Gary Fernandez

Mr. Francis

English IV

October 26, 2009

Sonnets

Sonnets are fourteen lined poems that tell a story and have a rhythm of a song into it. Due

to this, a sonnet shows the poet’s skill and artistry from their thoughts. Keeping that in mind, it

can also reveal the true artist/poet form inside of them. Poetry can also show their true emotions

and lives of the writer. Some experiences or emotions the poet will write about is on love, hate,

joy sadness, a combination of some, or all of them. The author’s word choice makes the poem or

sonnet full of questioning of the true meaning. Word choices can make the reader think more

into the poetry than it rather flat out tell you and make the mystery of the meaning or the

composition of the sonnet and makes your mind stay concealed.

A sonnet is like art. This is a good way of comparing two things because art is to be

enjoyed and to have a meaning behind it all and have creativity behind it all. This is true in any

type of writing in English because creativity is necessary in any publishing that are made into

your work because if there wasn’t there wouldn’t be much to talk about.

In the Shakespearian sonnet type, there is a rhyme scheme of a b a b c d c d e f e f g g.

Also in a Shakespearian type sonnet, there are three quatrains and one couplet at the end of the

sonnet. The first quatrain gives out the images of what is happening and sets out examples of

problems. The second quatrain starts setting out the problem top the reader. The third and final

quatrain solves the problem that was stated to the reader in the previous quatrain. Then at the end

of the Shakespearian sonnet there is a couplet which is made up of two lines which gives the
reader a commentary over the entire sonnet; with this information and knowledge, you can

understand the Shakespearian style of sonnets.

In Sonnet 138, Shakespeare talks about how age is one of his enemies in life. In quatrain

one, “When my love swears that she is made of truth I do believe her, though I know she lies,

that she might think of me some untutor’d youth, Unlearned in the world’s false subtleties,”

Shakespeare is saying that even though his love says she speaks the truth to him, he feels that

she’s lying because he feels like he’s old and she knows that he is too. He shows images of the

world’s lies in it and comparing it to his love as well since she lies to him.

In the second quatrain, “Thus vainly thinking that she thinks me young, Although she

knows my days are past the best, Simply I credit her false speaking tongue: On both sides thus is

simple truth suppress’d.” From what I got from this quatrain, I think the problem that’s being

shown is that the one he loves might have promised that she’ll never lie to him and yet she is

about his age. Also, another problem that I got out of this is that he’s starting to ask himself is

she trying to lie to herself that he’s old or trying to lie to William Shakespeare. This then makes

the reader start to question and look more into depth in this sonnet as well.

In the third quatrain, “But wherefore says she not she is unjust? And wherefore say not I

that I am old? O, loves best habit is in seeming trust, And age in love loves not to have years

told.” The problem that was stated in the previous quatrain was now resolved in this final

quatrain. In this question he asks again how come she’s lying to him and also asks himself why

he is not going to say how old he truly is. He then answers that love is trust seen in different

ways and that when you’re older and in love, it doesn’t seem necessary to show how old you

truly are when you are in love.

Then in the couplet, “Therefore I lie with her and she with me, And in our faults by lies

we flatter’d be.” The couplet gives us Shakespeare’s final thought over the three quatrains which
was because love is seen in different ways and when age isn’t to be shown, it’s the reason why

they are together. The concluding line supports the entire sonnets by saying their lies help them

to forget who they truly are.

Shakespeare shows his true emotions hidden in the creativity of word choices and word

plays too. If Shakespeare just flat out told the story and/or problem, the entire sonnet wouldn’t be

very interesting at all to the reader. In conclusion, when you have creativity in your writing (what

ever the type may it be), your English work will become a work of art because it would make

people think about it more into depth.