Sonnet 116: Let Me Not To The Marriage Of True Minds

Question 1

Structure and form

Answer 1

• sonnet - 14 lines
• iambic pentameter: mirrors a heartbeat
• rhyme scheme: ABABA CDCD EFEF GG
• final rhyming couplet: summarises or contradicts the main argument - here it reinforces his belief in loves truth

Question 2

Themes

Answer 2

• true love vs. False love: genuine love is constant; it does not fade, alter or depend on beauty or time
• times and morality: time affects the physical body, but not the soul or true love
• faith and certainty: Shakespeare speaks with absolute conviction and logic - almost like a lawyer presenting a case

Question 3

Context

Answer 3

• written during the renaissance, where idealised love and courtly poetry were highly popular
• reflects Shakespeare’s deep understanding of human emotion, but also his mastery of poetic form and rhetoric

Question 4

Language and techniques

Answer 4

• opening line: formal, legal language reflects seriousness and sincerity
• ‘’love is not love/ which alters when it alteration finds’’ - paradox: Shakespeare explores the contradictions of false love - if love changes, it isn’t truly love. Repetition of ‘’love’’ makes the emotion the centre of the poem
• ‘’love alters not with his brief hours and weeks’’- continues the idea that love transcends time. Temporary imagery in ‘’hours and weeks’’ - nothing compared to eternal love
• personification: ‘’Love’s not Time’s fool’’ - love is not a plaything or servant of time - true love endures
• metaphor: ‘’o no! It is an ever fixed mark’’ - compares love to the North Star. Constant reliable and guiding

Question 5

Summary of poem

Answer 5

• Shakespeare’s attempt to define true love
• love doesn’t change with time or circumstance
• if this definition of love is wrong, Shakespeare concludes then non has ever truly loved or been loved