Sonnet_73

Sonnet 73 Journey Essay A poem which deals with a journey is “SONNET 73” by William Shakespeare. In this poem Shakespeare uses imagery and different poetic techniques, such as similes, metaphors and word choice very effectively to compare the journey of death, to time. Shakespeare deals with the notion that the coming of death is like a journey and as the journey must end so too must life. In the first quatrain Shakespeare uses the image of Autumn to compare to the idea of old age, and that as winter will eventually come after Autumn, so too will death after old age, “That time of year thou mayst in me behold When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang” I find this quote effective as Shakespeare is comparing his life to the season of Autumn, saying that he is near the end of his life just as Autumn, an image for death, is before winter. In the second quatrain Shakespeare again uses imagery but this time in comparing the journey of death, to the end of the day, “As after sunset fadeth in the west Which by and by black night doth take away” . I find this quote particularly effective as Shakespeare’s use of the metaphor “twilight” and his word choice of “sunset fadeth” are very effective as they give a clear image of that as the day is coming to an end so too is his life. In the third quatrain Shakespeare again uses imagery but this time in comparing the coming of death to the image of a fire, “In me thou see’st the glowing of such fire That on the ashes of his youth doth lie” I also find this quote effective as by him saying that the fire is now “ashes”, he is saying that his youth is now dead. Another quote which portrays the same feelings is, “As the death-bed whereon it must expire”. In this quote Shakespeare uses the image of fire to suggest that the person addressed can only see his old age now and not his youth when he was full of life just like the fire once was. I feel that Shakespeare uses imagery brilliantly throughout “Sonnet 73” in portraying the sense of time to the journey to death. The structure used by Shakespeare also helps me to understand the poem as in each quatrain the sense of time is decreasing. In the first quatrain he uses the image of Autumn, in the second he uses the image of the end of day and in the third he uses the image of a fire. By using these images in this order and with the sense of time in each quatrain decreasing, this gives me the feeling that death is coming closer in each quatrain. Shakespeare continues the idea of a journey in the poem but this time it is the journey away from youth. This starts in the third quatrain when he compares the journey from youth, to the image of a fire, “In me thou see’st the glowing of such fire That on the ashes of his youth doth lie” I find this quote effective as Shakespeare is saying that you are unable to see his youth as it is burnt out, like the fire has, and all that is left to come for him is death. Another quote which reiterates this is, “As the death-bed whereon it must expire Consumed with that which it was nourish’d by”. I find this quote effective as Shakespeare is saying that his youth is now dead and that you are now unable to see it. In doing this Shakespeare suggests a journey away from a time of joy and happiness of his youth, into old age. Finally as the journey comes to an end Shaksepeare accepts his fate, but wishes for the reader to understand that it is to give and receive love which is the most important thing, “This thou perceivest, which makes thy love more strong, To love that well which thou must leave ere long”. In this quote Shakespeare portrays the message of the poem that love becomes even stronger and at the moment of death. In conclusion I would say that through his use of imagery, in comparing the journey towards death to time, and poetic techniques such as similes, metaphors, and word choice, Shakespeare deals with the journey towards death in his poem “SONNET 73” very effectively, portraying it brilliantly through time.