Sonnet 119 is one of
154 sonnets written by the English playwright and poet
William Shakespeare. It's a member of the
Fair Youth sequence, in which the poet expresses his love towards a young man.
Structure
Sonnet 119 is an English or Shakespearean
sonnet
A sonnet is a poetic form that originated in the poetry composed at the Court of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II in the Sicilian city of Palermo. The 13th-century poet and notary Giacomo da Lentini is credited with the sonnet's invention, ...
. The English sonnet has three
quatrain
A quatrain is a type of stanza, or a complete poem, consisting of four lines.
Existing in a variety of forms, the quatrain appears in poems from the poetic traditions of various ancient civilizations including Persia, Ancient India, Ancient Greec ...
s, followed by a final rhyming
couplet
A couplet is a pair of successive lines of metre in poetry. A couplet usually consists of two successive lines that rhyme and have the same metre. A couplet may be formal (closed) or run-on (open). In a formal (or closed) couplet, each of the ...
. It follows the typical
rhyme scheme of the form ABAB CDCD EFEF GG and is composed in
iambic pentameter, a type of poetic
metre based on five pairs of metrically weak/strong syllabic positions. The 3rd line exemplifies a regular iambic pentameter:
× /× / × / × / × /
Applying fears to hopes and hopes to fears, (119.3)
An unusual number of lines (5, 6, 7, 8, 10, and 12) feature a final extrametrical syllable or ''feminine ending'', as for example:
/ × × / / × × / × / (×)
How have mine eyes out of their spheres been fitted, (119.7)
:/ = ''ictus'', a metrically strong syllabic position. × = ''nonictus''. (×) = extrametrical syllable.
Line 7 (above) also features an initial reversal, and potentially a mid-line reversal. Other potential initial reversals occur in lines 6, 8, and 13, while potential mid-line reversals occur in lines 9 and 11.
The meter demands that line 6's "blessèd" is pronounced as two syllables.
Interpretations
*
Richard Hammond
Richard Mark Hammond (born 19 December 1969) is an English journalist, television presenter, mechanic, and writer. He is best known for co-hosting the BBC Two motoring programme ''Top Gear'' from 2002 until 2015 with Jeremy Clarkson and Jame ...
, for the 2002
compilation album
A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...
, ''
When Love Speaks'' (
EMI)
Notes
References
External links
Analysis of the sonnet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sonnet 119
British poems
Sonnets by William Shakespeare