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Sunday, 30 October 2011

My Mistress Eyes Are Nothing Like The Sun

When i first read this poem i found it rather insulting. It seemed to me that this man was insulting his mistress. When a man talks about the woman that he loves most people would think he would say flattering things. However in this poem the speaker does not. At first one might think like i did that it seemed almost insulting but that however is not the case. What he is really doing is describing this ordinary woman that he loves dearly. The speaker tells us that even thought this woman may not be goddess like or fit what most men in that day would consider to be a perfect woman he still loved her. He makes comments to say that her breath does not always smell the best, her hair resembles wires . He says that her cheeks are not Rosy and "her eyes are nothing like the sun". Would you be offended by that? I would , but we need to look at the deeper meaning . When reading this poem one must keep in mind that this sonnet was amongst many written for "the dark lady" and that is exactly what the lady described in this poem resembles.

   I personally liked this poem because it draws on reality rather then fantasy. The speaker does not lie and gives the raw truth about his mistress's appearance and her imperfections. But it is because she is not perfect that he loves her. He is saying basically that regardless of what she looks like he will love her unconditionally . I think that is romantic because he does not base his love on her appearance rather her personality. This was my favorite poem written by Shakespeare that i have read .
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4 comments:

  1. ashley@cna16 November 2011 at 05:56

    I was like you when I first read the poem, I thought that the narrator was bashing his mistress. Yet the last two lines of the poem completely change our opinion. This man loves his mistress unconditionally and he is simply saying that he doesn't care what she looks like. William Shakespeare was trying to tell everyone that looks don't don't matter when it comes to love and that you shouldn't judge someone by the way they look. I must admit this is also among my favorites things written by Shakespeare as well

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  2. Anonymous21 November 2011 at 07:39

    I really agree with your opinion on this poem, I felt the same way. I believe that he loved this woman because she wasn't perfect, honestly, how boring would it be if someone had no flaws. Everyone has problems and flaws, and when someone can overcome those problems and flaws is when you know they really love you.

    Jessie Winsor.

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  3. Megan Brett21 November 2011 at 08:12

    I strongly agree with you on this one. When i read the poem i thought the same thing! I would be so insulted and embarassed if someone who claimed they loved me said things like that about me! But in the end it all starts to make sense. He loves her for who she is,not what she looks like. I think more people should love eachother this way!

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  4. Dillon Kelloway24 November 2011 at 10:31

    Good Post, Kenzie. I too agree with you, I read this not knowing anything about shakespearian sonnets. I thought he was describing his hate towards his mistress, But in fact he is showing that love is deeper than beauty, which is true! I find that most people are materialistic these days and only concern with how others view them. I too liked this poem! keep up the good work. Blogs looking good!

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