Sonnet 116 Flashcards
Who was it by?
William Shakespeare
What era was it wrote in?
Elizabethan
What is the context of the poem?
- Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, 1582 and she was 8 years older than him.
- Their marriage was described as a ‘shotgun’ marriage, due to a pregnancy.
- Claimed they married for love, yet this can be argued against. Perhaps he has an idolized view of love because he hasn’t truly experienced it.
What is the rhyme scheme and what does it represent?
- Alternating rhyme scheme (typical of a Shakespearean sonnet).
- Regular, so shows security of love.
What kind of love is presented through Sonnet 116?
Enduring love.
What does ‘ever fixed mark’ represent?
That it’s enduring and permanent. It’s eternal and cannot be defied.
How can religion be linked into the poem?
‘edge of doom’ ‘ never shaken’, which highlights how the love with last until judgement day.
What does the repetitive connotations to time highlight?
How love goes beyond time. Time will not cause love to diminish, it will remain in the same state.
What does the cynical enjambment of ‘love is not love’ highlight?
It speeds up the pace for the reader before the volta, causing the tension and passion to rise.
Where is the volta?
‘That looks on tempests’. The intensity increases as it turns to love’s defiance of Mother nature.
How could this be linked to Gatsby?
Gatsby’s idolized view of the love with Daisy. It wouldn’t actually be as perfect as he believes with Daisy, as she doesn’t truly love him. Overly optimistic view of love, both from Shakespeare and Gatsby.
What poem could this be linked to?
The scrutiny- they could contrast as the scrutiny is a very imperfect and corrupted view of love. It could sort of highlight Shakespeare’s reality.
