William Shakespeare s A Summer s Day - 1230 Words

Analysis Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day Compared to the playwrights that came before and after him, William Shakespeare has always stood out as an outstanding example of creative genius. Throughout his 52 year life [Birth and Death, 2014], he wrote more poems than many people ever do. With tons of poems, over 150 sonnets, and many plays, he is easily one of the most influential writers in history. Throughout these works, he created dozens of words, and paved the way for future creation of literary magic. Born in 1564, his creations were aimed at the audience of the Renaissance era. This was a time of revolutionary ideas, and groundbreaking twists of ordinary practices. Shakespeare dropped out of school to rise up to the ranks†¦show more content†¦The unpleasant images then continue with the line sometimes too hot the eye of heaven shines†, by painting an image of a summer day being so hot that it is past the point of being pleasurable. â€Å"And often is his gold complexion dimmed†, takes the image ry of heat, and turns it down into an undesirable dimness. In the line, â€Å"nor shall death brag that wander’st in his shade†, the dimness is then brought down to a gloomy shade, created by an image of death, or a Grim Reaper, blocking the sun. The images created by death â€Å"bragging† are ominous and almost sinister. The â€Å"shade† created by death is big enough to â€Å"wander in†, and definitely paints a somber image. Continuing with the images of death and aging, the line â€Å"when in eternal lines to time thou grow’est†, creates an image of wrinkles appearing on an aging persons face. The reader is led to imagine that this old person is very close to death. However, the persona then brings the images full circle with the line so long as men can breathe, or eyes can see†, by connecting death to the life that continues around it. The images go hand in hand with the persona’s manipulation of tone throughout the poem. Shakespeare seems to have perfected the use of tone in his works. An amazing roller-coaster pattern can be recognized from analyzing the manipulation of tone in this particular piece of literature. The tone of the poem opens up very lighthearted, laudatory, and