Shakespeare Sonnet 71 Mood

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In the first quatrain of "Sonnet 71," Shakespeare uses metaphors, occasional breaks from iambic pentameter, and a dark tone to convey that his presumable death, or impending doom should not be looked upon with grief, but should leave the conscience of his ”friend” for their mutual benefit. For example, Shakespeare ironically compares death and passing to a “surly sullen bell” that will “Give warning to the world that I am fled / From this vile world” to convey how death is not always evil (Shakespeare 545: 2-3). Although sullen bells normally signal the death of someone from a community, Shakespeare uses the bells as a metaphor to signal his escape from a hostile world. In this case, the surly bells do not only signify his physical death, but