Shakespeare's Sonnet 130 Analysis of Shakespeare's "Sonnet 130"

William Shakespeare was a renowned poet and playwright who wrote 38 plays and more than 154 sonnets. Among these sonnets is Sonnet 130 (My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun) in which he describes the features in his mistress that he admires. This sonnet is interesting due to the nature of the comparisons. While many would use metaphors to boast that their beloved's features are far more beautiful than anything known to man, Shakespeare contends that his beloved's features are nothing like the beautiful things that are found in nature. Through his use of imagery, Shakespeare is able to detail the things that he admires in nature despite the fact that his mistress does not embody any of those qualities.

The sonnet begins with the line "My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun" (Shakespeare, n.d., line 1) which out of context could insinuate that the narrator believes that his mistress' eyes are brighter than the sun, however, as the sonnet continues, it is clear that the narrator intends to establish that his mistress' eyes do not shine as...

The second line of the sonnet, "Coral is far more red than her lips' red" (Shakespeare, n.d., line 2) allows the reader to understand that the first line is not intended to boast that the narrator's mistress' eyes are more beautiful than the sun. This second line helps to establish that the mistress' lips, much like her eyes, are less beaming and bright than rich, red coral. The narrator continues, "If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun" (Shakespeare, n.d., line 3). This comparison establishes that the mistress' complexion is not white, but rather is tanned. Moreover, the narrator continues to describe his mistress, "If her hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head" (Shakespeare, n.d., line 4). Through this analogy, the narrator establishes that his beloved has coarse, dark hair as opposed to fine, light colored hair. The narrator then proceeds to describe his mistress' cheeks and states that they are not as beautiful as the roses that he has seen. He states, "I have seen roses damasked, red and white,/But no such roses see I in her cheeks" (Shakespeare, n.d., lines 5-6). This comparison not only describes…