Comparing Shakespeare's View Of Love In Sonnet 116, And Romeo And Juliet

Over the years, love has been portrayed in numerous ways. Some see love as treacherous or deceitful, but Shakespeare saw just the opposite. His work Twelfth Night shows what he believes to be an authenticity test to his view of love. The audience can come to know the similar theme of love in reading “Sonnet 116”, “Sonnet 18”, and Romeo and Juliet. In comparing Romeo and Juliet and Twelfth Night, Shakespeare uses various literary devices to explain an unachievable love and everlasting physical beauty. Shakespeare depicts love with a rare outlook. Modern times portray love as an affliction. In “Sonnet 116”, the poet explicates traditional wedding vows to reveal the essence of what he believes to be genuine love. John Kerrigan states that “Shakespeare

In “Sonnet 18”, Shakespeare sees outward beauty beyond the youthful years. He reveals the everlasting beauty of his friend by comparing him to nature’s elements. Although, the poet does realize that, “physical beauty inevitably disappears” he uses this sonnet to enhance the lasting physical attraction of his friend (Jungman 18). Robert Jungman stated that, “the ‘every fair’ thing, in turn, may be understood to be the physical beauty of the young friend” this was the clue that the poet was speaking of outward appearance (Jungman 18). Shakespeare saw youth as a valiant and radiant quality that beamed to the likeness of other individuals, and could never be dimmed by obstacles. Shakespeare uses personification to state that the sun “is his gold complexion dimm’d” (6). Robert Ray translated this line to, “the face of the sun is dimmed by clouds at times, and thus the beauty of its face is destroyed, in contrast to the beauty of the young” (Ray 10). In Romeo and Juliet, the poet strategically makes the character Romeo an adolescent. Phyllis Rackin mentions, “that same youthful impetuosity is necessary if Romeo is to make the wholehearted commitment to romantic love” (Rackin 19). Shakespeare believed that the profound love Romeo and Juliet shared was because of their youthful characteristics. Phyllis Rackin states that their youth saved them from “any involvement with worldly practicalities” that “would have to dilute the intensity of their passion” (Rackin