Essay on Nature in Shakespeares Sonnets - 1731 Words

Nature in Shakespeare’s Sonnets In Shakespeare’s fair youth Sonnets, the speaker uses imagery and metaphors from nature to describe man’s life cycle. While reading the Sonnets, it may seem at first that the main point of the Sonnets is that life’s purpose is to reproduce. However, after reading the fair youth Sonnets, it becomes clear that imagery from nature is used to prove that death is inevitable and should be accepted. The fair youth Sonnets are ordered in a specific way to resemble the life cycle of a man. As the Sonnets progress the overall themes of the sonnets seems to change. This cycle starts off with ‘Sonnet 1’ and ‘Sonnet 3’ and concludes with ‘Sonnet 73’ and ‘Sonnet 74’. Sonnets 1, 3, 7, 15, 60, 73, and 74 are all used†¦show more content†¦The tone and theme of the Sonnets begin to change from this point on, focusing on the fact that life passes just as quickly as a sunset fades. After a sunset fades the sky suddenly be comes darker; and the darkness progresses as time passes through the night. The sunset is used as a metaphor for the way that a life fades after the peak, or the prime of life. ‘Sonnet 15’ uses a metaphor similar to that of a sunset fading, but this metaphor compares man’s declining quality of life after the prime to that of a plant once it reaches its full potential, â€Å"When I consider everything that grows/holds in perfection but a little moment/†¦ When I perceive that man as plants increase/Cheered and checked ev’n by the self-same sky/Vaunt in their youthful sap, at height decrease† (Sonnet 15, L.1-8). The speaker shows that once life reaches its highest peak, it must begin to fall towards the end, or death. ‘Sonnet 15’ states that every living thing is perfect at one point in its lifespan. A flower is the most beautiful just at its peak before it starts to wither. Life is most beautiful in its prime; however, once that high est peak or ‘prime of life’ passes then the quality of life begins to decline. Instead of using a plants’ lifespan, or a sunset’s continuing darkness in ‘Sonnet 60’ to compare timeShow MoreRelatedEternal And Unchanging Nature Of Love In William Shakespeares Sonnet 1161055 Words   |  5 PagesWilliam Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116, the speaker describes the type of eternal and unchanging love he wishes for but has not experienced. While these lines may seem like they should be recited at a wedding with tears of joy, a more fitting scenario for their recital is a jaded lover screaming them to his or her ex-partner. This sonnet is actually the poetic version of â€Å"You never loved me.† This piece examines the eternal and unchanging nature of love by showing what love is not. 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