Sonnet 125

Sonnet 125

By William Shakespeare

Were’t aught to me I bore the canopy,
With my extern the outward honouring,
Or laid great bases for eternity,
Which proves more short than waste or ruining;
Have I not seen dwellers on form and favour
Lose all, and more, by paying too much rent,
For compound sweet forgoing simple savour,
Pitiful thrivers, in their gazing spent?
No;—let me be obsequious in thy heart,
And take thou my oblation, poor but free,
Which is not mix’d with seconds, knows no art,
But mutual render, only me for thee.
Hence, thou suborn’d informer! a true soul,
When most impeach’d, stands least in thy control.

Summary of Sonnet 125

  • Popularity of “Sonnet 125”: Written by William Shakespeare, this beautiful sonnet numbered 125 also occurs in the Fair Youth sonnet sequence. This sonnet appeared during the same time when other sonnets of the same sequence appeared, but the exact date of its composition is yet unknown. It seems that it appeared with other sonnets in 1609. The popularity of the sonnet lies in the expression of love.
  • “Sonnet 125” As a Representative of Love: The poet, who happens to be the speaker of the sonnet, states that it would not mean anything to him if he were to carry the royal canopy or dignify his presence or lay the foundation of some monument that is to stay forever or go to ruination. Then the poet inquires further through a rhetorical question that he has seen those who live for beauty and support and lose everything through their extravagant habits. There are also those who spend too much looking at beauty. However, the poet wants to be the obedient friend of his fair youth, saying that he wants to offer him everything free and pure that is not in control of such people implying that the slanderer cannot mar his reputation of being a pure soul and that his integrity would stay intact.
  • Major Themes in “Sonnet 125”: Love, materialism, and purity of soul are major themes of this sonnet. Although the poet uses a rhetorical question that comes by the end of the octave, he uses it to alert the fair youth that he wants him to tell that he could be like those who are extravagant, but actually he is not materialistic and does not want to erect monuments that last forever. He rather wants to be obedient to his friend and sincere to him, which shows the purity of his soul. This expression of love about the purity of the soul shows the sincerity of the speaker toward the youth.

Analysis of Literary Devices Used in Sonnet 125

William Shakespeare used various literary devices to enhance the intended impact of his poem. Some of the major literary devices are analyzed below.

  1. Alliteration: It means to use initial consonants in successive words. The poem shows the use of consonant sounds, such as /s/ in “simple savour.”
  2. Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /i/ in “Or laid great bases for eternity” and the sound of /a/ and /o/ in “Which proves more short than waste or ruining.”
  3. Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /r/ and /t/ in “Which proves more short than waste or ruining” and the sound of /n/ and /f/ in “Have I not seen dwellers on form and favor.”
  4. Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. William Shakespeare used imagery in this poem, such as “Lose all, and more, by paying too much rent”, “For compound sweet forgoing simple savour” and “And take thou my oblation, poor but free”
  5. Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between objects different in nature. The poet used the metaphor of “great bases for eternity” to refer to achievements to last forever.
  6. Personification: It means to attribute human emotions to inanimate objects. The poet used the personification of “informers,” as if they were actual individuals.
  7. Rhetorical Question: It means to show or use a question not to elicit an answer but to tress upon the main theme. The poem shows the use of a rhetorical question, such as “For compound sweet forgoing simple savour,/Pitiful thrivers, in their gazing spent?
  8. Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from the literal meanings. The poem shows symbols such as canopy, form and favor, and obsequiousness to show the love of the poet.

Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in Sonnet 125

Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is an analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.

  1. Diction: It means the type of language. The poem shows good use of formal, poetic, and melodic diction.
  2. End Rhyme: It means to use verses having matching end words. William Shakespeare shows the use of end rhyme such as caopy/eternity and honoring/ruining.
  3. Quatrain: It is a Persian stanza having four verses. The poem shows the use of a quatrain such as the first stanza.
  4. Rhyme Scheme: This poem shows the rhyme scheme of ABABCDCD in its octave and EFEFGG in its sestet.
  5. Sonnet: This is a fourteen-lined poem called the sonnet
  6. Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are two stanzas; the first octave comprises eight verses, and the second sestet comprises six verses, as shown in Rhyme Scheme.
  7. Tone: It means the voice of the text. The poem shows a contemplative and reflective tone.

Quotes to be Used

The following lines are useful to quote when showing extreme love for someone.

Which is not mix’d with seconds, knows no art,
But mutual render, only me for thee.
Hence, thou suborn’d informer! a true soul,
When most impeach’d, stands least in thy control.