Poetry Analysis

Shakespearean Sonnet

Rhyme Scheme

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips' red: If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. I have seen roses damask'd, red and white, But no such roses see I in her cheeks; And in some perfumes is there more delight Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks. I love to hear her speak,--yet well I know That music hath a far more pleasing sound; I grant I never saw a goddess go, My mistress when she walks, treads on the ground; And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare As any she, belied with false compare.

Determine the rhyming pattern of the poem.

Rhyme Scheme

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; aCoral is far more red than her lips' red: bIf snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; aIf hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. bI have seen roses damask'd, red and white, cBut no such roses see I in her cheeks; dAnd in some perfumes is there more delight cThan in the breath that from my mistress reeks. dI love to hear her speak,--yet well I know eThat music hath a far more pleasing sound; fI grant I never saw a goddess go, eMy mistress when she walks, treads on the ground; fAnd yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare gAs any she, belied with false compare. g

Rhythm and Meter

Scan the lines to determine rhythm and meter.

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;

Coral is far more red than her lips' red:

Rhythm and Meter

~ / ~ / ~ / ~ / ~ /

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;

~ / ~ / ~ / ~ / ~ /

Coral is far more red than her lips' red:

Iambic pentameter

Quatrains

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;

Coral is far more red than her lips' red:

If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;

If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.

What type of sensory imagery is demonstrated in the first quatrain (first four lines)?

Quatrains

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips' red: If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.

Sight

What type of sensory imagery is demonstrated in the first quatrain (first four lines)?

Quatrains

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

. . .I have seen roses damask'd, red and white,

But no such roses see I in her cheeks;

And in some perfumes is there more delight

Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.

What type of sensory imagery is demonstrated in the second quatrain?

Quatrains

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

. . .I have seen roses damask'd, red and white, But no such roses see I in her cheeks; And in some perfumes is there more delight Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.

Smell

What type of sensory imagery is demonstrated in the second quatrain?

Quatrains

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

. . .I love to hear her speak,--yet well I know

That music hath a far more pleasing sound;

I grant I never saw a goddess go,

My mistress when she walks, treads on the ground;

What type of sensory imagery is demonstrated in the third quatrain?

Quatrains

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

. . .I love to hear her speak,--yet well I know

That music hath a far more pleasing sound;

I grant I never saw a goddess go,

My mistress when she walks, treads on the ground;

Sound

What type of sensory imagery is demonstrated in the third quatrain?

Similes

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips' red: If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. I have seen roses damask'd, red and white, But no such roses see I in her cheeks; And in some perfumes is there more delight Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks. I love to hear her speak,--yet well I know That music hath a far more pleasing sound; I grant I never saw a goddess go, My mistress when she walks, treads on the ground; And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare As any she, belied with false compare.

What comparisons do lines 1, 2, and 7-8 make?

Metaphors

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips' red: If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. I have seen roses damask'd, red and white, But no such roses see I in her cheeks; And in some perfumes is there more delight Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks. I love to hear her speak,--yet well I know That music hath a far more pleasing sound; I grant I never saw a goddess go, My mistress when she walks, treads on the ground; And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare As any she, belied with false compare.

What comparisons do lines 3, 4, 5-6, 9-10, and 11-12 depict?

Irony

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun William Shakespeare

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips' red: If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. I have seen roses damask'd, red and white, But no such roses see I in her cheeks; And in some perfumes is there more delight Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks. I love to hear her speak,--yet well I know That music hath a far more pleasing sound; I grant I never saw a goddess go, My mistress when she walks, treads on the ground; And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare As any she, belied with false compare.

How does the final couplet serve as an ironic twist for the conclusion?