English - Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 Research Paper

English - Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 - Research Paper Example It goes without saying that this Shakespearian sonnet tends to be most rich in the use of variegated imagery, the intensity and depth of passion and the dexterity of the usage of figurative language. Explanation of Sonnet 18 The poet begins the Sonnet 18 by posing a rhetorical question from which the reader can easily deduce as to what one could further expect in this sonnet. At the very start of the poem, the poet discernibly conveys that he is going to compare his beloved, which many of the critics agree that one happened to be a young man, to a summer day. Nevertheless, if one chances to read the poet separately, not being cognizant of the theme and context of the poem, a reader could easily assume that this sonnet is a poem eulogizing a beautiful woman. For the text of this sonnet tends to mention nothing so as to convey otherwise. The charm of the subject is praised not by directly tracing the similarities between the beauties of a warm summer day and one’s beauty, but, r ather by posing contrasts between the delicacies of a warm summer day and one’s beauty. There is no denying the fact that though the imagery used by the poet in this sonnet happens to be simple, yet, it is imbued with much meaning, context and verbal dexterity. One could also easily notice that the rhythm evinced by the poet in this sonnet is quite regular and continuous, without any obstructions and restraints, with a flow that is scarcely disturbed or hampered by any enjambments. Each and every line in this sonnet is specifically aimed at making a single statement, imbued with much meaning and context, and thematically building on the meaning conveyed in the next line. No wonder, this act is achieved by the poet without compromising even an iota on the melodic quality of the sonnet. Any mature reader could easily look to it that the poet has masterfully resorted to the usage of assonance and internal rhymes to achieve a melodious sound and rhythm. As one proceeds with the p erusal of this sonnet, one slowly comes to the realization that it is not merely a poem praising the beauty of the poet’s beloved, but also happens to be a verse loaded with philosophical connotations, delving on the nature and quality of poetry and the essential qualities it should possess. In a much broader context the poem also makes any unsuspecting reader in an indirect yet unintentional way think on the evanescent existence of man and the eternal existence of art and beauty. Rhyme Scheme and Sonnet Structure Again it gets visible at the first glance that the Sonnet 18 is a typical Shakespearian or English sonnet. Hence, following the rhyme scheme of the other of the large body of Shakespearian sonnets, Sonnet 18 also has three quatrains followed by a couplet. Again the rhyme scheme is typically characteristic of Shakespeare’s other sonnets being abab cdcd efef gg. It is quiet visible that it is a classic Shakespearian sonnet having 14 lines arranged in quite a re gular iambic pentameter. Leaving aside a few first syllables that tend to be strong, the poem scarcely tends to deviate from its meter. There is no line that flows into the next line and each and every line culminates in a full stop. There lie two quatrains at the start of the sonnet that are easily followed by a third quatrain that tends to shift the tone of the poem a little. This quatrain is than masterfully led to a rhyming couplet that aptly culminates the Sonnet 18. Just as it was so typical of the Italian sonnets from which