Sonnet 130 is a poem written by William Shakespeare. It was published in 1609 as one of the 154 sonnets he wrote. The poem uses a realistic description of the poet's mistress, which contrasts with the exaggerated and overly romantic language often found in courtly love sonnets.

Synopsis

Sonnet 130 makes fun of the idea of perfect beauty, which was common in literature and art during the Elizabethan era. This tradition began with poetry from ancient Greece and Rome and continued in European customs like courtly love and poetry by writers such as Petrarch. It was typical to describe a loved person using comparisons to beautiful things in nature or the heavens, such as stars, the rising sun, or red roses. These images were familiar to readers and listeners of the time.

Shakespeare mocks the exaggerated comparisons used by other poets, which had become overused and unoriginal by the Elizabethan era. In this sonnet, the poet compares his mistress to natural things like snow or coral, but each comparison shows that she does not match their beauty. The first two parts of the poem highlight these unflattering comparisons. In the final lines, the speaker says he does not use false comparisons, suggesting that other poets do. Shakespeare’s poem aims to show that his mistress is truly special because of her real qualities, not because she looks like idealized images. He believes she is more deserving of love than the fanciful lovers described by other poets.

Structure

Sonnet 130 is an English or Shakespearean sonnet. An English sonnet has three groups of four lines, called quatrains, followed by a final pair of rhyming lines, called a couplet. It follows the standard rhyme pattern ABAB CDCD EFEF GG and is written in iambic pentameter, a type of poetic rhythm based on five pairs of syllables that alternate between weak and strong stress. The first line shows a regular example of iambic pentameter:

The second line (line 2) includes a common variation in rhythm called an initial reversal. An initial reversal may appear in line 8, and mid-line reversals occur in lines 4 and 12, and possibly in line 3. The start of line 5 can be interpreted in two ways: it may follow the regular rhythm or include an initial reversal. However, it is most naturally read with the first strong stress (called an ictus) moving to the right, creating a four-syllable pattern (× × / /), sometimes called a minor ionic:

If the word "her" in line 2 does not receive a contrastive accent (as described above), then the phrase "than her lips' red" would also form a minor ionic.

The meter requires that the word "heaven" in line 13 be pronounced as one syllable.

Analysis

This sonnet uses common poetic ideas, such as comparing the mistress's eyes to the sun, her lips to coral, and her cheeks to roses. The poet explains that his mistress is not like these idealized images but is still as beautiful as any other woman. Barbara Mowat suggests that this work breaks the usual style of sonnets from that time. Shakespeare created a sonnet that seems to mock many sonnets written by other poets, such as Thomas Watson, Michael Drayton, and Barnabe Barnes. These poets often wrote about love for a perfect, almost impossible figure. Patrick Crutwell notes that Sonnet 130 might be a satire of Watson’s poem "Passionate Century of Love," as Watson’s work includes nearly all the exaggerated comparisons that Shakespeare criticizes in his sonnet. E.G. Rogers observes that Watson’s poem and Richard Linche’s collection "Diella" share similarities with Sonnet 130. For example, both Shakespeare and Linche compare hair to wires, though Linche’s description highlights the beauty of weaving gold, while Shakespeare uses a harsher comparison. These similarities suggest that "Diella" may have influenced both Watson’s poem and Shakespeare’s sonnet. The final lines of Sonnet 130, "And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare, as any she belied with false compare," clarify the poem’s message, showing that the speaker believes his love is genuine and not based on false comparisons.

Carl Atkins notes that early readers often thought the sonnet was a criticism of the poet’s mistress. However, William Flesch argues that the poem is actually a compliment. He explains that many poets of the time praised qualities their subjects did not truly have, such as flawless skin or golden hair. Flesch points out that people prefer to be praised for real traits, such as youthfulness in behavior or appearance, rather than unrealistic features. He suggests that Shakespeare’s seemingly harsh descriptions actually highlight the mistress’s true qualities, and the poem ends with the speaker’s clear expression of love.

Possible influences

The sonnet is a type of literary work that often refers to other literary works. Felicia Jean Steele explains that Shakespeare uses imagery from Petrarchan poetry but also weakens its meaning. Stephen Booth agrees that Shakespeare references Petrarchan works, but he notes that Shakespeare "gently mocks the thoughtless, routine use of standard Petrarchan metaphors." Steele believes Shakespeare strongly challenges Petrarchan ideas, and she points out that in Sonnet 130, Shakespeare "undoes, weakens, or invalidates nearly every Petrarchan idea about feminine beauty used by other sonnet writers." The final couplet in the sonnet is meant to restore the reader's belief that Shakespeare truly loves his "dusky mistress." Steele's article includes Booth's summary of the couplet: "I think that my love is as rare as any woman belied by false compare." Helen Vendler, also mentioned in Steele's article, states that the couplet would read: "In all, by heaven, I think my love as rare/ As any she conceived for compare." Steele, Booth, and Vendler all agree that in this couplet, Shakespeare responds to Petrarchan imagery because other sonnet writers often misrepresent or "believe" their mistress's beauty.