Valentine’s Day, circa 496AD – a treasured day for some and a dreaded day for others. Now, I know you come to this blog for literature not love advice, but for the festivities’ sake I thought it would be fitting to look at two sonnets about love and relationships that I believe to be vastly relevant today, despite being written hundreds of years ago. The sonnet for those who love Valentine’s day is My Mistress’ Eyes are Nothing Like The Sun (Sonnet 130) by William Shakespeare, and the sonnet for my fellow Valentine’s Day killjoys is There’s No Help, Come Let Us Kiss and Part (Sonnet 61) by Michael Drayton, so don’t click away just yet! At this time of the year, I always find myself pondering whether our modern attitudes towards love are still derived from that of our post-medieval ancestors. Think back some five-hundred years ago to when love was expressed in sonnet form, and then bring yourself back to the cheesy Hallmark cards of the now. Do you think the sentiment is the same? Perhaps we’ve come to the realisation that not everyone can write sonnets as thought-provoking as Shakespeare’s and Drayton’s. Let’s take a closer look. Roses are red, violets are blue, sonnets sound nicer, but this works too. .When it comes to sonnets with the underlying theme of love such as Shakespeare’s Sonnet 130, I believe they are much like a nicely phrased Valentines card. In Sonnet 130 [click here to read the sonnet if you haven’t already], the speaker explores the idea that he can love a woman (the subject) even if she doesn’t meet the societal expectations of the time. Although at a first glance, the speaker’s descriptions of his mistress’ physical features seem harsh, he redeemed it for me with the following lines, which stood out to me as the turning point of the sonnet: I grant I never saw a goddess go, My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground; (lines 11-12) Shakespeare’s “smooth talk” right here shows the generalised theme of romance throughout the sonnet, which I believe is heavily prominent in our society today. All you need to do is take a glance at the romance section of Spotify, Goodreads or Netflix to see just how much everyone still thinks about love nowadays. I believe Sonnet 130 was about far more than just love though. Through lines such as “Coral is far more red than her lips' red” (line 2), I noticed that the speaker was challenging both beauty standards of the time – which were prevalent back then just like they are today – and other poets of his time who used these flawless descriptions of their subjects. This reminded me of the media, with its images of models like the Victoria's Secret Angels who are covered in makeup and digitally enhanced until they appear conventionally-perfect. Just think about the societal pressures being placed on young women to this day, and the self-esteem issues that stem from these pressures. In this way, I believe the media does indeed do the exact same thing as the other poets of Shakespeare’s time by putting actresses and models on unreachable pedestals. For now, this means Shakespeare's words are still relevant, but I hope that a day will soon come where they won't be anymore. "I do" until I don't. Not all love lasts forever, even if the wedding vows suggest that it will, but sometimes it may dwindle. I found that this is the exact message Drayton’s Sonnet 61 [click here to read the sonnet if you haven’t already] portrays regarding the theme of breakups, and those dreaded regretful thoughts following them. I'd even argue that this sonnet is the early modern embodiment of hoping that your ex-partner will leave you a drunken voicemail saying they still love you. The speaker begins with an assertion of his happiness and peace with the fact that the relationship is over, as seen in the lines: And I am glad, yea glad with all my heart, That thus so cleanly I myself can free. Shake hands for ever, cancel all our vows, (lines 3-5) Despite how certain the speaker sounded about the breakup, I think the couplet at the end of the sonnet abruptly erases all of this certainty: Now, if thou wouldst, when all have given him over, From death to life thou might’st him yet recover! (lines 13-14) For me, this part of the sonnet represents the speakers hope that the love between the speaker and the subject could be rekindled. Afterthoughts like these at the end of a relationship are something that many people still have these days. All I had to do was look into the nearly endless expanse of breakup songs to find evidence that this still occurs. Take Taylor Swift’s iconic “We Are Never Getting Back Together” [click here to listen to the song], where Swift somewhat paraphrases lines 13-14 with the lyrics “I say, I hate you, we break up, you call me, I love you.” Chances are you probably relate to this lyric like I do. I’m pretty sure we all know or (shamefully) have been that one person who was stuck in a cyclic relationship as Swift described. Now let’s assume the speaker "pulled a Taylor Swift" and never got back together with the subject, and that they really did stay divorced. Whilst divorce was much rarer 500 years ago, it still occurred so much so that a sonnet was written about it, and it’s even more common now. Many modern Australians would be able to relate to this decision, because according to a 2015 Love and Marriages Report, one third of Australian marriages end in divorce. Marriage is supposed to be an unbreakable promise, but it seems that a large number of Australians want to cancel their vows like Drayton mentioned. Thus, it is safe to say that much like a fine wine, Drayton’s sonnet has just gotten better with time, as it is still relevant to society now, if not more relevant that at the time it was written. Over and out. My fellow literary lovers, this has been a PSA. Although the ways people express themselves about these themes has changed throughout the generation, it is clear that every generation faces these hurdles. I’m sure that if Shakespeare and Drayton ever got the opportunity to see into the future, they would have thoroughly enjoyed Taylor Swift and cheesy Valentines cards.
Also, if I happen to have any secret admirers stalking my blog this year, please feel free to take notes: dark chocolate is my favourite, and I’d love for you to give me chocolate on any day of the year.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorHi! I'm Chelsea, an Australian student and literature enthusiast.
|