“Sonnet 130” by William Shakespeare

Sonnet Analysis Prewriting

Part I: Before ReadingSonnet 90 by Petrarch (trans. By Morris Bishop)

• She used to let her golden hair fly free.For the wind to toy and tangle and molest;Her eyes were brighter than the radiant west.(Seldom they shine so now.)  I used to see

• Pity look out of those deep eyes on me.("It was false pity," you would now protest.)I had love's tinder heaped within my breast;What wonder that the flame burnt furiously?

• She did not walk in any mortal way,But with angelic progress; when she spoke,Unearthly voices sang in unison.

• She seemed divine among the dreary folkOf earth.  You say she is not so today?Well, though the bow's unbent, the wound bleeds on.

Part I: Before Reading

A. Poet

• William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

• Wrote 154 sonnets• Together, the sonnets tell a story • main characters: a young nobleman, a

lady, a poet, and a rival poet

Part I: Before Reading

B. Structure

• Shakespearean Sonnet• Rhyme scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG

• Rhyming Couplet• Lines 13 and 14• Presents a reversal in thought

Part I: Before Reading

C. Literary Elements

• simile: comparison using like or as

• metaphor: comparison without using like or as

• parody: a work created to mock, comment on, or make fun of another work, author, or style

Part II: During Reading

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3GSwrb9_NQ

Part II: During Reading

B. Second Reading: Paraphrase each line.

1 My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;My mistress' eyes are not like the sun;2 Coral is far more red than her lips' red;Coral is much more red than her lips;3 If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;If snow is white, then her breasts are a brownish gray;4 If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.If hairs are like wires, hers are black and not golden.

Part II: During Reading

5 I have seen roses damask'd, red and white,I have seen damask roses, red and white, 6 But no such roses see I in her cheeks; But I do not see those colors in her cheeks;7 And in some perfumes is there more delightAnd some perfumes give more delight8 Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.Than the horrid breath of my mistress.

Part II: During Reading

9 I love to hear her speak, yet well I knowI love to hear her speak, but I know10 That music hath a far more pleasing sound;That music has a more pleasing sound;11 I grant I never saw a goddess go;I've never seen a goddess walk;12 My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground:But I know that my mistress walks only on the ground:

Part II: During Reading

13And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare

And yet I think my love is as rare

14 As any she belied with false compare.As any woman who has been

misrepresented byridiculous comparisons.

Part II: During Reading

• Lines 1-12• Description of what his love doesn’t

look like

• Lines 13-14• He still loves her as much as women

whose beauty has been misrepresented by ridiculous comparisons are loved

Part II: During Reading

• B. Third Reading: Find examples of literary elements. Provide the line number(s) for the examples. Explain the purpose of the literary elements within the poem.

• Simile• 1-3• 1: eyes (nothing) like the sun• 2: lips (not) as red as coral• 3: breasts as white as snow (if the poem was

not a parody)• Purpose: to show the reader what his mistress

looks like (or doesn’t look like) in order to show that she looks like a normal person with imperfections

Part II: During Reading

• B. Third Reading: Find examples of literary elements. Provide the line number(s) for the examples. Explain the purpose of the literary elements within the poem.

• Metaphor • 4, 7-8, 9-10• 4: her hairs are black wire• 7-8: breath is not perfume• 9-10: voice is music (if the poem was not a

parody)• Purpose: to show the reader what his mistress

looks like (or doesn’t look like) in order to show that she looks like a normal person with imperfections

Part II: During Reading

• B. Third Reading: Find examples of literary elements. Provide the line number(s) for the examples. Explain the purpose of the literary elements within the poem.

• Parody• 1-12• Purpose:

• to mock poets that make ridiculous comparisons about the women they love

• to show that he is still in love even though his woman is a normal person with imperfections

Part III: After Reading

C. Body Paragraphs – Elaboration

• A. The first literary element I selected to convey meaning is simile.

• 1. Example: “My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun”: the purpose is to show that her eyes are not as bright as the sun—they are normal

(line:1)

• 2. Example: “Coral is far more red than her lips’ red”: the purpose is to show that her lips are not as red as coral

• (line: 2)

Group Work• In groups (that I will choose) analyze one of

Shakespeare’s sonnets.• I will assign each group one of four sonnets

on the handout.• Follow the same steps we did together for

Sonnet 130.• Then we will come together as a class, and

each group will share their group’s analysis.