Sonnet Commentary

Va Thao
Ms. Peifer
10 IB English
22 February 2009

Sonnet 116 Analysis (I cannot center this)
In Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116, he praised love and its strength by personifying, symbolizing Love, and using repetition.

Shakespeare symbolized love to exaggerate its great impact. He symbolized love as a star in line 7, “It is the star to every wandering bark” to praise love’s leadership. Shakespeare also personified love to time, “Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,/ But it bears it out even to the edge of doom.”(line 11-12). This honors love’s strength of holding on even in despair. This personification of Love to Time also reinforces the fact that if there is no great pain, there will be no great love. Adding to that it also praises Love for its strength growing as time goes by too. Love is also personified as other things too, “O no! It is an ever-fixed mark/ That looks on tempests and is never shaken;”(5-6). Yet again, Shakespeare honors Love’s strength in this quote by expressing it as something that is so invincible that nothing can penetrate it. Another example to reinforce this is, “…Love is not love/ Which alters when it alteration finds,/ Or bends with the remover to remove:”(lines 2-4). It gives out the impression that it is not love if it is a weak one. This gives the impact of how love only stands when there is great strength; or else it would not be called Love. Shakespeare’s praise of love and its strength does not end here, there is more in the quote on lines 8-9, “Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken./ Love’s not Time’s fool, though rosy lips and cheeks”. It explains how love is a mysterious feeling even when it is understood. This shows the impact of how much strength love makes one feels. Shakespeare also used repetition to reinforce his intentions. His repetition of noting, “Love” over and over again gives the strength to emphasize love’s strength just by reading it, plus it also shows how much pride he has to repeat that one specific word. Examples of this are: “Love is not love…”(line 2), “Love’s not Time’s fool…”(line 9), and “Love alters not…”(line 11). The repetition to personify love as time gives a backup to strengthen the honor of love’s strength. Examples of this are: “Love’s not Time’s fool…”(line 9) and “Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,”(line 11).

In conclusion, Shakespeare’s purpose in Sonnet 116 was to praise love and its strength allowed by his work of personification, symbolism, and repetition.

Sonnet 1 by Va Thao

Va Thao
Ms. Peifer
10 IB English
16 February 2009

Everyone journeys for this summer's kiss,
The breeze that one can't see, but can feel.
The spark that one fears and still feels at bliss,
Fluttering butterflies that one can't seal.
The hearth construct'd with Pheonixes' fires,
Weaving a stairway to the heavens dream't.
Where passionate tunes heals errors,
Destroying all undiscovered Labyrinth't.
But Mother Nature's teachings come unwar'ed.
Only the strongest thrive through harsh winters,
And Love's venom peacefully sneaks inward.
Everlasting Love shall never fade heres,
Tis not only inscribed onto papers,
The Chamber of Love sleeps in all lovers.