The Themes of Love, Friendship, and Marriage Displayed in Shakespeares Sonnets - Book Report/Review Example

 The Themes of Love, Friendship, and Marriage Displayed in Shakespeare’s Sonnets 30, 55, and 116 I. Introduction William Shakespeare, known simply as “The Bard,” was one of the most magnificently famous poets of his day in the early 17th century. This was because he wrote about topics which people could relate to well. For example, in his sonnets numbers 30, 55, and 116, we see continual evidences of Shakespeare’s thoughts on love, friendship, and marriage. While what he said on paper may still move us today, sometimes what one might think that he meant is not actually what the reader understood it to mean. Therefore, it is important to analyze these three themes in the context of Shakespeare’s day, and what the intended message was for readers of his poetry. Truly, Shakespeare was a genius. It is no mistake that his poetry is still considered relevant and highly regarded in most literary circles of thought. Without a doubt, Shakespeare’s poetry definitely has secured its place in history. II. Love Love is a many-splendored feeling, which Shakespeare himself definitely experienced in his lifetime. Shakespeare, in his famous Sonnet 116, makes it clear that true love exists for all times. Regardless of what happens to the lovers themselves, his sonnet is a promise that love endures all kinds of problems that can attack it. “Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, 
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.”1 Additionally, in Sonnet 55, Shakespeare is still talking about the beauty of looking at his love interest. “So, till the judgment that yourself arise, 
You live in this, and dwell in lovers' eyes.”2 In Sonnet 55, we see that love is a feeling that will last until the end of the world, when everything else—like marble—has faded away. It is the promise and the hope of new beginnings that love inspires, and which Shakespeare so masterfully weaves into his sonnets. Love is a topic that many people have written about in the past, but perhaps none so eloquently as Shakespeare. He recognized that there were different types of love: sexual love, romantic love, platonic love, and unconditional love, among others. Shakespeare obviously had an intimate knowledge of relationships, as is evidenced in many of his works. With regard to love, it is obvious that Shakespeare had many paramours in his day. III. Friendship Shakespeare obviously had many friendships, and he knew about the state of human relations. “Shakespeare's Sonnet 30, one of his most famous, is a reflection on sad memories reconciled by the realization of the gift he has in his friend.”3 Of course, there are difficult times in friendships as well as fun times. Shakespeare’s remembrances of his friends definitely seem to be positive. He says, “But if the while I think on thee, dear friend,
All losses are restored and sorrows end.”4 Of course, friends are there when times are bad and when times are good. When Sonnet 30 was first read, “For precious friends hid in death's dateless night,
And weep afresh love's long since cancell'd woe, 
And moan the expense of many a vanish'd sight…”5 This is talking about how the loss of a friend can be particularly devastating. Shakespeare’s ability to see the wide plethora of human relationships in the span of the lifetime gave him a unique edge as a writer. He knew the pain of being in love, but he could also relate to platonic relationships and the value that could be found within those relationships. Having been married, Shakespeare too could also relate to what it meant to be of one mind. Friendship, however, was an altogether entirely different animal. Friendship is particularly an interesting theme which Shakespeare the depths of which he was able to plumb. Before one every gets into a love relationship or a marriage, it’s important to be prepared in one’s mind, and spirit, for a relationship. One needs to have confidence in one’s friendships first. Friends have to know how to love themselves. This may seem like a no-brainer, but loving oneself is the first step to learn how to love someone else. One should love oneself unconditionally, just the way one is. One must, ultimately, love oneself, first and foremost. It’s not being selfish, it’s not being self-centered; one must simply be convinced of the fact that everyone deserves love just as much as anyone else. Loving oneself encompasses so much more than just liking oneself. Additionally, one must earn how to love others. In addition to loving oneself, and being one’s own friend, one must also learn how to love other people. Sometimes, doing works of charity or service can give a person extra luck. In order to love other people, one must forgive oneself for any past problems one may have caused or perpetuated between oneself and others. One must infuse oneself with positive energy and be a source of hope for other people. Once one can do this, one will know that one has truly been able to love other people, because other people will be depending on oneself. One wants to be an emotionally strong person. One should show that one is strong enough to handle relationships by conveying one’s sense of emotional maturity. One must come into one’s own by realizing what is the childish way to handle a situation, and what is the grown-up answer to a problem. Once one takes accountability for one’s actions as a fully-functioning human being, then and only then can one be completely emotionally honest with oneself as well as other people. Without this kind of strength and understanding, it will be difficult to be in a relationship that will last for any length of time. Shakespeare knew the realities of relationships and he intentionally, masterfully weaved these elements into his poetry—revealing that he was not the innocent bard one might have made him out to be. Shakespeare had secrets, and probably long-lost loves, trysts, and other such adventures in romance that gave him fodder for his writing. For example, he could recall how he felt and then put that onto paper. That resonated with readers, and has been popular ever since. One must also be a spiritually strong person. One should also demonstrate that one is a well-rounded person, and that, as such, one has some type of spiritual foundation, even if one is a hard-core atheist. One should maintain one’s beliefs, a sense of self, and one’s spiritual journey—before, during, and after one meets a friend, or perhaps if that friendship turns into the aforementioned love, and what will now be discussed here, marriage. IV. Marriage Marriage definitely forces both parties in a marriage to compromise. However, by the same token, married couples must also learn how to overcome obstacles within their reach. Shakespeare talks about the ‘marriage of true minds,’ speaking to the fact that people who get married basically think alike in many ways. “Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark 
That looks on tempests and is never shaken…”6 Another issue that Shakespeare brings up in this poem, Sonnet 116, is that love—at least, true love—is grounded in the eternal idea that marriage is forever (supported by many religions which do not condone divorce). “[M]arriage appears at the beginning of Shakespeare's sonnets as a means of binding the friends…and again in sonnet 116…”7 Marriage is obviously a large part of what we traditionally think to be as an institution which generally is societally acceptable in order for people to procreate and raise families. However, interestingly enough, after doing some research, it was found out that Shakespeare actually wasn’t talking about heterosexual marriage when he wrote this poem. He was talking about the relationship between two male friends. Shakespeare himself was often gone from his home (and his wife) for months at a time. This suggests that he was more the type of person who had developed close friendships with male friends. He was actually talking about the marriage of true minds being two men who had forged a bond between each other. In Shakespeare’s time in England, friendship between men was not only desirable but encouraged. Whether those friendships ever crossed the line from platonic to romantic relations is anyone’s guess. However, this says something about the state of marriage in Shakespeare’s time. Marriages were more a societal shield, borne out of convenience—because it was helpful to have a wife. The wife did the chores, took care of her husband, and in short had a very narrow window of opportunities to do various things—including having social visits. Women were limited as to what they could do, where they could go, and so forth—they had to be careful. Of course, marriage definitely was more for convenience for many couples, and this is even possibly true of Shakespeare. What we do know, however, is that, over time, marriages in the name of convenience are more and more rare and there are mainly love marriages taking place now. However, for many cultures in the world, marriages in the name of convenience are still in vogue—women oftentimes being left to their own devices for being the child care providers, as well as the breadwinners and caregivers. V. Conclusion The triune themes of love, friendship, and marriage are present within the Shakespearean sonnets numbers 30, 55, and 116. Some of Shakespeare’s most famous aphorisms were derived from these poems, shedding light on the state of the lover, the friend, and the married individual. Without a doubt, William Shakespeare left an indelible etch on the way that people see these differing themes—due to the fact that he was passionate about what he wrote. This original candor is what has helped Shakespeare’s work survive through the ages—being a rather bald account of what the state relationships can invariably take, including everything from the joy of marriage to the pain of separation and divorce. Whether he knew it or not, Shakespeare created a rather outstanding body of work that will most definitely stand the tests of time as great literature which sheds light on the human condition with relation to these three great themes in English literary history. WORKS CITED Matz, Robert. The World of Shakespeare’s Sonnets: An Introduction. US: McFarland, 2008. Pp. 96. Shakespeare, William. “Shakespeare Online: Sonnet 30.” Retrieved 22 Oct 2011 at: < http://www.shakespeare-online.com/sonnets/30.html>. Shakespeare, William. “Shakespeare Online: Sonnet 55.” Retrieved 22 Oct 2011 at: . Shakespeare, William. “Shakespeare Online: Sonnet 116.” Retrieved 22 Oct 2011 at: . Shakespeare's Sonnets: The Complete Guide. US: eM Publications, 2011. Read More