Comparing the Love Sonnets of Shakespeare

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.Shakespeare’s Love Sonnets Readers would find, that in comparing and contrasting two of William Shakespeare’s famous 1609 sonnets: “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day” and “My Mistress’ Eyes Are Nothing Like The Sun,” one would find that both sonnets express his sincere affections in a delightful manner most readers would enjoy; however, most readers would find “My Mistress’ Eyes Are Nothing Like The Sun” more enjoyable. Both Shakespearean sonnets allude to the theme of love and beauty through use of metaphors to nature. Shakespeare’s conventional Shakespearean sonnet “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day” is an ode, which uses a sincere tone which alludes to the mortality of his subjects’ beauty. In contrast, another sonnet of his, “My Mistress’ Eyes Are Nothing Like the Sun” is another ode, of which uses a mocking tone, parodying the conventional style of love sonnets. In this sonnet, he describes his mistress as flawed, but in the last lines of the sonnet, he declares that he loves her regardless of these flaws. One reason readers would find “My Mistress’ Eyes Are Nothing Like The Sun” more enjoyable than “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day” is through it unusual tone, which appeals to readers due to its odd, comical manner. Shakespeare uses a demeaning, mocking tone in “My Mistress’ Eyes Are Nothing Like The Sun” for instance, when he depicts her cheeks to be dull and colorless in: “I have seen roses damasked red and white But no such roses see I in her cheeks” (5-6) This style of tone is unusual for love sonnets considering most poets tend to embellish their subjects’ beauty; to which he adds at the end of his sonnet, “belied with false compare” (14) ridiculing those poets that lie or exaggerate their subjects’ appearance. Some readers may find this interesting seeing how in “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day” he describes his subjects’
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