Close Reading of Sonnet 116 Written by William Shakespeare

2011

“Sonnet 116” written by William Shakespeare is focusing on the strength and true power of love. Love is a feeling that sustainable to alterations, that take place at certain points in life, and love is even stronger than a breakup because separation cannot eliminate feelings. The writer makes use of metaphors expressing love as a feeling of mind not just heart as young readers may see it. To Shakespeare love is an immortal felling that is similar to a mark on a person’s life.

This sonnet has a simple and straightforward meaning. It is short, yet powerful with the perfect use of metaphors. If a partner suddenly becomes aware of impediments of the
The author is making perfect use of this transition by capturing the reader’s attention with a set of metaphors that visually describe strongest natural forces, such as a tempest crashing against single standing, yet withstanding cataclysms, lighthouse.

The author is using the next five lines of his sonnet to describe the value of love and outline the motives that guide this feeling through people’s lives, “Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.” (8); in this line Shakespeare is saying that the value of the feeling cannot be measured, although its sheer extent is known to every human. “Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks” (9), is interpreted as love cannot be manipulated by such aspects as time or physical beauty. It does not change with time and if it is an honest feeling it does not go away. The next few lines underline the value of love through metaphors and the epic conclusion: "Within his bending sickle's compass come: Comes within the compass of his sickle." (10), and "Love does not alter with hours and weeks/But bears it out even to the edge of doom." (11-12). Shakespeare is pointing at immortality of love that it cannot sustain alterations within hours and weeks, but it is carried through life until its end. Shakespeare strengths his point of view with the