Comparison and contrasting Valentine and Sonnet 130

Valentine is an intense love poem in where the poet Carol Ann Duffy critisises the conventional symbols of love such as “red roses” or “satin hearts” and compares her perspective of love to “an onion”. By portraying the linguistic technique an extended metaphor, “I give you an onion” Duffy illustrates how normally, lovers choose to represent their love with common gestures, which have lost meaning with time and can therefore be forgotten or lost easily. However, Duffy informs her readers that love should not be taken for granted over time, as some lovers may do, it should be cherished, like an onion “possessive and faithful”, love should have significance especially amongst youngsters today, and once found should not be mistreated.

On the other hand, Shakespeare’s uses a satirical tone throughout “Sonnet 130” to mock the conventions of courtly love during the Elizabethan era, where males would always complement their mistresses (by writing them meaningful love poems) to show appreciation of their love. “ I think my love as rare” highlights Shakespeare’s view of how lovers should be honest with one another and be truthful instead of pretending that their love is perfect by ignoring the faults over a period of time when clearly there are many mistakes which have caused conflict within their relationship. Whether it be insulting a loved one’s physical attributes or their personality Shakespeare emphasizes how love is not true love unless these faults have been identified once they have been identified their love has been strengthened. “But no such roses see I in her cheeks;” 

However Shakespeare compares the persona’s love to a number of negative physical attributes which criticize her physical qualities, “My mistresses eyes are nothing like the sun”. By using extended metaphors in his description Shakespeare rejects the idea of creating an idealistic image of his lover and instead insults her “if snow be white, why then her breasts are dun”. Shakespeare shows that love is not in imagery; love is accepting her as she is faults and all. In conclusion, I think that Shakespeare mocks love in sonnet 130, however Carol Ann Duffy is promising her readers that her love is more original honest and more true, she says ‘I am trying to be truthful’. I believe love is about honesty regardless of the time period.

 M.

'True Love' vs 'Courtly Love'

The origins of courtly love were believed to be in France in the 12th century. In English courts, courtly love wasn't practised until and from the 1300’s to 1500’s. In the Middle Ages, a successful marriage was seen as one that brought wealth and material or economic advantages to a family. Marriages were usually arranged by the parents, this would have been for many reasons; to join ties, expand businesses or perhaps for land or an increased amount of riches. Love and Marriage were rather two separate things, than one combined.

William Shakespeare’s sonnet 130 is one of his most famous, Shakespeare plays on the ‘love’ of the courtiers in Elizabethan time. I wouldn't consider it real love but more an affection that was only considered to be love. Sonnet 130 is a love poem that is the complete opposite of what love poems in the Middle Ages were about. Love poems usually confess the beauty of one’s love, praising the big or small things about their love, confessing to their affection towards the other person. Shakespeare however turns it around with his humour yet seriousness of what love really is. Sonnet 130 has a few themes tied to it, Shakespeare rhymes about love but also truth, women and stereotypes. He expresses that women are not perfect and love is not trying to win them with ‘in comparison’s’ to natural or artificial things. Love is defining beauty as something that will indeed come with flaws, but it is what you make of it, and how you see it that defines oneself, ones love and the one you love. Love does not need conceits or deceits for it to be true love.

Shakespeare’s last line in sonnet 130; ‘as any she belied with false compare’ - his way of showing that his love, which is ‘rare’ is the kind that accepts her as she is, despite physical or non physical flaws. Appearances becomes a major theme here, appearances can be in reference to how true love appears and what it really is. Appearances can also be linked in with the theme of women and stereotypes, of what the ‘perfect’ woman may be. Shakespeare describes the appearances of a woman from the strands of her ‘black wires’ to her skin and ‘breath’. He uses descriptions of nature in comparison to the realness of her actual self; he says ‘my mistresses eyes are nothing like the sun’, the first line of his sonnet, a contradiction to what love poems were usually about. Shakespeare states as he continues on to produce thirteen more lines; ‘the breath that from my mistress reeks’, her breath is not something that smells sweet but the smell reeks. A statement that would leave a woman stunned. Beauty doesn't always remain, sometimes it can fade with age, but if love remains, beauty would too.

In comparison to Shakespeare’s sonnet 130 is his sonnet 116. Sonnet 130 speaks truth the way sonnet 116 does, only Shakespeare’s tone in sonnet 116 is softer. Sonnet 116 is Shakespeare attempting to define love, what love is and what love isn't. Shakespeare describes love to be ‘the star to every wandering bark’- a guiding star to lost ships and ‘the marriage of true minds’, perfect and unchanging.  Shakespeare says ‘love is not love’, ‘which alters when it alteration finds’; so love does not change in response to change, it is ‘an ever fixed mark’. ‘Love’s not Time’s fool’; true love does not change with time, ‘love alters not with its brief hours or weeks’; love endures and lives through time. Love ‘bears it out even to the edge of doom’, so even up to the day of reckoning love is still love. William Shakespeare masterfully includes in this sonnet - ‘whose worth unknown, although his height be taken’, love’s value cannot be calculated although its altitude can be measured.

Sonnet 116 is full of imagery, images of marriage, fixed marks, stars and ships, of time and rosy lips, of cheeks and the day of reckoning. In comparison to sonnet 130, instead of love being compared to nature and colour, Shakespeare uses more real imagery and the passion is more evident in his sonnet 116 than in 130. He ends with ‘if this be error and upon me proved’- if his statements are incorrect and it has been proved so, then ‘I never writ, nor no man ever loved’; he declares that he has not wrote a word and neither has a man ever been in love. The ending of the sonnet is powerful and he leaves with two sentences strong enough, bold enough and challenging enough to let the readers of this poem know that he has spoken the truth.

iH

Considering we've studied one of his books for a while now, i'd just like to wish Mr F.Scott Fitzgerald a happy frickin birthday today! - Never forgotten dude Gatsby will forever live on....

 xoxoxoxooxoxo

YOLO

Porphyrias Lover

It is a Very dramatic love poem. At the start we see that the speaker lives in a cottage, and out from the storm poryphyria comes in to comfort him. She offers her "bare soldier" as a sexual implication. She shows her complete lust for him and that her love is like worship towards him. In the end he wishes to preserve this moment, and does not want anyone to corrupt her and strangles her with her own hair. Which could be seen as her beauty is what killed her. The speaker of "Porphyria's Lover" sounds awfully straightforward. His tone is incredibly reasonable, which makes it even creepier considering he's describing horrific things (such as strangling his girlfriend and cuddling with the corpse). He even makes it sound as though he was doing her a favour – he calls it "her darling one wish" There is a terrible storm commencing, which could show what is about to happen. The poem is very graphic with and dramatic with the affair, murder, and then necrophillia, showing the speakers madness. 

In the Sonnet by Shakespeare it uses emotive language, comparing every feature to amazing objects such as "Your eyes are like the sun". In comparison to Poryphyrias lover, they both talk about how beautiful there partner is, but shakespeare is more pleading to be with this person, and wants to spend his life time with her. However in Porphrias lover it is a much more darker poem of love, saying although she is beautiful, he wants to preserve her beauty, and instead of loving her all the time, he thinks by killing her its a deep sign of his love for her. Really trying to make her life this beautiful jewel. 

The presentation of Love in Christina Rossetti's 'Remember' & William Shakespeare's 'Sonnet 18'

Comparison of Love in Cristina Rossetti’s ‘Remember’ & William Shakespeare’s ‘Sonnet 18’

 

 

‘Sonnet 18’ depicts the simplicity and loveliness of someone’s dear beloved, on the surface, highlighting the attempt to maintain a young man’s beauty for all time by comparing “thee to a summer’s day”. Deeper analysis suggests summer tends to unpleasant extremes of windiness and heat, but their beloved is deemed always as “more lovely and temperate”, anyhow. ‘Remember’ is representative of a romantic love, shared between a woman and a man. It was written during the Victorian era, a time where poetry about love may seem sentimental, but in fact display strong undercurrents of passionate feelings, such as in “hold me by the hand”.

In ‘Sonnet 18’, summer is compared to as “the eye of heaven”, reinforcing the mesmerizing, wondrous nature of it.  Additionally, by describing summer as “eternal”, the speaker promises beauty will always be embodied in the sonnet. The rhyming couplet ending the sonnet proposes further that beauty will not perish, as it’s preserved in the words, “so long as men can breathe”. Both texts have religious references including a mention to “pray” and “silent land” in ‘remember’, and “heaven” in the sonnet. “Silent land” could be symbolic of religious land being either heaven or hell, indicative of the idea of death.  

The idea of love and death in ‘Remember’ are intertwined as if they are inseparable components of life, similar to ‘Sonnet 18’. Rossetti eventually becomes aware of the fact its acceptable for her loved one to be happy, as she gets closer to death, even if she isn't there “better by far you should forget and smile”. The message of the poem declares we must start taking action now, and not wait till death breathes down our necks. Her voice turns kind, reassuring and accepting towards the end of the poem. “Forget and smile” are compassionate, loving words far from commanding and threatening. Likewise, Shakespeare’s words “darling buds of May” in ‘Sonnet 18’ places focus on the sweet, caring voice permeating the verse.

Moreover, both texts display use of imagery to do with death. Line 11 of the sonnet beginning with “Nor shall death brag” underlines the fact that not everything should change even if death is a result, which is also the message in Rossetti’s ‘Remember’ as instead of grieving, “do not grieve”, Rossetti has realized it’s better for her lover to enjoy life with her in the back of mind, remembered, than to live his life in sorrow and never experience the beauty of life.

Love is characterized as having the potential of being dangerous in ‘Sonnet 18’, suggested in “rough winds” highlighting summer days can end with an extreme change in motion, and are not “lovely” all of the time. A summer’s day is fleeting and “nature’s changing course” is around the corner, placing emphasis on how autumn comes after. In resemblance, Rossetti too indicates how the nature of the love she’s experienced isn't perfect, as the poem is seen as representative of the constant struggles intertwined with the relentless frivolities she’s encountered; a mirror image of events in her life. Her tone remains quite pessimistic, as she acts as if she’ll die any day.

A form of punctuation ends every line in the sonnet, and this particular feature itself differentiates it from the usual form of a sonnet, heavy with alliteration and assonance. Similarly, Rossetti uses some variety in her punctuation, although mostly commas and colons spread through the poem. Shakespeare and Rossetti could have done this purposely to exaggerate the darkness and corruption they could have once faced, but the fact they still have prevailed on in their lives and see the good instead of dwelling on some bad moments.

The heart and soul appear like different entities, according to Rossetti. They have opposite intentions “nor I half turn to go yet turning stay”, implying the heart doesn't want to leave world nor leave beloved behind, yet it will have to due to the force of nature. The soul, on the other hand, must go where it belongs. Rossetti mentions of the future in line 6, “you tell me of our future that you plann’d”, proposing that if she dies, then there is no future. However, her acceptance of the fact that even though she will die that doesn't mean he should live in sorrow comes later in the poem in lines 9-10, “yet if you forget me for a while and afterwards remember, do not grieve”. She just wants her lover to remember their love and fun times they shared ultimately. In comparison, ‘Sonnet 18’ is suggestive throughout that the beauty of the man will be everlasting. There’s an important theme of power voiced by the speaker to defy time and last forever, carrying beauty to future generations. 

M Chacko

In the poem Ghost, Huntington is portraying a shy lover who is infatuated with another. This love grows gradually, allowing readers to see the stages of her lust and how her fondness grows for him over time. This evokes a one-sided romance as Huntington describes her as a ‘shape moving rapidly, nervous’ around the lover, as she is too afraid to express her true feelings. This imagery helps readers develop an understanding of her reserved nature as she is reluctant and ‘nervous’ to confront the lover. By doing this, Huntington infers a type of unrequited love as he is not yet to acknowledge her, allowing readers to develop empathy for her lonesome position.

Likewise, in Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18, flattery and lust is projected as he questions ‘Shall I compare thee to a summer day?’. This flattery is extended as he compares his lover to an enlightening, natural force – the sun. This comparison magnify's the love as Shakespeare refers to ‘thee’ as the ‘summer’, informing readers he is immersed in her gleaming ‘summer’ - like nature. Also, by involving a rhetorical question that is directed straight to ‘thee’, Shakespeare is presented as courageous as he presents his unconditional charm straight to her. Although, as the display of love was a poem, it is arguable that he may have also been too afraid to tell her. This is similar to Ghost, as both lovers seem to apprehensive to verbally confront their lover, inferring love as something not to be openly forced, but for it to be something to progress naturally over time.

Furthermore, Huntington expresses how the lover grows to become more at ease as time progresses as she makes herself ‘present, though never distinct’. By doing this, Huntington is highlighting how loves forces are drawing her closer despite her shy nature. This infers how powerful love can be, as she is keen to be acknowledged by him. However, the lovers confidence is short-lived as she fails to make herself ‘distinct’ enough for him to realise. This urges readers to feel sympathetic for her, as shes shown as powerless to overcome her timid nature. This could be a reflection of the modernist era, in which women were granted the ‘worthy’ status of a housewife. The inequality of power and authority between men and women may have influenced Huntington’s presentation of the lover being captivated in a  ‘nervous’ persona.

In contrast, Shakespeare's portrayal of his admiration for his love may have been due to the 1500’s era of courtly love. The strong nature of his sonnet would have been to merely impress and allure his lover. Shakespeare communicates this through his irregular rhyme scheme, as the ‘eye of heaven shines’ when ‘every fair from fair sometime declines’. This educates readers of his lovers superiority, as he infers even though everything beautiful will ‘decline’ she will not in his ‘eyes’. By describing her in this way, Shakespeare educates readers of her superiority and how eternal his love is for her. Moreover,  the rhyme scheme throughout the sonnet forms a sense of rhythm and progression in his lust. This shows how at ease Shakespeare feels when describing her, making the sonnet appear more poetic and sincere when its received. 

Similarly, Huntington expresses a positive progression in love as it concludes with ‘of a dream where I finally tell you my name’. This makes readers feel relieved as she has reached her ‘dream’. By using the term ‘dream’, Shakespeare involves connotations of her finally reaching her fantasy. This also infers that the poem is a reflection of how she used to be, as she now she has achieved something she once only ‘dreamed’ of, informing readers she is content. This produces a more hopeful ending, as she is able to be fulfilled by love and solidify it with her ‘name’.

In addition, the use of inclusive language, as she reveals her ‘name’ in the final couplet makes the poem seem more personal and her relationship is something secretive to reveal to readers. This may be a comment on love shouldn't be something to boast about, but purely between two people. Also, by giving him her ‘name’, this implies that the lovers are possibly united and married, which makes love seem as something worth to wait for and not to be forced.Equally, Shakespeare's love seems to be something to be endured as he expresses that as ‘long as men can breathe or eyes can see, so long lives this, and this gives life to thee’. This clever connection depicts that as his ‘life’ ‘long’ love will remain, as ‘men’ are still able to ‘breathe’. This puts forth the idea that his love is boundless, as his poetry will never transpire. This is supported by the conclusion of a rhyming couplet, describing that as far as his ‘eyes can see’, they will ‘give life to thee’. The flow in the conclusion develops an endless, ever-lasting love, re-affirming his first lustful thoughts. From this, readers can feel confident that Shakespeare is revealing his true feelings as they are consistent throughout, helping end the poem with a sincere message.

Overall, both the poems evoke similar underlying messages. Huntington is keen to portray how time is a vital factor when finding genuine love. As in Ghost, the lover discovers that through time, true love will conquer all falsity and superficial love. Comparably, Shakespeare's persistent sonnet is one to not ignore. The passionate, flattering comparisons educate readers of the extent of his love. This could in fact be a contrast, as in stead of waiting or a natural progression, Shakespeare sees love as something to accomplish and strive upon.

- Alsy! :)

The representation of love in After Love, by Randy Hurst and Sonnet 23 by William Shakespeare

The poem After Love holds an ambiguous tone as Hurst allows the reader to interpret the poem the way they want to.

The poem is about a couple who have split up and through the poem Hurst allows us to follow him through his journey of getting over his loved one…

All these splintered memories
Are razor shards of hope
Little brittle fragments of
Sugar sweet iced dope

Our lies are dreams we manifest
While shuffling through the clouds
The futile leaden steps we crave
Just barely sweep the ground

We stumble lurched and lonely
In frantic fixed desire
In glass our flowers frozen still
Were once a flaming pyre

On the shell of the interior
The sole sensation, tense
Firing nerves and buzzing skin
Indict our common sense

These walls we have assembled
Our prison and our home
Are all that we resemble
In step and dream and poem

Randy begins by presenting his poem with quite sharp and blunt words in the first stanza. “Splintered, razor, brittle.’ All of these give the reader the image of harshness and this could immediately gives the reader the idea of pain as he refers to memories. The memories he refers to and the way in which he refers to them highlights that the lover in his life has left and so this is post-break up.

As the poem goes on we see how Hurst approaches dealing with a break up. “lies are dreams we manifest.” This gives us the impression that their lies are things they are trying to make happen as they were both unhappy being in the relationship. “Shuffling through the clouds” makes the reader think of the effects the breakup has had on both of the individuals as maybe now they are left to think on their own and this has become difficult because before the decisions they made were made together. This all shows how a split between loved ones can affect individuals and Hurst’s message is becoming clearer as he emphasizes how different things are when they’re not together.

The third stanza stands out to be quite different from the rest. This, to me is one of the most ambiguous verses within the poem as there is no direct image of what they are talking about. My own interpretation lead to Hurst reminiscing of the individuals in the poems wedding. “in glass our flowers frozen still,” the fact that the flowers are frozen still, gives the idea of their wedding being a moment in time that they want to last forever. Therefore the flowers symbolize that special momentous day for the pair in the poem and nothing can essentially take that memory away regardless no matter how hard they try. The emotions described in the third stanza also signify an exhilarating  moment for the couple at the time, “tense…buzzing skin.” Hurst is able to recollect these feelings and bring them back to him as if they are reliving the moment once again. Personally I think he is stating that regardless of what happens there will be memories and moments within their relationship that neither of them will ever forget.

The last stanza enforces reality into the poem. Throughout the poem we gather that the poem is a reflection of a relationship that has passed. All the memories which will forever last are revisited and Hurst describes just how love can be. However in the last stanza we realize that despite there being memories kept, the couples was unhappy “our prison and our home.” Hurst, referring to their home as a prison is a clever technique in which the reader can understand that they pair were unhappy. A prison is something associated with anger, hatred and isolation, and if the couple had one another and felt these feelings, it’s clear that the split was needed. 

As well as giving us an inkling into what drove them apart, the last two lines of the stanza stand strong and are a good way to end the poem “Are all that we resemble, In step and dream and poem.” This leaves us as the reader with a lasting impression of their relationship and the poem as a whole. We gather that despite the pair being apart maybe Hurst still holds onto the love that they had. What is also interesting is that Hurst implies that the poem is another memory of their relationship and this could lead us onto think that the purpose of the poem is to give life to a relationship which has ended, and unlike the relationship the poem will last forever.   To be totally honest, i'm not actually sure if this is Randy Hurst, it was the first image that came up on Google and i thought i'd take a gamble.

Another poet who writes of love is the famous William Shakespeare. I decided to pick a Sonnet randomly and I ended up with Sonnet 23 which, persomally to me has an intricate view on love.

As an unperfect actor on the stage,

Who with his fear is put beside his part,

Or some fierce thing replete with too much rage,

Whose strength's abundance weakens his own heart;

So I, for fear of trust, forget to say

The perfect ceremony of love's rite,

And in mine own love's strength seem to decay,

O'ercharged with burthen of mine own love's might.

O! let my looks be then the eloquence

And dumb presagers of my speaking breast,

Who plead for love, and look for recompense,

More than that tongue that more hath more express'd.

O! learn to read what silent love hath writ:

To hear with eyes belongs to love's fine wit.

Considering this poem was written in Shakespearean times it took me about half an hour to actually understand what was going on in the poem, but when I eventually got to grips with it all I thought it was a perfect poem to compare ‘After Love’ with.

One immediate and clear difference between the two poems is that Sonnet 23, surprisingly is a sonnet! Therefore it has 14 lines. This sonnet however, is one stanza long with no breaks.

Now after doing a bit of research on the Sonnet it was interesting to find out that is not actually addressed to a woman, it is in fact addressed to a lovely boy. The poem was written by Shakespeare to show the awkwardness he himself feels towards the boy. This awkwardness is due to depth of emotion that the speaker has for the young man. The speaker's nervousness prevents him from expressing himself with his usual way while in the young man's presence. The speaker begs the young man to read the words that he has written, so that the young man will know how the speaker feels about him. 

Immediately we see a difference in the presentation of love between the two poems. Firstly. Hurst’s poem essentially talks about the pain that love brings to individuals in a relationship. The poem is realistic in the way that it reminds the audience that nothing lasts forever, however, you can always hold onto memories and these can never be taken away or destroyed if the strong love you have for someone is still there regardless of whether you are together or not. Shakespeare on the other hand represents love as a shy emotion. He speaks of the poet being nervous to talk to the boy and that when around the young man, he can’t be himself. The sonnet is applicable to life today as we all know the feeling of butterflies and legs like jelly!

Most of Sonnet 23 compares the poet's role as a lover to an actor's timidity onstage.

The first two lines of the sonnet, "As an unperfect actor on the stage… Who with his fear is put besides his part," are linked with the first two lines of the second part of the sonnet, "So I, for fear of trust, forget to say… The perfect ceremony of love's rite."

The Sonnets final couplet begins with "O," which is commonly used to exaggerate a preceding emotion. The speaker in the poem once again begs the young man to read what his silent love has written. The poet also introduces a paradox: love allows for one sense (sight) to do the work of another sense (hearing).

Overall, we can see that the two poems I chose to compare are different in several ways. If I had to choose, I would say the representation of love in Shakespeare’s sonnet is better and well portrayed, as it is written in a way that connects the reader with the poem. Saying that, both poems tackle issues which are frequent in love and both poets are able to present their feelings into their poem successfully.

The theme of a forbidden love is dominant in Shakespeare’s sonnet as their love could be considered off-limits and offensive; either because they are from different social classes or because they are both men. Whereas Hurst deals with the issue of broken love, as the pair are no longer together. 

  And we all know who this spice is... its Mr William Shakespeare himself! 

Thanks for reading....peace out, Despicable Lea