William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare (baptized April 26, 1564 – April 23, 1616) was an English playwright, poet, and actor, widely
regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world’s pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called
England’s national poet and the “Bard of Avon”. His surviving works, including collaborations, consist of some 39
plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and a few other verses, some of uncertain authorship. His plays
have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other
playwright.
Sonnet 18 paraphrase
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Should I compare you to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate: You are more beautiful and gentle.
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of Summer can be rough, with strong winds
May, shaking May's flowers,
And summer's lease hath all too short a And its warmth doesn't last long.
date:
Sometimes the sun shines too hot,
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And other times it’s hidden by clouds;
And often is his gold complexion dimmed; Everything beautiful eventually fades,
And every fair from fair sometime declines, Whether by chance or the natural passage of
By chance or nature's changing course time.
untrimmed;
But your beauty will never fade,
But thy eternal summer shall not fade, Nor will you lose the qualities that make you
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest; lovely.
Nor shall Death brag thou wanderest in his Even Death cannot claim you,
shade, Because you will live on in the lines of this
When in eternal lines to time thou growest: poem.
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, As long as people can breathe and see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee. These words will live on, keeping your memory
alive.
Some Questions :
1- What is a sonnet?
It’s a poem of 14 lines dealing with one idea or emotion which is personal.
2- Where did the sonnet originate?
The sonnet originated in Italy.
3- Shakespeare changed the pattern of the sonnet. Explain.
The first form of the sonnet was divided into 2 parts, one consisting of 8 lines and the other
of 6 lines. However, Shakespeare divided the 14 lines into 3 quatrains (each quatrain
consists of 4 lines) and a heroic couplet (the last two lines).
All figures of speech :
1. Metaphor
A direct comparison without using "like" or "as."
"Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?"
The speaker compares the beloved to a summer's day but implies they surpass it.
"Thy eternal summer shall not fade"
The beloved's beauty and vitality are metaphorically described as "eternal summer."
2. Personification
Attributing human qualities to non-human things.
"Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May"
The winds are described as "rough," capable of "shaking" flowers like a human would.
"The eye of heaven"
The sun is personified as having an "eye."
"Nor shall Death brag thou wanderest in his shade"
Death is personified as boasting and casting a "shade."
3. Imagery
Descriptive language appealing to the senses.
"Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May"
Evokes visual and tactile imagery of winds and fragile flowers.
"Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines"
Creates a vivid image of a bright, scorching sun.
4. Hyperbole
Exaggeration for emphasis.
"Thy eternal summer shall not fade"
Exaggerates the timelessness of the beloved's beauty.
"So long lives this, and this gives life to thee"
Claims the poem will immortalize the beloved for eternity.
5. Alliteration
The repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words.
"Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May"
The "w" and "d" sounds add rhythm and emphasis.
"Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines"
Repetition of the "h" sound.
6. Parallelism
The use of similar grammatical structures for emphasis and rhythm.
"Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wanderest in his shade"
The repeated "Nor" emphasizes what the beloved will not lose.
7. Antithesis
Contrasting ideas presented together.
"Every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature's changing course untrimmed"
The contrast between transient beauty and eternal beauty.
8. Enjambment
The continuation of a sentence or phrase beyond the end of a line.
"By chance or nature’s changing course untrimmed;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade"
The thought flows from one line to the next without pause.
9. Symbolism
Using an object or idea to represent something else.
"Summer"
Symbolizes beauty, youth, and vitality.
"Eternal lines"
Symbolizes the immortalizing power of poetry.
10. Anaphora
Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive lines.
"So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee"
The repeated "So long" emphasizes the everlasting impact of the poem.
The rhyme scheme of Sonnet 18 :
A: Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
B: Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
A: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
B: And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
C: Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
D: And often is his gold complexion dimmed;
C: And every fair from fair sometime declines,
D: By chance or nature's changing course untrimmed;
E: But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
F: Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
E: Nor shall Death brag thou wanderest in his shade,
F: When in eternal lines to time thou growest:
G: So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
G: So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
