Sonnet 116 by William Shakespeare

Introduction

• Poet: William Shakespeare (1564–1616), one of the most famous English writers.
• Sonnet 116: Explores the theme of true love, focusing on its timeless and unchanging nature.

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Themes

• Main Theme: True love is constant and unchanging.
  • It cannot be stopped by life's challenges.
  • Time and difficulties cannot destroy true love; it lasts forever.
• Final Argument:
  • The poet states that if his ideas are wrong, then he has never written anything, and no one has ever truly loved.

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Type and Form

Elizabethan Sonnet:

• 14 lines with three quatrains (4 lines each) and a rhyming couplet (2 lines).
• Rhyme scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG.
• Features: Uses metaphors, personification, and rhetorical devices to describe true love.

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Analysis of the Poem

First Quatrain (Lines 1–4)

"Let me not to the marriage of true minds..."

• Love is not true if it changes when circumstances change or when difficulties arise.
• Key Idea: True love is steadfast and not affected by external factors.

Second Quatrain (Lines 5–8)

"O no! it is an ever-fixed mark..."

• Metaphors:
  1. "Ever-fixed mark": Love is compared to a lighthouse, constant and unshaken during life's storms.
  2. "Star to every wandering bark": Love is like the North Star, guiding lost ships. Its value is immeasurable.
• Key Idea: True love is permanent and provides guidance.

Third Quatrain (Lines 9–12)

"Love's not Time's fool..."

• Personification:
  • Time is portrayed as a destructive force ("sickle") that ages people.
  • True love is not affected by the passing of time.
• Key Idea: Love transcends time and remains constant, even to the end of life.

Rhyming Couplet (Lines 13–14)

"If this be error and upon me prov'd..."

• The poet's bold conclusion: If his view of true love is wrong, then he has never written, and no one has ever loved.

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Tone and Mood

• Tone:
  • Confident: The poet strongly believes in the enduring nature of true love.
  • Persuasive: The poet uses metaphors and bold statements to convince readers.
• Mood: Evokes a sense of assurance and admiration for true love's power.

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Important Vocabulary

• Let me not: Do not allow me.
• Marriage: Union or bond.
• Admit impediments: Allow flaws or obstacles.
• Ever-fixed mark: A permanent, unchanging guide.
• Tempests: Storms or challenges.
• Wand'ring bark: A lost ship.
• Sickle: Tool symbolising Time's destructive power.
• Edge of doom: End of the world or death.
• Writ: Written.

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Key Takeaways

• True love is eternal, unchanging, and unaffected by challenges or time.
• The poet uses metaphors (e.g., lighthouse, North Star) and personification (e.g., Time) to emphasise its power.
• Shakespeare's argument is confident and compelling, ending with a bold declaration of his belief in love's constancy.

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