SONNET 29 PARAPHRASE When, in disgrace with fortune and men's When Ive fallen out of favor with fortune

eyes, and men, I all alone beweep my outcast state All alone I weep over my position as a social outcast, And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless And pray to heaven, but my cries go cries unheard, And look upon myself and curse my fate, And I look at myself, cursing my fate, Wishing me like to one more rich in hope, Wishing I were like one who had more hope, Featured like him, like him with friends Wishing I looked like him; wishing I were possess'd, surrounded by friends, Desiring this man's art and that man's Wishing I had this man's skill and that scope, man's freedom. With what I most enjoy contented least; I am least contented with what I used to enjoy most. Yet in these thoughts myself almost But, with these thoughts almost despising, despising myself, Haply I think on thee, and then my state, I, by chance, think of you and then my melancholy Like to the lark at break of day arising Like the lark at the break of day, rises From sullen earth, sings hymns at From the dark earth and (I) sing hymns to heaven's gate; heaven; For thy sweet love remember'd such For thinking of your love brings such wealth brings happiness That then I scorn to change my state with That then I would not change my position kings. in life with kings. Sonnet 29 shows the poet at his most insecure and troubled. He feels unlucky, shamed, and fiercely jealous of those around him. What causes the poet's anguish will remain a mystery; as will the answer to whether the sonnets are autobiographical. However, an examination of Shakespeares life around the time he wrote Sonnet 29 reveals two traumatic events that may have shaped the theme of the sonnet. In 1592 the London theatres closed due to a severe outbreak of plague. Although it is possible that Shakespeare toured the outlying areas of London, it is almost certain that he left the theatre entirely during this time to work on his sonnets and narrative poems. The closing of the playhouses made it hard for Shakespeare and other actors of the day to

earn a living. With plague and poverty looming it is expected that he would feel "in disgrace with fortune" (1). Moreover, in 1592 there came a scathing attack on Shakespeare by dramatist Robert Greene, who, in a deathbed diary, warned three of his fellow university-educated playwrights: "There is an upstart Crow, beautified with our feathers, that with his Tygers heart wrapt in a Players hide, supposes he is as well able to bombast out a blanke verse as the best of you; and, beeing an absolute Johannes fac totum, is in his owne conceit the onely Shake-scene in a countrey." One can only imagine what grief this assault this deathbed assault must have caused Shakespeare. Greene was nothing if not thorough: first, using a line from Shakespeares own 3 Henry VI (1.4.138), he describes Shakespeare as a pompous, scheming, vicious ingrate riding the coattails of better writers (no doubt Shakespeare performed in a play Greene had himself written; then he adds that Shakespeare is a conceited ("onely Shake-scene") and insignificant jack of all trades (a "Johannes fac totum"). Greene lets even more insults fly as he continues: "O that I might intreat your rare wits to be imploied in more profitable courses: & let those Apes imitate your past excellence, and never more acquaint them with your admired inventions." It seems very possible such events are connected to the poets distressed declaration in line 8: "With what I most enjoy contented least." All is not lost, however, for the sonnet ends with a positive affirmation that the poet can combat his anguish with the "sweet love" (13) of his dear friend

SONNET 116 PARAPHRASE Let me not to the marriage of true minds Let me not declare any reasons why two Admit impediments. Love is not love True-minded people should not be married. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Which changes when it finds a change in circumstances, Or bends with the remover to remove: Or bends from its firm stand even when a lover is unfaithful: O no! it is an ever-fixed mark Oh no! it is a lighthouse That looks on tempests and is never That sees storms but it never shaken; shaken; It is the star to every wandering bark, Love is the guiding north star to every lost ship, Whose worth's unknown, although his Whose value cannot be calculated, height be taken. although its altitude can be measured. Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips Love is not at the mercy of Time, though and cheeks physical beauty Within his bending sickle's compass Comes within the compass of his sickle. come: Love alters not with his brief hours and Love does not alter with hours and weeks, weeks, But bears it out even to the edge of But, rather, it endures until the last day doom. of life. If this be error and upon me proved, If I am proved wrong about these thoughts on love I never writ, nor no man ever loved. Then I recant all that I have written, and no man has ever [truly] loved Sonnet 116 is about love in its most ideal form. It is praising the glories of lovers who have come to each other freely, and enter into a relationship based on trust and understanding. The first four lines reveal the poet's pleasure in love that is constant and strong, and will not "alter when it alteration finds." The following lines proclaim that true love is indeed an "ever-fix'd mark" which will survive any crisis. In lines 7-8, the poet claims that we may be able to measure love to some degree, but this does not mean we fully understand it. Love's actual worth cannot be known it remains a mystery. The remaining lines of the third quatrain (9-12), reaffirm the perfect nature of love that is unshakeable throughout time and remains so "ev'n to the edge of doom", or death.

In the final couplet, the poet declares that, if he is mistaken about the constant, unmovable nature of perfect love, then he must take back all his writings on love, truth, and faith. Moreover, he adds that, if he has in fact judged love inappropriately, no man has ever really loved, in the ideal sense that the poet professes. The details of Sonnet 116 are best described by Tucker Brooke in his acclaimed edition of Shakespeare's poems: [In Sonnet 116] the chief pause in sense is after the twelfth line. Seventy-five per cent of the words are monosyllables; only three contain more syllables than two; none belong in any degree to the vocabulary of 'poetic' diction. There is nothing recondite, exotic, or metaphysical in the thought. There are three run-on lines, one pair of double-endings. There is nothing to remark about the rhyming except the happy blending of open and closed vowels, and of liquids, nasals, and stops; nothing to say about the harmony except to point out how the fluttering accents in the quatrains give place in the couplet to the emphatic march of the almost unrelieved iambic feet. In short, the poet has employed one hundred and ten of the simplest words in the language and the two simplest rhyme-schemes to produce a poem which has about it no strangeness whatever except the strangeness of perfection. (Brooke, 234)

Federigos Falcon from the Decameron Giovanni Boccaccio, There was once in Florence a young man named Federigo, the son of Messer Filippo Alberighi, renowned above all other men in Tuscany for his prowess in arms and for his courtliness. As often happens to most gentlemen, he fell in love with a lady named Monna Giovanna, in her day considered to be one of the most beautiful and one of the most charming women that ever there was in Florence; and in order to win her love, he participated in jousts and tournaments, organized and gave feasts, and spent his money without restraint; but she, no less virtuous than beautiful, cared little for these things done on her behalf, nor did she care for him who did them. Now, as Federigo was spending far beyond his means and was taking nothing in, as easily happens he lost his wealth and became poor, with nothing but his little farm to his name (from whose revenues he lived very meagerly) and one falcon which was among the best in the world. More in love than ever, but knowing that he would never be able to live the way he wished to in the city, he went to live at Campi, where his farm was. There he passed his time hawking whenever he could, asked nothing of anyone, and endured his poverty patiently. Now, during the time that Federigo was reduced to dire need, it happened that the husband of Monna Giovanna fell ill, and realizing death was near, he made his last will. He was very rich, and he made his son, who was growing up, his heir, and, since he had loved Monna Giovanna very much, he made her his heir should his son die without a legitimate heir; and then he died. Monna Giovanna was now a widow, and as is the custom among our women, she went to the country with her son to spend a year on one of her possessions very close by to Federigos farm, and it happened that this young boy became friends with Federigo and began to enjoy birds and hunting dogs; and after he had seen Federigos falcon fly many times, it pleased him so much that he very much wished it were his own, but he did not dare to ask for it, for he could see how dear it was to Federigo. And during this time, it happened that the young boy took ill, and his mother was much grieved, for he was her only child and she loved him enormously. She would spend the entire day by his side, never ceasing to comfort him, and often asking him if there was anything he desired, begging him to tell her what it might be, for if it were possible to obtain it, she would certainly do everything possible to get it. After the young boy had heard her make this offer many times, he said: Mother, if you can arrange for me to have Federigos falcon, I think I would be well very soon.

When the lady heard this, she was taken aback for a moment, and she began to think what she should do. She knew that Federigo had loved her for a long while, in spite of the fact that he never received a single glance from her, and so, she said to herself: How can I send or go and ask for this falcon of his which is, as I have heard tell, the best that ever flew, and besides this, his only means of support? And how can I be so insensitive as to wish to take away from this gentleman the only pleasure which is left to him? And involved in these thoughts, knowing that she was certain to have the bird if she asked for it, but not knowing what to say to her son, she stood there without answering him. Finally the love she bore her son persuaded her that she should make him happy, and no matter what the consequences might be, she would not send for the bird, but rather go herself for it and bring it back to him; so she answered her son: My son, take comfort and think only of getting well, for I promise you that the first thing I shall do tomorrow morning is to go for it and bring it back to you. The child was so happy that he showed some improvement that very day. The following morning, the lady, accompanied by another woman, as if going for a stroll, went to Federigos modest house and asked for him. Since it was not the season for it, Federigo had not been hawking for some days and was in his orchard, attending to certain tasks. When he heard that Monna Giovanna was asking for him at the door, he was very surprised and happy to run there. As she saw him coming, she greeted him with feminine charm, and once Federigo had welcomed her courteously, she said: Greetings, Federigo! Then she continued: I have come to compensate you for the harm you have suffered on my account by loving me more than you needed to; and the compensation is this: I, along with this companion of mine, intend to dine with youa simple mealthis very day. To this Federigo humbly replied: Madonna, I never remember having suffered any harm because of you. On the contrary, so much good have I received from you that if ever I have been worth anything, it has been because of your merit and the love I bore for you; and your generous visit is certainly so dear to me that I would spend all over again that which I spent in the past; but you have come to a poor host. And having said this, he received her into his home humbly, and from there he led her into his garden, and since he had no one there to keep her company, he said: My lady, since there is no one else, this good woman here, the wife of this workman, will keep you company while I go to set the table. Though he was very poor, Federigo, until now, had never before realized to what extent he had wasted his wealth; but this morning, the fact that he found nothing with which he could honor the lady for the love of whom he had once entertained countless men in the
6

past gave him cause to reflect. In great anguish, he cursed himself and his fortune and, like a man beside himself, he started running here and there, but could find neither money nor a pawnable object. The hour was late and his desire to honor the gracious lady was great, but not wishing to turn for help to others (not even to his own workman), he set his eyes upon his good falcon, perched in a small room; and since he had nowhere else to turn, he took the bird, and finding it plump, he decided that it would be a worthy food for such a lady. So, without further thought, he wrung its neck and quickly gave it to his servant girl to pluck, prepare, and place on a spit to be roasted with care; and when he had set the table with the whitest of tablecloths (a few of which he still had left), he returned, with a cheerful face, to the lady in his garden, saying that the meal he was able to prepare for her was ready. The lady and her companion rose, went to the table together with Federigo, who waited upon them with the greatest devotion, and they ate the good falcon without knowing what it was they were eating. And having left the table and spent some time in pleasant conversation, the lady thought it time now to say what she had come to say, and so she spoke these kind words to Federigo: Federigo, if you recall your past life and my virtue, which you perhaps mistook for harshness and cruelty, I do not doubt at all that you will be amazed by my presumption when you hear what my main reason for coming here is; but if you had children, through whom you might have experienced the power of parental love, it seems certain to me that you would, at least in part, forgive me. But, just as you have no child, I do have one, and I cannot escape the common laws of other mothers; the force of such laws compels me to follow them, against my own will and against good manners and duty, and to ask of you a gift which I know is most precious to you; and it is naturally so, since your extreme condition has left you no other delight, no other pleasure, no other consolation; and this gift is your falcon, which my son is so taken by that if I do not bring it to him, I fear his sickness will grow so much worse that I may lose him. And therefore I beg you, not because of the love that you bear for me, which does not oblige you in the least, but because of your own nobility, which you have shown to be greater than that of all others in practicing courtliness, that you be pleased to give it to me, so that I may say that I have saved the life of my son by means of this gift, and because of it I have placed him in your debt forever. When he heard what the lady requested and knew that he could not oblige her since he had given her the falcon to eat, Federigo began to weep in her presence, for he could not utter a word in reply. The lady, at first, thought his tears were caused more by the sorrow of having to part with the good falcon than by anything else, and she was on the verge of telling him she no longer wished it, but she held back and waited for Federigos reply after he stopped weeping. And he said: My lady, ever since it pleased God for me to place my love in you, I have felt that Fortune has been hostile to me in many things, and I have complained of her, but all this is nothing compared to what she has just done to me, and I must never be at peace with her again, thinking about how you have come here to my poor home where, while it
7

was rich, you never deigned to come, and you requested a small gift, and Fortune worked to make it impossible for me to give it to you; and why this is so I shall tell you briefly. When I heard that you, out of your kindness, wished to dine with me, I considered it fitting and right, taking into account your excellence and your worthiness, that I should honor you, according to my possibilities, with a more precious food than that which I usually serve to other people; therefore, remembering the falcon that you requested and its value, I judged it a food worthy of you, and this very day you had it roasted and served to you as best I could; but seeing now that you desired it in another way, my sorrow in not being able to serve you is so great that I shall never be able to console myself again. And after he had said this, he laid the feathers, the feet, and the beak of the bird before her as proof. When the lady heard and saw this, she first reproached him for having killed such a falcon to serve as a meal to a woman; but then to herself she commended the greatness of his spirit, which no poverty was able or would be able to diminish; then, having lost all hope of getting the falcon and, perhaps because of this, of improving the health of her son as well, she thanked Federigo both for the honor paid to her and for his good will, and she left in grief, and returned to her son. To his mothers extreme sorrow, either because of his disappointment that he could not have the falcon, or because his illness must have necessarily led to it, the boy passed from this life only a few days later. After the period of her mourning and bitterness had passed, the lady was repeatedly urged by her brothers to remarry, since she was very rich and was still young; and although she did not wish to do so, they became so insistent that she remembered the merits of Federigo and his last act of generositythat is, to have killed such a falcon to do her honorand she said to her brothers: I would prefer to remain a widow, if that would please you; but if you wish me to take a husband, you may rest assured that I shall take no man but Federigo degli Alberighi. In answer to this, making fun of her, her brothers replied: You foolish woman, what are you saying? How can you want him; he hasnt a penny to his name? To this she replied: My brothers, I am well aware of what you say, but I would rather have a man who needs money than money that needs a man. Her brothers, seeing that she was determined and knowing Federigo to be of noble birth, no matter how poor he was, accepted her wishes and gave her in marriage to him with all her riches. When he found himself the husband of such a great lady, whom he had loved so much and who was so wealthy besides, he managed his financial affairs with more prudence than in the past and lived with her happily the rest of his days.

Finding Common Ground Federigo and Monna Giovanna live in fourteenth-century Italy. But we share with them some basic human problems. In your reading notes, you may have commented on some of the lovers difficulties listed here: Federigo loves someone who doesnt love him. Giovanna must cope with a dying sons wish. Giovanna has to ask a favor of someone she has ignored and rejected. Federigo has to deal with the discovery that a noble gesture was actually a terrible mistake.

Summary Squandering his wealth in an attempt to gain the affection of a beautiful woman, Federigo degli Alberighi is left with only a small farm and a magnificent falcon. Federigo loves Monna Giovanna, a young woman of nobility who is already married and has a son. After her wealthy husband dies, Monna and her son travel to their country estate near the farm where Federigo lives. The boy becomes friends with him and covets the prized falcon. Soon the boy is sick. He has one request: "Mother, if you can arrange for me to have Federigo's falcon, I think I would get well quickly." (p. 427) Monna is well aware of Federigo's love for her, but she also realizes how attached the man is to the falcon. Monna makes an unannounced visit to Federigo's farm. Before she declares the purpose of her call, he decides to honor Monna with a meal. Unfortunately, Federigo has nothing to serve her. He catches a glimpse of his falcon on its perch. He breaks its neck and has it roasted on a spit. Monna eats the bird unaware that it is the animal she has come to request for her son. After dining, she asks Federigo for his falcon. All he can do is weep. He then reveals that he sacrificed the creature to provide a meal worthy of Monna. A few days later, her son dies. After a period of sorrow and resentment, she marries Federigo. Commentary Here is a story where two people die and a remarkable animal is sacrificed yet somehow misfortune still culminates in happiness. Students are nearly unanimous in their fondness for this ironic tale even though their sympathies are frequently divided
9

between Federigo, Monna, and especially the falcon. It is, after all, the bird that links Federigo, Monna, and the dying boy. It is the death of the falcon that ultimately catalyzes their futures. The story illustrates many varieties of love--courtly, maternal, marital, and even human affection for a pet--and highlights the lengths an individual will go in the pursuit of love. How do we define nobility? Who (or what) is the noblest creature in the tale? Although written around 1350, this story is truly timeless. It has much to suggest about the nature of giving and sacrifice, loss and guilt, fate and redemption, and above all else, love. Summary There is a young man who lost all his money who has a falcon whom he loves but more so loves the young beautiful woman... There is a young beautiful woman who has a son who loves the falcon. Her son gets sick and has only one wish by his death bed that he thinks will make him better. The woman asks for the man to cook her dinner as in a date, and he does not know how to impress her. The falcon is the only thing that he has to eat that will impress her because she has class and money. So Frederico cooks the falcon and they eat it without her knowing what it is. Then she pops the question if she can have his falcon because she thinks its the only thing that will keep her son alive. Frederico feels so bad at that point. Her son dies and all of her brothers tell her that she is still so young and so rich that she has to marry again. The only person she can think of is Frederico, and they live happily ever after.

10

Write the letter of the best answer. ____ 26. The effect of love on the speaker of "Sonnet 29" is A. alarming. C. bewildering. B. heartening.

____ 27. In "Sonnet 29," in which part of the sonnet do the speaker's feelings begin to undergo significant change? A. the second quatrain C. the couplet B. the third quatrain

____ 28. In "Sonnet 116," the speaker suggests that true love A. is unchanged by time. C. is, unfortunately, changed by time. B. is, fortunately, changed by time.

____ 32. Which of the following best describes the type of love admired by the speaker of "Sonnet 116"? A. gentle C. passionate B. steadfast

Answer Sheet

26. B. heartening. 27. B. the third quatrain 28. A. is unchanged by time. 31. B. playful

11