Quotation analysis on marriage and true minds love

¶ … William Shakespeare has written a number of love sonnets. In general, these tend to be less conventional than the typical romantic poem, where love is praised above all things as the purpose of life and relationships. Instead, Shakespeare tends towards a more realistic sense of loving despite imperfection and despite life's challenges. To some degree, the same is true of Sonnet 116, which begins with the line "Let me not to the marriage of true minds/admit impediments. Love is not love…" When read for its deeper meaning, it becomes clear that Shakespeare is not denying the realities of life together for romantic partners; he admits that there will be difficulty. The central point of the poem, however, is contained in these lines, implying that true love is solid and unchanging, regardless of any changes or challenges that might be found in the environment or conditions surrounding it.

In the first lines of the poem, it becomes clear that Shakespeare is reluctant to "admit" any imperfections to what he considers to be "true love," as implied by the phrase "marriage in true minds." Imperfection, as implicated by the word "impediments" has no place in the marriage that might be found between "true minds." True love has no room for imperfection. Indeed, when two persons who truly love each other are together, they will not love each other less as a result of any changes in their environment or circumstances.

What is also interesting in the first line of the poem is the word "minds." Generally, in romantic poetry, love and romantic connections would be symbolized by hearts. The heart, even today, is also symbolic of emotion, love, and romantic connections. Shakespeare seems to depart from this well-used symbolism. Instead, he uses the word "minds," which has a number of implications. First, Shakespeare appears to consider true love as being something beyond mere feelings or even beyond love itself. Instead, the love that the poet has in mind is also intellectual. It is a connection between intellects, which translates to a connection between two hearts. Indeed, Shakespeare appears to imply that love -- true love -- does not begin in the heart but in the mind, where potential romantic partners make an intellectual, friendship connection before taking it to a more romantic level. The most important connection in true love, for the poet then, appears to be the mind, which is the foundation of a love that is lasting and true. Once the challenges of life and love appear, rationality is what will weather these storms and create a lasting connection between the two romantic partners. Hence, although imperfections will arise, there is no need to admit these within the marriage, since the basic, intellectual connection remains as it was when it first occurred; perfect.

On the same level "admit" may be seen as a significant word, implying more than one meaning. Initially, the word can be regarded in the same sense as "acknowledge," where the poet does not admit that there are any imperfections in this true intellectual connection. However, the word can also be regarded in the sense of "giving access to." The poet is not allowing any imperfection into the love connection that he regards as true and perfect. By implication, those who have true love in their relationship will not allow these imperfections either. The rest of the poem appears to confirm this.