Summary

The speaker opens the poem with a question addressed to the beloved: Shall I compare thee to a summers day? The next eleven lines are devoted to such a comparison In line ! " the speaker stipulates what mainly di##erentiates the youn$ man #rom the summers day: he is more lovely and more temperate Summers days tend toward extremes: they are shaken by rou$h winds% in them" the sun &the eye o# heaven' o#ten shines too hot" or too dim (nd summer is #leetin$: its date is too short" and it leads to the witherin$ o# autumn" as every #air #rom #air sometime declines The #inal quatrain o# the sonnet tells how the beloved di##ers #rom the summer in that respect: his beauty will last #orever &Thy eternal summer shall not #ade ' and never die In the couplet" the speaker explains how the beloveds beauty will accomplish this #eat" and not perish because it is preserved in the poem" which will last #orever% it will live as lon$ as men can breathe or eyes can see

Commentary
This sonnet is certainly the most #amous in the sequence o# Shakespeares sonnets% it may be the most #amous lyric poem in )n$lish (mon$ Shakespeares works" only lines such as To be or not to be and *omeo" *omeo" where#ore art thou *omeo? are better+known This is not to say that it is at all the best or most interestin$ or most beauti#ul o# the sonnets% but the simplicity and loveliness o# its praise o# the beloved has $uaranteed its place ,n the sur#ace" the poem is simply a statement o# praise about the beauty o# the beloved% summer tends to unpleasant extremes o# windiness and heat" but the beloved is always mild and temperate Summer is incidentally personi#ied as the eye o# heaven with its $old complexion% the ima$ery throu$hout is simple and una##ected" with the darlin$ buds o# -ay $ivin$ way to the eternal summer" which the speaker promises the beloved The lan$ua$e" too" is comparatively unadorned #or the sonnets% it is not heavy with alliteration or assonance" and nearly every line is its own sel#+ contained clause.almost every line ends with some punctuation" which e##ects a pause Sonnet / 0 is the #irst poem in the sonnets not to explicitly encoura$e the youn$ man to have children The procreation sequence o# the #irst / 1 sonnets ended with the speakers reali2ation that the youn$ man mi$ht not need children to preserve his beauty% he could also live" the speaker writes at the end o# Sonnet / 1 " in my rhyme Sonnet / 0 " then" is the #irst rhyme.the speakers #irst attempt to preserve the youn$ mans beauty #or all time (n important theme o# the sonnet &as it is an important theme throu$hout much o# the sequence' is the power o# the speakers poem to de#y time and last #orever" carryin$ the beauty o# the beloved down to #uture $enerations The beloveds eternal summer shall not #ade precisely because it is embodied in the sonnet: So lon$ as men can

breathe or eyes can see" the speaker writes in the couplet" So lon$ lives this" and this $ives li#e to thee

Summary and AnalysisSonnet 18

Summary and (nalysis ,ri$inal Text

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Summary One of the best known of Shakespeare's sonnets, Sonnet 18 is memorable for the skillful and varied presentation of subject matter, in which the poet's feelings reach a level of rapture unseen in the previous sonnets. The poet here abandons his uest for the !outh to have a child, and instead glories in the !outh's beaut!. "nitiall!, the poet poses a uestion # $Shall " compare thee to a summer's da!%$ # and then reflects on it, remarking that the !outh's beaut! far surpasses summer's delights. The imager! is the ver! essence of simplicit!& $wind$ and $buds.$ "n the fourth line, legal terminolog! # $summer's lease$ # is introduced in contrast to the commonplace images in the first three lines. 'ote also the poet's use of e(tremes in the phrases $more lovel!,$ $all too short,$ and $too hot$) these phrases emphasi*e the !oung man's beaut!. +lthough lines , through 1- are marked b! a more e(pansive tone and deeper feeling, the poet returns to the simplicit! of the opening images. +s one e(pects in Shakespeare's sonnets, the proposition that the poet sets up in the first eight lines # that all nature is subject to imperfection # is now contrasted in these ne(t four lines beginning with $.ut.$ +lthough beaut! naturall! declines at some point # $+nd ever! fair from fair sometime declines$ # the !outh's beaut! will not) his unchanging appearance is at!pical of nature's stead! progression. /ven death is impotent against the !outh's beaut!. 'ote the ambiguit! in the phrase $eternal lines$& +re these $lines$ the poet's verses or the !outh's hoped0for children% Or are the! simpl! wrinkles meant to represent the process of aging% 1hatever the answer, the poet is jubilant in this sonnet because nothing threatens the !oung man's beautiful appearance. Then follows the concluding couplet& $So long as men can breathe, or e!es can see, 2 So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.$ The poet is describing not what the !outh

is but what he will be ages hence, as captured in the poet's eternal verse # or again, in a hoped0for child. 1hatever one ma! feel about the sentiment e(pressed in the sonnet and especiall! in these last two lines, one cannot help but notice an abrupt change in the poet's own estimate of his poetic writing. 3ollowing the poet's disparaging reference to his $pupil pen$ and $barren rh!me$ in Sonnet 14, it comes as a surprise in Sonnet 18 to find him boasting that his poetr! will be eternal.

Sonnet 18 is arguabl! the most famous of the sonnets, its opening line competitive with $5omeo, 5omeo, wherefore art thou 5omeo%$ in the long list of Shakespeare's uotable uotations. The gender of the addressee is not e(plicit, but this is the first sonnet after the so0called $procreation sonnets$ 6sonnets 10178, i.e., it apparentl! marks the place where the poet has abandoned his earlier push to persuade the fair lord to have a child. The first two uatrains focus on the fair lord's beaut!& the poet attempts to compare it to a summer's da!, but shows that there can be no such comparison, since the fair lord's timeless beaut! far surpasses that of the fleeting, inconstant season. 9ere the theme of the ravages of time again predominates) we see it especiall! in line 7, where the poet speaks of the inevitable mortalit! of beaut!& $+nd ever! fair from fair sometime declines.$ .ut the fair lord's is of another sort, for it $shall not fade$ 0 the poet is eternali*ing the fair lord's beaut! in his verse, in these $eternal lines.$ 'ote the financial imager! 6$summer's lease$8 and the use of anaphora 6the repetition of opening words8 in lines 407, 1:011, and 1;01<. +lso note that =a! 6line ;8 was an earl! summer month in Shakespeare's time, because /ngland did not adopt the >regorian calendar until 17?-. The poet describes summer as a season of e(tremes and disappointments. 9e begins in lines ;0<, where $rough winds$ are an unwelcome e(treme and the shortness of summer is its disappointment. 9e continues in lines ?04, where he lingers on the imperfections of the summer sun. 9ere again we find an e(treme and a disappointment& the sun is sometimes far too hot, while at other times its $gold comple(ion$ is dimmed b! passing clouds. These imperfections contrast sharpl! with the poet's description of the fair lord, who is $more temperate$ 6not e(treme8 and whose $eternal summer shall not fade$ 6i.e., will not become a disappointment8 thanks to what the poet proposes in line 1-. "n line 1- we find the poet's solution 0 how he intends to eternali*e the fair lord's beaut! despite his refusal to have a child. The poet plans to capture the fair lord's beaut! in his verse 6$eternal lines$8, which he believes will withstand the ravages of time. Thereb! the fair lord's $eternal summer shall not fade,$ and the poet will have gotten his wish. 9ere we see the poet's use of $summer$ as a metaphor for !outh, or perhaps beaut!, or perhaps the beaut! of !outh.

Sonnet 18 - "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?"

What's he saying?

$Shall " compare thee to a summer's da!% 2 Thou art more lovel! and more temperate&$ What if I were to compare you to a summer day? You are lovelier and more temperate (the perfect temperature): $5ough winds do shake the darling buds of =a! 2 +nd summer's lease hath all too short a date&$ Summer's beauty is fragile and can be sha en! and summertime fades away all too "uic ly: $Sometime too hot the e!e of heaven shines 2 +nd often is his gold comple(ion dimm'd)$ Sometimes the sun is far too hot! and often it is too cool! dimmed by clouds and shade# $+nd ever! fair from fair sometime declines 2 .! chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd)$ $nd everything that is beautiful eventually loses its beauty! whether by chance or by the uncontrollable course of nature# $.ut th! eternal summer shall not fade 2 'or lose possession of that fair thou owest)$ %ut your eternal beauty (or youth) will not fade! nor will your beauty by lost# $'or shall @eath brag thou wander'st in his shade 2 1hen in eternal lines to time thou growest&$ &or will 'eath boast that you wander in his shadow! since you shall grow with time through these sonnets: $So long as men can breathe or e!es can see 2 So long lives this and this gives life to thee.$ (or as long as people can breathe and see! this sonnet will live on! and you (and your beauty) with it) Why is he saying it? Sonnet 18 is arguabl! the most famous of the sonnets, its opening line competitive with $5omeo, 5omeo, wherefore art thou 5omeo%$ in the long list of Shakespeare's uotable uotations. The gender of the addressee is not e(plicit, but this is the first sonnet after the so0called $procreation sonnets$ 6sonnets 10178, i.e., it apparentl! marks the place where the poet has abandoned his earlier push to persuade the fair lord to have a child. The first two uatrains focus on the fair lord's beaut!& the poet attempts to compare it to a summer's da!, but shows that there can be no such comparison, since the fair lord's timeless beaut! far surpasses that of the fleeting, inconstant season. 9ere the theme of the ravages of time again predominates) we see it especiall! in line 7, where the poet speaks of the inevitable mortalit! of beaut!& $+nd ever! fair from fair sometime declines.$ .ut the fair lord's is of another sort, for it $shall not fade$ 0 the poet is eternali*ing the fair lord's beaut! in his verse, in these $eternal lines.$ 'ote the financial imager! 6$summer's lease$8 and the use of anaphora 6the repetition of opening words8 in lines 407, 1:011, and 1;01<. +lso note that =a! 6line ;8 was an earl! summer month in Shakespeare's time, because /ngland did not adopt the >regorian calendar until 17?-. The poet describes summer as a season of e(tremes and disappointments. 9e begins in lines ;0<, where $rough winds$ are an unwelcome e(treme and the shortness of summer is its disappointment. 9e continues in lines ?04, where he lingers on the imperfections of the summer sun. 9ere again we find an e(treme and a disappointment& the sun is sometimes far too hot, while at other times its $gold comple(ion$ is dimmed b! passing clouds. These

imperfections contrast sharpl! with the poet's description of the fair lord, who is $more temperate$ 6not e(treme8 and whose $eternal summer shall not fade$ 6i.e., will not become a disappointment8 thanks to what the poet proposes in line 1-. "n line 1- we find the poet's solution 0 how he intends to eternali*e the fair lord's beaut! despite his refusal to have a child. The poet plans to capture the fair lord's beaut! in his verse 6$eternal lines$8, which he believes will withstand the ravages of time. Thereb! the fair lord's $eternal summer shall not fade,$ and the poet will have gotten his wish. 9ere we see the poet's use of $summer$ as a metaphor for !outh, or perhaps beaut!, or perhaps the beaut! of !outh. .ut has the poet reall! abandoned the idea of encouraging the fair lord to have a child% Some scholars suggest that the $eternal lines$ in line 1- have a double meaning& the fair lord's beaut! can live on not onl! in the written lines of the poet's verse but also in the famil! lines of the fair lord's progen!. Such an interpretation would echo the sentiment of the preceding sonnet's closing couplet& $.ut were some child of !ours alive that time 2 Aou should live twice) in it and in m! rh!me.$ The use of $growest$ also implies an increasing or changing& we can envision the fair lord's famil! lines growing over time, !et this image is not as readil! applicable to the lines of the poet's verse 0 unless it refers onl! to his intention to continue writing about the fair lord's beaut!, his verse thereb! $growing.$ On the other hand, line 1< seems to counter this interpretation, the singular $this$ 6as opposed to $these$8 having as its most likel! antecedent the poet's verse, and nothing more.

Betrarchan Sonnets The Betrarchan is the original and most common form of sonnet. The form comes from "tal!, where the language has more rh!mes than /nglish. The poem is divided into two parts. The first eight lines present some argument or uestion. The ne(t si( lines change the rh!me pattern, and provide an answer or counterargument. + Betrarchan sonnet can be serious or funn!. Shakespearean Sonnets 1illiam Shakespeare did not invent the sonnet form that bears his name, but he did write man! of them. The Shakespearean sonnet is actuall! an adaptation of the Betrarchan sonnet. "t is more suited to the /nglish language. There are 1< lines in the Shakespearean sonnet. Three sets of four lines called $ uatrains$ are finished off with a $heroic couplet$ of two lines. The last couplet usuall! has a twist or dramatic closing to the sonnet. Source(s): http&22www.ehow.com2infoC81<-1:7Csonnet0ideas.html

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Sonnet 18 is a t!pical /nglish or Shakespearean sonnet. "t consists of three uatrains followed b! a couplet, and has the characteristic rh!me scheme& abab cdcd efef gg. The

poem carries the meaning of an "talian or Betrarchan Sonnet. Betrarchan sonnets t!picall! discussed the love and beaut! of a beloved, often an unattainable love, but not alwa!s.D<E "t also contains a volta, or shift in the poem's subject matter, beginning with the third uatrain.D?E Source(s): http&22en.wikipedia.org2wiki2SonnetC18

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Sonnet 18, often alternatel! titled Shall " compare thee to a summer's da!%, is one of the best0known of 1?< sonnets written b! the /nglish pla!wright and poet 1illiam Shakespeare. Bart of the 3air Aouth se uence 6which comprises sonnets 101-4 in the accepted numbering stemming from the first edition in 14:,8, it is the first of the c!cle after the opening se uence now described as the Brocreation sonnets. =ost scholars now agree that the original subject of the poem, the beloved to whom the poet is writing, is a male, though the poem is commonl! used to describe a woman. "n the sonnet, the speaker compares his beloved to the summer season, and argues that his beloved is better. 9e also states that his beloved will live on forever through the words of the poem. Scholars have found parallels within the poem to Ovid's Tristia and +mores, both of which have love themes. Sonnet 18 is written in the t!pical Shakespearean sonnet form, having 1< lines of iambic pentameter ending in a rh!med couplet. @etailed e(egeses have revealed several double meanings within the poem, giving it a greater depth of interpretation. Sonnet 18 is a t!pical /nglish or Shakespearean sonnet. "t consists of three uatrains followed b! a couplet, and has the characteristic rh!me scheme& abab cdcd efef gg. The poem carries the meaning of an "talian or Betrarchan Sonnet. Betrarchan sonnets t!picall! discussed the love and beaut! of a beloved, often an unattainable love, but not alwa!s.D<E "t also contains a volta, or shift in the poem's subject matter, beginning with the third uatrain.D?E

Sonnet /0
3rom 4ikipedia" the #ree encyclopedia

Sonnet 18 Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate:

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May !nd summer's lease hath all too short a date" Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines !nd often is his gold comple#ion dimm'd" !nd every fair from fair sometime declines $y chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd" $ut thy eternal summer shall not fade %or lose possession of that fair thou ow'st" %or shall &eath brag thou wander'st in his shade 'hen in eternal lines to time thou grow'st: So long as men can breathe or eyes can see So long lives this and this gives life to thee(
William Shakespeare

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V T E

Shakespeare's sonnets

Sonnet 18" o#ten alternately titled Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?" is one o# the best+known o# /56 sonnets written by the )n$lish playwri$ht and poet4illiam Shakespeare 7art o# the 3air 8outh sequence &which comprises sonnets /9/!: in the accepted numberin$ stemmin$ #rom the #irst edition in /:;<'" it is the #irst o# the cycle a#ter the openin$ sequence now described as the7rocreation sonnets In the sonnet" the speaker compares his beloved to the summer season" and ar$ues that his beloved is better =e also states that his beloved will live on #orever throu$h the words o# the poem Scholars have #ound parallels within the poem to ,vid>s Tristia and Amores" both o# which have love themes Sonnet /0 is written in the typical Shakespearean sonnet #orm" havin$ /6 lines o# iambic pentameter endin$ in a rhymed couplet ?etailed exe$eses have revealed severaldouble meanin$s within the poem" $ivin$ it a $reater depth o# interpretation

Contents
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/ 7araphrase ! Bontext C Structure 6 )xe$esis 5 In music : Dotes 1 *e#erences 0 )xternal links

Paraphrase[edit]

( #acsimile o# the ori$inal printin$ o# Sonnet /0

The poem starts with a #latterin$ question to the beloved.E Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?E The beloved is both Emore lovely and more temperateE than a summer>s day The speaker lists some ne$ative thin$s about summer: it is short.Esummer's lease hath all too short a dateE.and sometimes the sun is too hot .ESometime too hot the eye of heaven shines.E =owever" the beloved has beauty that will last #orever" unlike the #leetin$ beauty o# a summer>s day Fy puttin$ his love>s beauty into the #orm o# poetry" the poet is preservin$ it #orever ESo long as men can breathe, or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.E The lover>s beauty will live on" throu$h the poem which will last as lon$ as it can be read The poet never describes anythin$ speci#ic about the beloved Done o# the qualities which make the beloved superior to a summer>s day are actually possible + remainin$ eternally youn$ and beauti#ul and never dyin$ + nor are they inherent in the beloved They are qualities $iven to the beloved by the poet throu$h the act o# writin$ the poem and only existin$ within it

Context[edit]
The poem is part o# the 3air 8outh sequence &which comprises sonnets /9/!: in the accepted numberin$ stemmin$ #rom the #irst edition in /:;<' It is also the #irst o# the cycle a#ter the openin$ sequence now described as the 7rocreation sonnets" althou$h some scholars see it as a part o# the 7rocreation sonnets" as it still addresses the idea o# reachin$ eternal li#e throu$h the written word" a theme o# sonnets /59/1 In this view" it can be seen as part o# a transition to sonnet !;>s time theme @/A There are many theories about the identity o# the /:;< Guarto>s eni$matic dedicatee" -r 4 = Some scholars su$$est that this poem may be expressin$ a hope that the7rocreation sonnets despaired o#: the hope o# metaphorical procreation in a homosexual relationship @!A ,ther scholars have pointed out that the order in which the sonnets are placed may have been the decision o# publishers and not o# Shakespeare This introduces the possibility that Sonnet /0 was ori$inally intended #or a woman @CA

Structure[edit]
Sonnet /0 is a typical )n$lish or Shakespearean sonnet It consists o# three quatrains #ollowed by a couplet" and has the characteristic rhyme scheme: abab cdcd efef gg The poem carries the meanin$ o# an Italian or 7etrarchan Sonnet 7etrarchan sonnets typically discussed the love and beauty o# a beloved" o#ten an unattainable love" but not always the third quatrain @5A
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It also contains a volta" or shi#t in the poem>s subHect matter" be$innin$ with

Iambic Pentameter of a line of Sonnet 18[6]

Stress

8_

8_

8_

8_

8_

Syllab Thou art more love- ly and more temp- pe- rate le

Exegesis[edit]
EBomplexionE in line six" can have two meanin$s: /' The outward appearance o# the #ace as compared with the sun &Ethe eye o# heavenE' in the previous line" or !' the older sense o# the word in relation to The #our humours In the time o# Shakespeare" EcomplexionE carried both outward and inward meanin$s" as did the word EtemperateE &externally" a weather condition% internally" a balance o# humours' The second meanin$ o# EcomplexionE would communicate that the beloved>s inner" cheer#ul" and temperate disposition is sometimes blotted out like the sun on a cloudy day The #irst meanin$ is more obvious" meanin$ o# a ne$ative chan$e in his outward appearance @1A The word" EuntrimmedE in line ei$ht" can be taken two ways: 3irst" in the sense o# loss o# decoration and #rills" and second" in the sense o# untrimmed sails on a ship In the #irst interpretation" the poem reads that beauti#ul thin$s naturally lose their #anciness over time In the second" it reads that nature is a ship with sails not adHusted to wind chan$es in order to correct course This" in combination with the words Enature>s chan$in$ courseE" creates an oxymoron: the unchan$in$ chan$e o# nature" or the #act that the only thin$ that does not chan$e is chan$e This line in the poem creates a shi#t #rom the mutability o# the #irst ei$ht lines" into the eternity o# the last six Foth chan$e and eternity are then acknowled$ed and challen$ed by the #inal line
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E,w>stE in line ten can also carry two meanin$s equally common at the time: EownestE and EowestE -any readers interpret it as EownestE" as do many Shakespearean $losses &EoweE in Shakespeare>s day" was sometimes used as a synonym #or EownE' =owever" EowestE delivers an interestin$ view on the text It conveys the idea that beauty is somethin$ borrowed #rom nature.that it must be paid back as time pro$resses In this interpretation" E#airE can be a pun on E#areE" or the #are required by nature #or li#e>s Hourney
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,ther scholars

have pointed out that this borrowin$ and lendin$ theme within the poem is true o# both nature and humanity Summer" #or example" is said to have a EleaseE with Eall too short a date E This monetary theme is common in many o# Shakespeare>s sonnets" as it was an everyday theme in his buddin$ capitalistic society @<A