William Shakespeare’s Sonnet Summary

William Shakespeare’s Sonnet Summary

Scholars are still unsure about the date of Shakespeare's sonnets. He is thought to have written the sonnets in 1592 or 1593. However, his sonnets were circulated among his friends in manuscript form in 1596 or early 1599. Shakespeare's two sonnets, 137 and 144, were published in The Passionate Pilgrim. Though only these two sonnets were a compilation of verses by several authors. It is noteworthy, however, that the sonnets we know about were completed after 1609 and were published in Shakespeare's Sonnets by Thomas Thorpe.

In all, Shakespeare composed a total of 154 sonnets. His sonnets can be counted as a sequence of sonnets. We can divide the sonnets written by him into two parts, of which sonnets 01 to 126 mention a young man and the poet's friendship with him. And the sonnets 126 to 152 mention the relationship between one of the poet's favorite women namely Dark Lady. It is noteworthy, however, that Shakespeare's last 153 and 154 sonnets, respectively, were written for the purpose of Cupid, the god of desire and erotic love.

The fair lord Sonnets show the narrator’s untold love with a young and beautiful man, while the dark lady sonnets engage his lustful desire for a woman who is not his wife. But the speaker is desperately struggling against time to reconcile the uncontrollable urges of his heart with the good judgment of his mind.

Shakespeare's sonnets begin with the speaker's sweet appeal to a fair friend, and the poet advises him to preserve her beauty for future generations. This theme has evolved to Sonnet 18, where the speaker, in his verse, advocates an alternative plan to perpetuate the beauty of the fair friend. However, the speaker takes a way to mention the beauty of Fair Friend for a long time.

The speaker becomes increasingly fascinated by the fair friend, eventually becoming emotionally dependent on her and failing to win her heart. The speaker is further distressed by the passage of time, and he fears that the beauty of his fair friend's youth will inevitably be destroyed one day, according to the law of God.

In these sonnets, the speaker's passion for the fair friend gradually fluctuates between love and anger, violence and greed. In Shakespeare's Sonnet (79-86) we find touching examples of the speaker's jealousy, where the fair friend's attention has been drawn by another. In this case, the speaker is emotionally broken by the shock of self-deprivation because he is tormented by the thought of losing his most beloved object forever. In Sonnet 87, the speaker bids farewell to Fair Friend, but his heart aches for a long time.

The rest of the fair friend sonnet is considered a sign of the speaker's emotional turmoil. After his separation from Fair Friend in Sonnet 87, the speaker becomes as self-aware and philosophical when he can prove the false disillusionment of love to himself.

Through all these developments we have come to agree with the speaker's growing apprehension that his time is running out. Finally, in Sonnet 126, his love matured. And the speaker mentioned that his beloved fair friend will one day perish in the world of his destruction.

The following sonnet 127 to 152 mentions the relationship of the Dark Lady with one of the poet's favorite women. The attraction here is not love, but lust.

Dark lady has been described as obscene. He is a symbol of lustful immorality. The speaker again returned to the meditative mind to deal with his situation. In the end, the lust of the speaker is identified as an incurable disorder. It is mentioned that this is a burning sensation that can only be temporarily extinguished by the eyes of the Dark Lady.

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👉 Macbeth | by William Shakespeare - S.A.Q

👉 As You Like It | M.C.Q

👉 Othello | Othello’s Character in the play

👉 The Comedy of Errors | S.A.Q