What is sonnet 11 talking about?

Sonnet 11 is part of the first block of 17 sonnets in the Fair Youth sequence (sonnets 1–126) and describes Shakespeare’s call for the preservation of the Youth’s beauty through procreation. Then in further manipulating the Youth to this idea, Shakespeare delves into what about the Fair Youth is worth preserving.

What is the analysis of Milton’s sonnet?

‘When I Consider How My Light Is Spent’ is a sonnet written by the poet John Milton (1608-74). The poem is about the poet’s blindness: he began to go blind in the early 1650s, in his early forties, and this sonnet is his response to his loss of sight and the implications it has for his life.

What is the theme of Milton sonnet?

The theme of the sonnet is the loss and regain of primacy of experience. Milton offers his philosophical view on animism and God.

Is it for fear to wet a widow’s eye?

Is it for fear to wet a widow’s eye, That thou consum’st thy self in single life? Shifts but his place, for still the world enjoys it; The poet asks if it is fear of making someone a widow that causes the young man to refuse to marry.

What is John Milton’s main purpose when he wrote the poem when I consider how my light is spent?

John Milton went blind in 1651 due to glaucoma, though this did not keep him from writing. He wrote this sonnet, “When I consider how my light is spend,” as a meditation on his blindness. Analysis: This is similar to Milton’s fear about whether he was wasting his talent to write poetry.

What does Milton mean by death to hide?

talent
When Milton says that talent is “death to hide,” he is referring to the money in the Biblical story and also to his own “talent,” in the sense of a skill or trade. This “talent” is “lodged” or buried within the speaker just like the money in the story.

What does the poet mean by the expression in this dark world and wide?

Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide, The speaker thinks about how all of his light has been used up (“spent”) before even half his life is over. As a man without light, he now lives in a world that is both “dark and wide.”

What is the mild yoke that the poet refers to?

Lines 10-11 “Who best / bear his mild yoke” means the people who are most obedient to God’s will (which is mild, not difficult). These people are the ones who serve God best. The image of the yoke is also Biblical; a yoke was a kind of harness put on oxen but in Matthew 11:29-30 it is an image for God’s will.

What is the purpose of a sonnet?

Sonnets usually feature two contrasting characters, events, beliefs or emotions. Poets use the sonnet form to examine the tension that exists between the two elements. Several variations of sonnet structure have evolved over the years.

What was the theme of John Milton’s sonnet XIX?

John Milton, a poet who was completely blind in 1651 wrote “Sonnet XIX” in 1652; this sonnet is his response to his loss of sight. The theme of the sonnet is the loss and regain of primacy of experience.

What does light mean in Milton’s poem on his blindness?

In this context, “light” is a metaphor for both the speaker’s life span and his sight. Since this poem is called “On His Blindness” and we know that Milton went blind in 1652, “light” can be read throughout the poem as a conceit for sight. Click to copy annotation URL.

What kind of sonnet is Methought I saw my late?

The poem is an example of a Petrarchan or Italian sonnet, comprising an octave (eight-line section) and sestet (six-line section). The octave is rhymed abbaabba and the sestet is rhymed cdcdcd.

What does John Milton mean by’i saw my late wife’?

So, by way of summary, here’s a paraphrase of Milton’s meaning: Milton tells us that he thought he saw the woman he had lately married [‘espoused’], who was saintly in her goodness and is now in heaven. She appeared to him like Alcestis, the princess in Greek myth who loved her husband (Admetus), and who even died in his place.