Sonnet 43: When Most I Wink, Then Do Mine Eyes Best See
When most I wink, then do mine eyes best see,
For all the day they view things unrespected;Sonnet 43
But when I sleep, in dreams they look on thee,
And darkly bright, are bright in dark directed.
Then thou, whose shadow shadows doth make bright,
How would thy shadow’s form form happy show
To the clear day with thy much clearer light,
When to unseeing eyes thy shade shines so!
How would, I say, mine eyes be blessed made
By looking on thee in the living day,
When in dead night thy fair imperfect shade
Through heavy sleep on sightless eyes doth stay!
All days are nights to see till I see thee,
And nights bright days when dreams do show thee me.
Summary of Sonnet 43: When Most I Wink, Then Do Mine Eyes Best See
- Popularity of “Sonnet 43”: Written by William Shakespeare, an English playwright, poet, and actor, “Sonnet 43” is a love poem. It shows the upside-down world of the speaker. It also highlights how the speaker’s life has completely changed from the day he welcomed the fair youth into his life. This poem won global appraisal as it paints an accurate picture of someone being lost in the harmony of love.
- “Sonnet 43” As a Representative of Love: The sonnet revolves around the idea of love. It begins with an ironic remark when the speaker says his eyes work best when he sleeps. The speaker informs that he focuses on the less important things during the daytime. However, when he sleeps, his dreamy eyes fall on the fair youth and glitter brightly in the dark. He further states that his shadowy dream image brightens the darkness of the night. He wonders if his appearance illuminates the dark, how bright he might appear during the daylight. He adds the fair youth’s light is even more promising than the daylight. He thinks how beautiful it would be if his eyes see him during the daytime as they get mesmerized seeing him at night. The speaker touches that keynote at the end when he states that every day is dark without his friend and every night is bright as he meets his friend in his dreams.
- Major Themes in “Sonnet 43”: Love, praise, and darkness are significant themes of the poem. This poem not only sings for love but also shows the changes one undergoes when one embraces love. The jaw-dropping beauty of the youth spellbinds the speaker of the poem. It is evident that he gets fewer chances to see and adore his friend’s spectacular beauty during the daytime. Therefore, the night gives him a better opportunity to refresh his eyes while dreaming about the fair youth. He claims that the bright daylight keeps him away from the real treasure. In contrast, the darkness of light knows what rejuvenates him. As soon as he closes his eyes, his dreams lead him to the person he misses the most during his busy hours. Usually, every bright thing loses its attraction when night falls, but the speaker’s world gets illuminated at night because he feels close to his life’s love.
Analysis of Literary Devices Used in Sonnet 43: When Most I Wink, Then Do Mine Eyes Best See
literary devices are useful tools that bring richness and clarity to simple texts. William Shakespeare used many literary devices in the poem to make it sound impressive. The analysis of the devices used here is as follows.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /e/ in “But when I sleep, in dreams they look on thee” and the sound of /o/ in “Then thou, whose shadow shadows doth make bright.”
- Alliteration: It is the occurrence of the initial sounds in two or more successive words, such as the sounds of /th/, /s/ and /f/ in these two lines.
Then thou, whose shadow shadows doth make bright,
How would thy shadow’s form form happy show.
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line such as the sound of /w/ in “Then thou, whose shadow shadows doth make bright” and the sound of /s/ in “When to unseeing eyes thy shade shines so.”
- Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it rolls over to the next line. For example;
“How would thy shadow’s form form happy show
To the clear day with thy much clearer light.”
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. Shakespeare used imagery in this poem such as; “When to unseeing eyes thy shade shines so”, “All days are nights to see till I see thee” and “And darkly bright, are bright in dark directed.”
- Irony: Irony is a figure of speech in which words are used in such a way that their intended meaning is different from the actual meaning of the words. The device is used toward the end of the sonnet, where he says that the image of his friend illuminates his dark nights.
- Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between objects that are different in nature. The poet has used love as an extended metaphor to show how it turns his dark night into something pleasant and captivating.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in Sonnet 43: When Most I Wink, Then Do Mine Eyes Best See
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.
- Couplet: There are two constructive lines of verse in a couplet, usually in the same meter and joined by rhyme. This sonnet ends with a couplet, which usually reveals the central idea of the poem.
- End Rhyme: End Rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. Shakespeare used end rhyme in this poem, such as; “thee/me” “day/stay” and “bright/light.”
- Iambic Pentameter: It is a type of meter having five iambs per line. The poem follows iambic pentameter, such as; “And nights bright days when dreams do show thee me.”
- Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows ABABCDCD in its octave and EFEF GG rhyme scheme in its sestet.
- Sonnet: A sonnet is a fourteen-lined poem usually written in iambic pentameter. This Shakespearean sonnet consists of three quatrains and a couplet.
Quotes to be Used
The following lines are useful when talking about the love experience of a person. It shows how love makes people experience odd things.
“When most I wink, then do mine eyes best see,
For all the day they view things unrespected;
But when I sleep, in dreams they look on thee,
And darkly bright, are bright in dark directed.”