Analysis of 'Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day'

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It is generally believed that this sonnet is dedicated to the Earl of Southampton. William Shakespeare's friend is immortalized in this sonnet. The sonnet compares the perfection of his friend with the imperfections of a summer's day. The poem is a typical Shakespearean sonnet. It consists of 14 lines: three quatrains and one rhyming couplet. First Quatrain When Shakespeare speaks of a summer's day, he refers to it literally and figuratively. Literally, it is a warm long day. Figuratively, it is a time in a person's life. His patron was in the summer of his life, lovelier and more temperate than a literal day. By saying that his patron is 'more lovely', he is saying that he is kind and loving. By saying he is 'more temperate', he means that his friend is gentle and unchanging. Shakespeare refers to the imperfections of a summer's day. He speaks of 'rough winds' and 'darling buds'. Obviously, we need to look at the summer of the northern hemisphere. Usually it is a short season that can become unbearably hot. Clear images of summer are seen in words like 'lease' and 'date'. While the words reminds us of a contract by which a person allows another to use his property for a certain time, we can clearly see the poet is comparing summer to having a contract and the period for which the property is leased is far too short. This gives us an indication of how the poet feels: like summer, his patron's life was also far too short. Second Quatrain The poet now describes the sun, the "eye of the heaven" with its "golden complexion". It is dazzling and brilliant. It provides light and heat, but on a cloudy day, the sun is dimmed, and its light and heat cannot penetrate through the clouds. His friend is not like that. Death will not affect the effect he had on the poet, like clouds affect the sun's effect on a summer's day. Time in the poem is described as

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