I have never studied sonnets before, so at first it was a bit challenging for me, and Shakespearean sonnets are hard to understand because they are so deep in meaning. However, rereading the sonnet and analysing it according to the sheet that Mr.Webster gave us "How to Analyze Poetry" made it easier for me to interpret the meaning of the poem. Every word in the sonnet was placed there for a purpose and adds to the over all meaning. Shakespearean sonnet have three quatrains and a couplet, and rhymes abab cdcd efef gg. Sonnet 2 was the most challenging for me, because many of the words had double meanings which I wasnt aware of example : "Where all the treasure of thy lusty days.." The word treasure refers to sperm and thy lusty days referes to the days of the sexual activity.
example #2: "Shall sum my count and make my old excuses"at first I didnt know that hes counting the number of women he slept with. :S
In conclusion, shakespearean sonnets are reflect mainly two major themes : Love and Time.
They are challenging and obscure yet the poets myriad approaches allow the reader to feel the
sheer power of true love.
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3 comments:
I agree, sonnets were, at first, quite challenging. They were hard to interpret especcially when I was unsure of some of the allusions, like you said "double meanings".
I also agree with the two major themes "love and time", although I would add the idea of procreation particulary for the first 17 sonnets.
Enjoyed your analysis and your use of vocab.
:)
I agree too, they are very challenging, especially at the beginning... but i found sonnet 2 easier than sonnet 1, despite the "double meanings", (which give them a kind of riddle-feel hehe). maybe because the message of Sonnet 2 was very similar to that of sonnet 1, so the idea was easier to understand because we had already talked about it.
This is irrelevant but I have to say that I loved the confused face! Haha. Defines exactly what I felt when I went over it the first couple of times. The fact that you recognized the use of the double meaning (I know this has been commented on twice above me but this is important to note) means that you have understood what Shakespeare wishes to do: confuse the reader. Maybe I'm being a bit harsh on our poetic friend but it's true. That touch doesn't add much to the poem but more questions. Don't forget to mention the theme of procreation which is prevalent in his sonnets. One last thought: do not despair! With practice, the interpretation will get easier. Good job, Dana! :)
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