The Place 2 Be: Shakespeare's Sonnets

Critique of Sonnet 27

SHAKESPEARE’S SONNETS

Theme: Absentee's Lament
Content: Physical weariness and mental pre-occupation with his partner.

Weary with toil I haste me to my bed,
The dear repose for limbs with travel tired;

"I’m glad to get some sleep after the hard journey I’ve had."

Can just imagine this was how he felt after a trek from Stratford to London.

Nice counterpoint of being weary with toil but hastening to his bed.

Alliteration with Weary with, me…my, travel tired.

But then begins a journey in my head
To work my mind when body's work's expired;

"I can’t rest properly as my mind wanders after my body has stopped."

Nice coupling of work of the mind with work of the body.

For then my thoughts, from far where I abide,
Intend a zealous pilgrimage to thee,

"I can’t get you out of my mind."

And keep my drooping eyelids open wide,
Looking on darkness which the blind do see:

Mid-line alliteration of drooping and darkness.

Counterpoint on looking and blind being able to see.

Save that my soul's imaginary sight
Presents thy shadow to my sightless view,

"My mind’s eye is helping me to imagine your presence."

A twist on the saying "Save my soul" with Save that my soul.

The tone of the sonnet now softens with plentiful alliteration of the letter s: Save…soul’s…sight…Presents…shadow…sightless.

Which like a jewel hung in ghastly night
Makes black night beauteous and her old face new.

"You are the jewel of my life against the nasty backdrop of the real world."

Shakespeare really hates ghastly night as evidenced in several of his other sonnets. His partner’s beauty here though even makes night beautiful and makes afresh the old, customary view of it.

The alliteration of black and beauteous really makes this line work.

Lo, thus by day my limbs, by night my mind,
For thee, and for myself, no quiet find.

"I can never find any rest, I’m either physically working or mentally working."

Use of Lo at the start of line 13 provides alliteration with limbs. And in the second half of this line my is alliterated with mind, carrying on the m sound also from limbs. These two couplings really give structure to the line and excellent poetic impact, together with the repeated by…my.

He imagines that his partner doesn’t get any rest either as they are always in his thoughts – this alluding to his hope that they think of him as much as he thinks of them.

Limbs and night in the final couplet link back to their use in the quatrains thereby concluding the overall theme of this sonnet.