Analysis of Sonnet 18 Shakespeare - Literature Essay Sample

Sonnet 18 is the eighteenth poem written by William Shakespeare that was published in 1609 during the period of renaissance. It is recognized as the most widely read and typically the most famous of all the sonnets ever written by Shakespeare. I like the poem because the poem is straightforward in both language and intent. The poem is a perfect example of a sonnet format, and hence it is not only competent for teaching and learning but also serves as an access to a variety of issues that emerge in all of the Shakespeare sonnets. The items include the weird relationship of the subject matter, the author, and the audience. The sonnet revolves around love directed towards a young man (Shakespeare, 1609). This paper will provide a critical analysis of the William Shakespeare Sonnet 18.

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In the poem, the persona commences with a comparison between thee and summer day. He articulates that his beloved one is even-tempered and lovely. He then goes ahead and outlines why summer is not superb, and he claims that season ends too quickly as the wind shakes the flowers buds that were formed during summer, whereas the sun is occasionally obscured by the clouds or gets too hot. He continues with an affirmation that change is inevitable and everything beautiful do eventually fade away by chance with time. He asserts that death can never take away the beloved once, he thinks that the beloved once usually exists in continuous lines (Shakespeare, 1609). In his conclusion, he acclaims that as long as a human being will live and proceed to see the poem that he writes, it will continue with life and the same will translate to the beloved who will also keep on living.

Ideally, the Shakespeares Sonnet 18 was written during the time of the vast revival of literature, art, in conjunction with the activity, time and the spirit for change rein-station. Learning begun taking quite a different dimension, and this was at the beginning of the 14th century and ended in the 17th century. The period marked a transition from the medieval to the modern world. Further, there was introduction furnishings, decoration and the appearance of the motifs of the classical derivations during the Renaissance (Pater, 2011).

Sonnet 18 portrays several themes such as; love, the sonnet opens up by considering love to be awful just similar to a traditional love poem, but when the sonnet ends we discover that the poet is far much in himself than the beloved he is addressing. Secondly, there is the theme of Literature and writing, and the sonnet revolves in an efficient use and expression of oneself by use of language. It articulates the power of the written words relative to fate, death, and love. The third theme is Time, the persona is far much fixated-on outcome and mortality, but indeed he believes to have introduced a perfect time machine which is poetry in relation to the contemplation of a beautiful summers day. The speaker cannot imagine stagnating to think critically how all the things in life serves to be temporal and fleeting. Time here is used to assert themes like; man, and the natural world and literature (Shakespeare, 1609). He argues that man naturally cannot run away from being subject to time, but through literature, he can free himself.

There are several styles employed in the sonnet 18; a paramount of imagery, symbols, and wordplay exists such as change, fate and eternity. Others include the personified nature, where throughout the poem the speaker tries to set up a contrast between summers day and the beloved. Another style is the form and meter. The sonnet has 14 lines and very regular iambic parameter with a rhyme scheme of ABAB CDCD EFEF GG and this makes it be identified as a classic sonnet (Shakespeare, 1609). The third style is the setting. It was written outside in the field on a warm and breezy summer during the daytime when the poet was contemplating the nature of existence.

From the perspective of the Williams sonnet 18, the work is relevant to today's audiences in the following ways; it enables the readers to understand the power of language and literature and thus they ought to ensure that they employ good writing skills to make the poems outstanding. The other relevance is the contemplation that change is inevitable, and the belief of immortality. From the Sonnet 18, we understand that death is real and time elapses, but love and written work will always live as long as other people embrace them. Therefore, poets should believe in the spirit of the existing literature work and love.

Finally, according to work in the sonnet 18, I have come to understand and articulate that, there exists a very close relationship between man and the natural world. The poem makes it clear that naturally, man will eventually face the wrath of the inescapable death in the long run however much he may try to evade it. There also exist a positive relationship between internal, seasonal, personal and balanced weathers. Nevertheless, as much as there is a greater difference between the fate of man and nature, they are all slaves of time.

References

Pater, W. (2011). The Renaissance. Luton: Andrews UK.

Shakespeare, W. (1609). Sonnet 18. The New Oxford Shakespeare: Modern Critical Edition. doi:10.1093/oseo/instance.00212966