Shakespeare

Xavier Harris
English IV AP-2
K.Campbell
15 Dec. 2009
Sonnet 30
In the sonnet Shakespeare explains about his character’s past and describes the fact that he wasted the best years of his life. Our character in the story says that he lost many of his love ones. We can really tell that the character is very emotional.
As the sonnet starts to open our character in the story is sitting in the park all alone in silent thought. At this point you can already tell the character is sitting alone in some sort of court probably the weather is very cloudy or some kind of depressing weather of some sort. Then in line two of the sonnet the court imagery is continued with “summon up”.
Line two, summon up- as in summoning a witness. But there is also the meaning of summoning up spirits, as if remembrances of past were spirits which could be called back from the grave. Remembrance of things past- the phrase occurs in the bible also.
Line three, I sigh the lack of many a thing sought, I sigh the lack of= in sigh for the absence of, for the fact that I never attained…
Line four, And with old woes new wail my dear time’s waste. Shakespeare uses the new/old contrast in two other so the freshness of his grief is contrasted with the age of his sorrows, which, to heighten his sense of despair, he resurrects. My dear time’s waste = the squandering of my precious time. Waste also conveys the meaning of destruction and barrenness.
Line five, and then can I drown an eye, unused to flow. Then can I weep, from an eye which does not often shed tears. Drowning one’s eyes suggests copious weeping.
Line six, for precious friends hid in death’s dateless night. Dateless in this sonnet probably means without end.
Line seven, and weep afresh love’s long since cancelled woe, and weep once more over the pain of one or more love affairs, though I have long since written off the sorrow associated with them.
Line eight, and moan the expense of many a vanished sight, the...