Shakespeare's Sonnet 130 (Analysis and Explanation)

Summary

This video script delves into the analysis of William Shakespeare's Sonnet 130, exploring its context and unique approach within the sonnet tradition. It discusses the sonnet's deviation from the typical 'blazon' form, which praises a woman's beauty in exaggerated terms, by humorously criticizing the woman's features instead. The script also raises questions about Shakespeare's intentions, the poem's tone, and the potential implications of its content, including the themes of honesty, audience, misogyny, and the poet's fame. The analysis encourages viewers to consider the complexity of the sonnet and its place within the larger body of Shakespeare's work.

Takeaways

• 📜 Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets, with the first 126 addressed to a man and the last 28 to a woman, often referred to as the 'Dark Lady'.
• 🎭 The term 'Dark Lady' might be misleading as it is uncertain whether she was of noble status or had dark features, including her hair.
• 📚 Sonnet 130 is also a commentary on the sonnet form itself, which was highly popular during Shakespeare's time, particularly following Sir Philip Sidney's 'Astrophil and Stella'.
• 🎨 The sonnet is a critique of the 'blazon' form, where poets would lavishly praise and describe a woman's body part by part, often using exaggerated comparisons.
• 📖 The script compares the blazon tradition to biblical descriptions found in the Song of Songs, highlighting the long-standing practice of detailed and embellished depictions of beauty.
• 🤔 Sonnet 130 is considered an 'anti-blazon', humorously presenting over-the-top descriptions of the woman's less ideal features, rather than the typical praise.
• 💬 The poem uses words like 'mistress', 'dun', 'wires', and 'damasked', which have different connotations in Shakespeare's time compared to today, affecting the interpretation of the descriptions.
• 👉 The final couplet of the sonnet presents a twist, suggesting that despite the preceding insults, the speaker's love is as 'rare' and unique as any woman misrepresented by false comparisons.
• 🤨 The tone and intention of the poem are subject to interpretation, with questions arising about honesty, sarcasm, and the poem's true sentiment towards the woman.
• 👥 The intended audience of the poem is ambiguous; it may not be directly to the woman but to other poets or a broader audience, raising questions about the nature of the competition and the speaker's motives.

Q & A

How many sonnets did Shakespeare write in total?

Shakespeare wrote a total of 154 sonnets.

To whom are the first 126 sonnets addressed?

The first 126 sonnets are addressed to a man.

Who is traditionally referred to as the 'Dark Lady' in Shakespeare's sonnets?

The 'Dark Lady' is a term traditionally used to refer to the woman addressed in Shakespeare's sonnets 127 to 154.

What does the term 'blazon' refer to in the context of sonnets?

In the context of sonnets, 'blazon' refers to a type of sonnet that lavishly praises and catalogues a woman's body from head to toe.

What is the significance of the term 'mistress' in Sonnet 130?

In Sonnet 130, the term 'mistress' could mean a woman in authority or a sweetheart, and it is likely used in the latter sense to refer to Shakespeare's beloved.

What does the word 'dun' signify in the context of Sonnet 130?

In Sonnet 130, 'dun' signifies a dull grayish-brown color, which in the period was not considered a compliment as white skin was associated with aristocracy.

What is the term 'anti blazon' and how does it relate to Sonnet 130?

An 'anti blazon' is a sonnet that makes fun of the traditional blazon by giving over-the-top descriptions of the woman's worst parts, which is what Shakespeare does in Sonnet 130.

What is the meaning of the word 'damasked' in Sonnet 130?

'Damasked' in Sonnet 130 means variegated or mixed, referring to the lack of attractive color mixture in the beloved's cheeks.

How does Shakespeare use the concept of honesty in Sonnet 130?

Shakespeare uses the concept of honesty in Sonnet 130 by claiming to tell the truth about his beloved's appearance, contrasting himself with other poets who use false comparisons and lavish praise.

What is the significance of the rhyming couplet in Sonnet 130?

The rhyming couplet in Sonnet 130 serves as a poetic turn where Shakespeare contradicts the insults and claims that his love is as unique and special as any woman misrepresented by false comparisons.

What are some of the fundamental questions raised by Sonnet 130 regarding its tone and meaning?

Fundamental questions raised by Sonnet 130 include whether Shakespeare is being honest, what the tone of the poem is (sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek, or honest), who the intended audience is, and whether the poem can be considered misogynistic.

How does Sonnet 130 relate to the historical context of sonnet writing during Shakespeare's time?

Sonnet 130 relates to the historical context by making fun of the popular sonnet form and the common 'blazon' style of the time, showing off Shakespeare's cleverness and competition with other sonneteers.

What is the role of the 'Dark Lady' in Sonnet 130 and the broader sequence of Shakespeare's sonnets?

In Sonnet 130 and the broader sequence, the 'Dark Lady' serves as a device for Shakespeare to demonstrate his wit and cleverness, rather than being a central figure to be remembered for her own sake.

Outlines

00:00

📜 Introduction to Sonnet 130 and the Dark Lady

The video script begins with an introduction to Sonnet 130 by William Shakespeare, one of his 154 sonnets. It clarifies that the first 126 sonnets are addressed to a man, while the last 27, including Sonnet 130, are addressed to a woman, traditionally referred to as the 'Dark Lady.' The term 'Dark Lady' is discussed as potentially misleading, as there is no certainty about her social status or literal darkness. The script also touches upon the popularity of sonnets in Shakespeare's time, particularly following the publication of Sir Philip Sidney's 'Astrophil and Stella' in 1591, which sparked a vogue for sonnet sequences. The sonnet form itself becomes a subject of the poem, which critiques the excessive praise found in other sonnets, known as 'blazons,' where women are described in overly flattering terms. The script sets the stage for a detailed analysis of Sonnet 130, hinting at its satirical nature and its critique of the sonnet tradition.

05:03

📖 Deconstructing Sonnet 130: The Anti-Blazon

This section delves into the specifics of Sonnet 130, identifying it as an 'anti-blazon,' a satirical response to the conventional blazon form. The script explains the term 'blazon' as originating from heraldry, where it describes a coat of arms, and parallels this to the way poets of the time would describe women's bodies in detail. Shakespeare's sonnet is noted for its humorous and subversive take on this tradition, as it humorously describes the woman's less than ideal features, contrary to the typical exaggerated praise. The script provides examples of such hyperbolic praise from the era and contrasts them with biblical passages from the Song of Songs, which also uses detailed and metaphorical descriptions of a woman's beauty. The summary includes an analysis of specific words and phrases from the sonnet, such as 'mistress,' 'dun,' 'wires,' 'damasked,' and 'reeks,' explaining their meanings in the historical and poetic context. The section concludes with an interpretation of the sonnet's closing lines, which assert the speaker's honest perception of his beloved as unique, despite the preceding negative descriptions.

10:05

🤔 Analyzing Honesty, Tone, and Misogyny in Sonnet 130

The third paragraph of the script focuses on the analysis and interpretation of Sonnet 130. It raises questions about Shakespeare's honesty and the sincerity of his compliments, suggesting that his approach may not be as straightforward as it seems. The script invites viewers to consider the tone of the poem, questioning whether it is sarcastic or genuinely honest. It also explores the intended audience of the sonnet, speculating whether it is a genuine expression of love to the Dark Lady or a form of poetic competition among men. The script introduces the concept of misogyny, suggesting that the sonnet might reflect broader societal attitudes towards women. It challenges the audience to consider whether Shakespeare is using the woman in the sonnet for his own fame and whether his portrayal of her is exploitative. The paragraph encourages a deeper engagement with the text, prompting viewers to think critically about the poem's themes and implications.

15:09

🎭 The Role of the Dark Lady and Shakespeare's Fame in Sonnet 130

The final paragraph of the script wraps up the discussion by reiterating the key themes and questions raised in the analysis. It emphasizes the role of the Dark Lady as a tool for Shakespeare to critique other sonneteers and to showcase his own wit and cleverness. The script suggests that Shakespeare's primary interest may lie more in his reputation as a poet than in the woman herself. It also touches on the broader implications of the poem, including the questions of honesty, audience, and misogyny. The script concludes by encouraging viewers to appreciate the complexity and variety within Shakespeare's sonnets, highlighting the fun and challenge of engaging with his clever arguments and the satirical nature of Sonnet 130 in particular.

Keywords

💡Sonnet 130

Sonnet 130 is one of William Shakespeare's 154 sonnets. It is a significant work in English literature known for its unique style and content. In the video, it is discussed as an 'anti-blazon,' a sonnet that humorously critiques the exaggerated praises found in traditional love sonnets of the time. The script delves into the poem's deviation from the typical 'blazon' form, which involved detailed and idealized descriptions of a woman's beauty.

💡Dark Lady

The term 'Dark Lady' refers to the mysterious female subject of Shakespeare's later sonnets, specifically sonnets 127 to 154. In the video, it is mentioned that this term might be a misnomer, as there is no concrete evidence regarding her social status or physical appearance. The phrase is used to generate intrigue and to highlight the ambiguity surrounding her identity, which adds to the romantic and enigmatic nature of the sonnets addressed to her.

💡Blazon

A 'blazon' is a term derived from heraldry, referring to a detailed description of a coat of arms. In the context of poetry, and specifically in the video, a 'blazon' is a type of sonnet that provides an extravagant and often hyperbolic description of a woman's physical beauty. The script explains how Shakespeare's Sonnet 130 subverts this tradition by offering a parody of the blazon form.

💡Sonnet Sequence

A 'sonnet sequence' is a collection of sonnets that are thematically linked, often telling a story or exploring a single theme. In the video, it is mentioned that the sonnet sequence gained popularity in England during the late 16th century, particularly following the publication of Sir Philip Sidney's 'Astrophil and Stella.' This historical context is crucial for understanding the cultural significance of Shakespeare's sonnets.

💡Heraldry

Heraldry is the practice of designing, displaying, describing, and recording coats of arms and heraldic badges. In the video, the concept of heraldry is used to explain the term 'blazon' and its relation to the tradition of describing a woman's beauty in poetry. The script draws a parallel between the detailed descriptions found in heraldry and those used in love sonnets to highlight the exaggeration and formality of the descriptions.

💡Anti-Blazon

An 'anti-blazon' is a poetic form that contrasts with the traditional blazon by offering a humorous or critical counterpoint to the idealized descriptions of beauty. In the video, Shakespeare's Sonnet 130 is identified as an anti-blazon, as it humorously undermines the exaggerated praises found in other sonnets by describing the woman's less-than-ideal features.

💡Mistress

In the context of the video and Sonnet 130, 'mistress' does not carry the modern connotation of a lover outside of marriage. Instead, it refers to a woman of authority or a sweetheart, indicating a term of endearment. The script explains that the term is used to denote the subject of the sonnet, who is the beloved of the speaker.

💡Dun

'Dun' is a term used in Sonnet 130 to describe a dull grayish-brown color, which in the poem refers to the color of the beloved's hair. The script notes that this color contrasts with the idealized golden descriptions found in traditional blazons, and it is used to emphasize the poem's departure from typical praise.

💡Wires

In Sonnet 130, 'wires' is used to describe the woman's hair, specifically referring to black wires growing on her head. The term is explained in the video as a pre-industrial era compliment, contrasting with the modern connotation of wires as something to be hidden. It is part of Shakespeare's playful language, using the term to add a layer of meaning to the description of the woman's hair.

💡Damasked

'Damasked' is a term used in the poem to describe something that is variegated or mixed, often associated with the mixed colors of a hybrid rose. In the video, it is explained that Shakespeare uses 'damasked' to criticize the lack of such beautiful color mixture in the woman's cheeks, further emphasizing the anti-blazon nature of the sonnet.

💡Rhyme Couplet

A 'rhyme couplet,' also known as a closing couplet, is a pair of rhyming lines at the end of a sonnet that often serves to summarize or provide a twist to the poem's theme. In the video, the rhyme couplet of Sonnet 130 is discussed as a poetic turn where Shakespeare shifts from the preceding insults to a declaration of his love's uniqueness and rarity, despite the false comparisons made by other poets.

Highlights

Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets, with the first 126 addressed to a man and the last 27 to a woman, traditionally referred to as the Dark Lady.

The term 'Dark Lady' may be a misnomer as her actual identity and physical attributes remain uncertain.

Sonnet 130 is not solely about the Dark Lady but also critiques the sonnet form and its popularity during Shakespeare's time.

The sonnet form gained popularity in England in the 1590s, particularly after the publication of Sir Philip Sidney's 'Astrophil and Stella'.

Sonnet sequences are collections of sonnets that often engage in meta-commentary about the form itself.

Sonnet 130 satirizes the 'blazon' form of sonnets, which excessively praise the physical beauty of a woman.

Blazon sonnets describe a woman's body part by part, often using hyperbolic comparisons to objects or elements.

The tradition of using exaggerated comparisons to describe women's beauty dates back to the Bible's Song of Songs.

Sonnet 130 is an 'anti-blazon,' humorously highlighting the perceived flaws of the Dark Lady.

The poem uses words like 'dun' and 'wires' to describe the Dark Lady's physical attributes in a less-than-flattering manner.

The term 'damasked' refers to a mix of colors, which Shakespeare uses to comment on the lack of vibrancy in the Dark Lady's cheeks.

The word 'reeks' may imply that the Dark Lady's breath is not pleasant, adding to the unflattering description.

The final couplet presents a poetic turn, asserting the Dark Lady's uniqueness despite the preceding insults.

Shakespeare's use of honesty in Sonnet 130 raises questions about the nature of truth and representation in poetry.

The poem's tone and its implications on the Dark Lady's character spark debates about Shakespeare's intentions.

Sonnet 130 can be interpreted as a reflection on poetic fame and competition, with Shakespeare positioning himself against other sonneteers.

The poem's potential misogyny is a critical aspect to consider, as it may reflect broader societal attitudes towards women.

Shakespeare's Sonnet 130 invites readers to explore the complexities of honesty, representation, and the poet's motivations.

The analysis of Sonnet 130 highlights the importance of understanding historical context and literary form in interpreting poetry.

Transcripts

Let's see if we can shed some light on Sonnet 130, by William Shakespeare. Now we

know that Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets and the first 126 of these are addressed

to a man, and the last number (so 127 to the end) ... these ones are addressed

to a woman. This woman has traditionally been referred to as the Dark Lady ...

It's a nice phrase, but it may be a bit of a misnomer because we

don't know if she was a lady -- if she was an aristocratic figure -- and we also

don't know if she was literally dark. In this poem it refers to the black wires

that grow on her head. So she may have had dark hair but in the very next sonnet ...

in sonnet 131 Shakespeare writes, "In nothing art thou black save in thy deeds."

It's your actions that make you dark. They're almost criminal! How could

you not love me? So is she literally the dark lady? Well, we don't know, but it's

definitely a nice kind of romantic phrase isn't it? This poem is not just

about her. It's also about sonnets themselves. It's about the rage for the

sonnet [form], and that's hard to believe maybe now, but sonnets were really popular

during this period. In England that really started in the early 1590s,

especially after the publication of Sir Philip Sidney's "Astrophil and Stella" in

1591. That really started this kind of craze, this vogue, for the sonnet

sequence. A sonnet sequence then is really just a collection of poems, a

collection of sonnets. It's always good to remember that we do have this

larger context of all of these other sonnets and that sonnets can kind of

start talking about themselves -- kind of like rappers do ... they talk about

their own songs and each other and so on. Sonneteers, or poets who write

sonnets, they do the same thing: they talk about sonnets. This poem is really

making fun of other sonnets as we'll see. So these other

sonnets -- they're often very lavish in their praise, and the kind of sonnet that

this one is making fun of has a name. This kind of sonnet is called a "blazon" ...

You might see this with an "s" as well. So you can spell it with a

"z" or with an ".s" This term (blazon) comes from the world of heraldry. In

heraldry what it refers to is a coat of arms, or a description of a coat of arms.

So either one of those will do, and you can kind of see how this is similar to

poems that describe the woman's body, because what they do is they describe

her, they catalogue her from head to toe. Every body part is sort of catalogued,

and is praised, lauded, and much too lavishly often. So if you look at poems

from the time period, [here] just a few comparisons that you might come across:

the lady's eyes are sometimes described as as bright as the sun, her teeth are

like pearls, [and] her eyebrows are like Cupid's bows because they're

curved like bows and ... Cupid could shoot arrows with them

and wound you in the heart. So, very melodramatic! That's kind of what many

of these sonnets were saying, and Shakespeare is making fun of that -- that

kind of blazon. But this tradition of describing the woman in these lavish

terms goes back much further than simply the late 16th and early 17th century.

As a point of comparison here I have a passage from the Bible. This is

the Song of Songs from the Old Testament, and you can see that we have some very

similar comparisons here in terms of how the different body parts are described.

So we have the teeth like a flock of sheep, your lips are like a scarlet

ribbon, your temples are like the halves of a pomegranate, and then this last bit

is kind of interesting: your neck is like the Tower of David. Most of us wouldn't

describe a woman that way any more, but it does kind of relate this to heraldry,

that there seems to be some similarity

between describing a coat of arms and describing a woman. Kind of fascinating

isn't it? Okay, so what is this poem then? Well, it's an anti blazon. It's making

fun of that kind of over-the-top description by giving similar

over-the-top description, but now of the lady's worst parts! And then we can see

that this poem is not just about the woman, but it's also making fun of other

sonnet writers. So now that we know some context then we're in a position to go

through the poem and make sense of a few difficult words.

In the first line we have the word "mistress," and the word "mistress" does not

necessarily mean our sense of mistress. If you are being unfaithful to your

spouse and you have a mistress on the side -- that's not quite what's

meant here necessarily. During this time period, "mistress" could mean a woman in

authority, or it could mean a sweetheart, a beloved, and I think it's that second

sense of "my sweetheart's eyes" that's more prominent here. Then we have the word

"dun" in line three here. And the word "dun" means dull grayish brown. We

would probably say tanned. So what he's really saying here is that her breasts

are tanned. We would say that's a great compliment! She can go to

a tanning salon ... But in this period of course having white skin was

seen as a mark of being aristocratic -- being able to shelter yourself from the

sun and not having to work outside in the fields. So this is not really the

compliment that we might expect. Then we have the word "wires," and this again is a

bit of an odd one because we think of electrical wires. We want to hide

any kind of wire we see. But you have to remember that this is before the

industrial era and so wires could be seen as a compliment. In some sonnets

you actually have comparisons to let's say golden thread (her hair is like

golden thread), so he's basically saying if hairs be wires, if you want to make that

comparison, well, she's got black wires. She's got tarnished kind of wires on her

head. Then we have the word "damasked" in line five here, and the word "damasked"

means variegated, or mixed. You can think of roses, so if you have a hybrid

species of rose then you have sort of mixed the colors. He's saying here,

I have seen beautiful kind of hybrid, mixed roses that are red and

white, but I don't see those colors nicely mixed in her cheeks. Her

cheeks are pale and they lack color, so don't expect to see any beauty here.

You can see now that this whole opening part is full of insults. He really says

"my mistress' eyes are not as bright as the sun" -- they don't shine beautifully.

Coral is a lot more red than her lips' red. So the red of her lips is not really

there. Her lips are probably chapped. Her breasts are definitely not snowy white,

and so on and so forth. One word that may need a little bit of

clarification is this words "reeks," because for us it really means to smell badly.

But during this period it probably just meant something like "to come out

of, to rise." And so it doesn't have to have that connotation of smells badly,

although that is I think the implication -- that her breath is

definitely not perfume. And then we get to the last couple of lines and I think

you can make sense of most of this in-between yourself ... So she's not a

goddess when she walks; she really kind of stomps on the ground. And then the

last two lines are the most difficult. So these are the rhyming couplet. The

last bit is the rhyming couplet. And Shakespeare writes here, "And yet, by

heaven, I think my love as rare as any she belied with false compare." This word

"rare" is sort of a mix of marvelous, special but also unusual.

Shakespeare is playing with those meanings, so you might translate

this is as something like "unique." Both unusual and special and

wonderful at the same time. Think of a diamond in that sense. A diamond has those

qualities too. The words "she" is the hardest word here perhaps because it

actually just means "woman." So don't think of it as the pronoun. The pronoun

stands in for the word "woman" here. So "as any woman belied with false compare." And

then this word "belied" means "misrepresented." And the last

bit is "false comparisons." What Shakespeare is really saying then at the

end is, "and yet by heaven I think my love, my beloved one, my

girl, is as unique as any woman who has been misrepresented with false

comparisons." What he's talking about is these blazons. All of these poets who

go, "Ah, my beloved is so beautiful, her eyes are like the sun, her lips ...

are like coral ..." And Shakespeare says none of these things

are true. They're all misrepresentations. They're all lies and

in the meantime I'm telling you the truth. So it may sound like I'm insulting

you, but actually you should love me, because I am honest. Isn't that nice?

That's sort of the general argument here and what we have to make sense of

then is this final kind of poetic turn, as it's sometimes called. At the very end

we have this poetic turn where he goes, "okay, I just insulted you for 12 lines,

but then when we get to the rhyming couplet I'm going to turn it around and

say, "and yet ... even though I've said all of these nasty things, I think

you're special, because I am being honest and I'm not telling you lies like these

other poets but I'm telling you how it really is. I think you're unique

and that should count for something!" Alright, hopefully that makes some

sense of the poem then. We've talked about the context, we've talked about

the basic meaning -- the last thing we really need to focus on is what do we

take away from this? What's the significance of this, and how should you

interpret the tone and the meaning of this poem? This is really where you

get to analysis and interpretation. If you're writing an essay this is where

you have to kind of make a statement or make a claim. So let's see what are some

things that you can talk about in an analysis. The first thing I think that's

important is simply your gut response to the poem. I've sometimes asked

students what they would do if somebody recited his poem to them. The

majority of students would actually say, "well, I think I would slap that person in

the face! I wouldn't put up with this! It may sound kind of nice at the end but

there are just too many insults and I can't forgive that." And then there are

those kind of innocent souls, those wonderful people who say, "Ah, but he means

so well, and I'm sure he's really kind, and maybe the ending ... makes

up for everything that came before." So that I think is interesting -- the way

people respond to this differently -- and that really does raise this kind of

fundamental question about this poem. The fundamental question has to do with

honesty. Is Shakespeare being honest, and what this honesty mean?

Is he being honest? Because he sort of sort of seems like it on the surface. He

seems to be saying, all these other poets are telling lies, but I'm being

honest. And I think one of the first things that comes out of that that you

have to investigate is, what is honesty? Is he really telling the truth?

and I think if we have sort of this continuum, if we think of the

extremes, then on the one hand you have the blazon, which is over the top, and is

all lavish praise all the time, and then on the other extreme you have insults.

So where is this poem? Is it in the middle then? Is that honesty? Yeah,

she's not extremely beautiful, but she's nice. Or does this tend more

towards an insult? I would say it's actually way more on this

side. And is that honest? Or is it really the pendulum kind of

swinging from one extreme to the other. So that's one of the big questions

that you have to consider. A lot of this has to do with tone then. What is

the tone of this poem? Is it sarcastic? Is it tongue-in-cheek? Is it trying to be

honest at the end? I wouldn't be too reverent towards

Shakespeare. I know a lot of students ... have encountered

Shakespeare in high school and they kind of go, "well, I have to admire this guy

apparently. He's such a genius. He must be romantic, he must be serious." But no.

Really take Shakespeare as somebody who is trying to be clever, he's trying to

show off and he's not doing that just for his beloved. He's also doing it to

have this kind of poetic competition with other people. And that gets at

this question of audience. So who is the intended audience for this poem? Is this

really addressed to his beloved? I don't think so, because if you address a

poem to your beloved you don't say "my mistress." You write "your eyes." So

this is in the third person. It's all in the third person. It's saying, she is like

that. So who's he talking to? Is this like locker room talk between

guys? Is this guys talking about a woman, saying, my woman is like this,

and other guys say my woman is like that. It becomes this sort of

competition between men, and I think that should really trouble us. It does

lead to this larger concern over misogyny. So we have this larger concern

over misogyny and the word "misogyny" refers to hating women. Now do we want to

accuse Shakespeare of misogyny? Possibly. We might because it might be actually

quite a misogynistic poem, and maybe he's not just insulting one woman, but he's

implying that many women are like this, and this is how you should treat them,

because all these other women -- they have been lied to. These other women

have been lied to, and what does that imply? That they aren't beautiful? How far

again is this pendulum swinging? I think that's sort

of the bigger question behind it. So we have a question of honesty then. We

have a question of audience, and what we're starting to see here is that

Shakespeare is actually much less interested in the woman than he is in

his own fame. So this question of fame that's important. He's basically using

her for fairly selfish purposes -- to make fun of other

sonneteers. And so she is there not so much to be remembered herself, but to be

kind of used and abused in some ways so that Shakespeare can say, "look at me. I'm

so witty. I'm so clever. I can turn it all around at the end

and salvage something out of all of these insults." So those are really

the fundamental questions that you have to ask, and I think by going through this

you might be a little bit confused. You might say, but that doesn't really help,

because now I have all these questions, and I don't know if this poem

is misogynistic, I don't know if Shakespeare doesn't love her, I don't

know if he's being honest or not, I don't know how far the pendulum swings. But

that's okay. You don't have to settle all of

these questions. You don't have to have all clear answers to every last question.

And I also think that when you come to this poem again and you read it in

relation to other sonnets you start to see that there are 154 sonnets and

they're all a little bit different. Each one is a little mini-argument. Each one

says, "look at me, I'm so clever! I'm a new attempt to get you into bed with. me I'm

a new attempt to persuade you that I'm worth loving. I'm a new attempt not to

persuade you, but to persuade others that I'm a clever poet, and [that] I should be

remembered." There's all of these different arguments in all of these

sonnets, and part of it is the fun of reading sonnets is just to see what

Shakespeare can come up with. What kind of clever argument can he use now to try

to persuade somebody? So that's a big part of the appeal of sonnets, and then

of course we do have all so those sonnets that are more romantic,

that are beautiful and so on, but I don't know that this one fits with those

sonnets. This is a comical sonnet. It's a form of satire and parody,

and so it's a little bit different than what you might find in a different kind

of sonnet. But I hope this helps you make some sense of this poem and hopefully

now you can see how it works in relation to the historical time period and the

sonnet sequence, the sonnet form itself.