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Sonnet 73
Sonnet 73
William Shakespeare
BACKGROU
•
ND ON THE
Born 26 April 1564
•
•
POET
Died 23 April 1616
English playwright, poet, even some acting
• Wrote 154 sonnets
• Sonnet 73 is seen as one of his famous sonnets, related to old
age
That time of year thou mayst in me behold
When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,
Bare ruined choirs where late the sweet birds sang.
In me thou seest the twilight of such day
As after sunset fadeth in the west,
Which by and by black night doth take away,
Death’s second self, that seals up all in rest.
In me thou seest the glowing of such fire
That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,
As the deathbed whereon it must expire,
Consumed with that which it was nourished by.
This thou perceiv’st, which makes thy love more strong,
To love that well which thou must leave ere long.
Poem in simple English
You may see that time of year in me
When few, or no, yellow leaves hang
On those branches that shiver in the cold bare ruins of
the choir stalls where sweet birds sang so recently.
You see, in me, the twilight of a day, after the sun has
set in the west, extinguished by the black night that
imitates Death, which closes everything in rest. You
see in me the glowing embers that are all that is left of
the fire of my youth – the deathbed on which youth
must inevitably die, consumed by the life that once fed
it. This is something you can see, and it gives your love
the strength deeply to love that which you have to lose
soon.
1. TITLE
There were 154
Iambic pentameter
Rhyme scheme – abab cdcd efef gg
The first 2 quatrains introduces the main idea and theme of the poem
At the beginning of the third quatrain, there is a change in poem, where there is almost a ‘twist’
The Couplet summarizes and leaves the reader with a new, concluding image.
3. Vocabulary
4.Line by Line
In the first quatrain the poet anticipates his
Lines 9 - 12:
energy and vitality have well consumed him
and draw him to death. His tone here is
deeply distressful and despondent.
In me thou seest the glowing of such fire
That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,
As the deathbed whereon it must expire,
Consumed with that which it was nourished by. Metaphor = old age – the dying out of a fire
2. The ashes of his youth – the remains of the poet’s youthful passion. Only the
ashes remain when it is burnt out. These youthful desires remain after the end
of his youth.
3. The embers are dying out – the poet’s youth once gave him warmth and
radiance, but now (which is what fed it), his age is coming out.
This will, however, as felt by the poet, lead the
Lines 13 - 14:
friend to love him more as one who is to pass
away soon. There is a change in tone from
depression to consolation.
This thou perceiv’st, which makes thy love more strong,
To love that well which thou must leave ere long.
1. So the friend will perceive in the poet this shadow of death, the mark of decay.
2. And it will enhance the intensity of the friend’s love for the poet – love more
sincerely.
3. The friend will soon be separated from the poet because of death
4. But the poet finds consolation from the thought of his friend’s love. His sense of
loss is thus gone and the mood of depression removed.
5. Themes
REMEMBER TO
1. Aging
PEE
It is something that is natural and inevitable.
It does not mean that it is a negative aspect,
but refer to the metaphors in each quatrain)
Point
Example
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