Sonnet 71 Figurative Language

William Shakespeare’s sonnets are closely related in the idea that the theme as well as the subject of the poem remain consistent. A distinctive factor among Shakespeare’s sonnets however, is that they each contain somewhat varying tones. Two specific sonnets that prove this are “Sonnet 71” and “Sonnet 73” respectively. Both sonnets refer to the same subject, what is seemingly the speaker of the poem’s lover or mistress. The theme of death and dying are ones which remain present throughout each text. As a result, this theme further contributes to the theme of undying love and everlasting beauty. “Sonnet 71” possesses a tone of a morbid nature while “Sonnet 73” replays one which is more bittersweet. Indeed, the dissimilarity in tones between these two sonnets and their contribution to undying love and everlasting beauty is largely connected to Shakespeare’s diction, use of figurative language, and imagery. Firstly, word choice primarily distinguishes whether the sonnets will have a positive or negative tone. The

At first, the world is characterized as “vile” (4), but as the poem progresses, it is “the wise world” (13). However, the speaker is merely being ironic and it is likely that in actuality, he is saying the world is malicious. The following line, “and mock you with me after I am gone” (14) implies that the world will be using the relationship between the two to mock the subject after the speaker is dead. Although both sonnets are ones which contain an elegiac mood, they differ in regards to enduring love. In “Sonnet 71”, Shakespeare argues that love will end as soon as death approaches which evidently shakes the foundation of the theme of love. However, in “Sonnet 73”, Shakespeare argument is contrary to the first one, “thy love more strong” (14) proves this since he is making the claim that the subject’s lover for the speaker will only grow after the subject