key Quatrain 1: ABAB Lines 1-4 Vocabulary: Temperate = calm, even; Lease = a contract by which one party conveys land, property, services, etc., to another for a specified time, usually in return for a periodic payment; Art = are Line 1: Metaphor. Tenor = "thee" Vehicle = summer's day Line 1: The beloved or the audience reading the poem Line 4: Personification, giving summer the human characteristic having a lease on something. The lease is too short because it doesn't last forever, although it does come back year-after-year. Line 4: Summer has a connotation of bliss and happiness. It is when things are alive and at their peak. Quatrain 2: CDCD Lines 5-8 Vocab: Complexion= color and appearance of skin, fair beautiful or favorable; Untrimm'd = not having been trimmed or without decoration (like trim the Christmas tree) Dimm'd= to become less bright Lines 5-6: The sun is personified by having a gold complexion. It is also referred to as the "eye of heaven," keeping watch for heaven. Lines 6-7: Anaphora = "And" The use of the word continues the idea of why summer isn't a good comparison for "thee." Line 8: Nature could be untrimmed because it is unruly, but this is also reference a nautical term: untrimmed sails on a ship are those which have not been adjusted to catch the wind properly. The course or progress of nature is erratic, uncontrolled. Line 8: The Cs in "changing" and "course" are alliterated. The repetition of the sound emphasizes how nature changes. Quatrain 3: EFEF Lines 9-12: The volta occurs with the word But, which signifies a transition. Instead of complaining about summer, there is focus now on "thee." Line 10: Answers may vary, but both work as either the beloved won't lose the beauty he/she possesses "owns", or won't have to return the beauty borrowed from nature and now owes back. Line 11: Death is personified as bragging, suggesting that even death can't take away the beloved's beauty. Lines 9-12: The repetition of the word eternal could suggest the idea of the beloved's beauty being everlasting. It also emphasizes the idea of the poem lasting for all eternity. Line 12: Tenor= "time," Vehicle = "lines" of the poem. The poem is like time because it also has a meter. Couplet: GG Line 13: The anaphora of "So long" emphasizes how long the poem (and "thee's" beauty) will last. Line 14: The repetition of the L sound in the words "long," "live," and "last" again emphasize the eternal nature of the poem and thee's beauty. Line 14: The poem is personified as living long. Subject: Love, beauty Speaker: We don't know any personal details about the speaker, but it at first appears to be someone who is professing love for his/her beloved. Later in the poem we realize the poem appears to be more concerned with him/herself and the poem. Tone: Egotistical, hopeful Theme: Poetry and literature have the power to serve as vehicles of self-expression, beauty and the natural world cannot escape the ravages of time, Ideas of love, beauty, and death are timeless, Self-love trumps love for others Allusion: The allusion here again emphasizes the idea that even death can't take away the beloved's beauty and the power of the poem. It also bright to light the idea of true identity or reason being hidden. Answers may vary, but some possibilities are: The speaker is being spiteful since "heaven" was "deaf," he doesn't want to take the Lord's name in vain, He questions his beliefs and not mentioning God's name shows this. Some may think the poem ranks as a 10, but on a closer reading the poem isn't really about the speaker's love for the beloved. Instead, it seems to be more of an ego-trip for the speaker, as he/she appears to care more about the poem written than the beloved.