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Literary Visions

Naked Truth in Sonnet 130

William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 130 begins as if scorning the nakedness of his mistress but in fact worships the true love that is there.The first line begins with
"her eyes are nothing like the sun" and continues this route, letting the reader see the lack of brilliance in this woman’s features. From the dullness of her eyes to the lack of rose hue in her cheeks, she is set up as quite average, or at least, she lacks the brilliance some sonnet subjects have.  This seems strange considering the purpose of a sonnet, but the flow of comparisons only shows the naked gaze of truth the bard has on his mistress.

The poem sets up his un-goddess in harsh light instead of the soft haze one finds in traditional sonnets. This harsh light softens, though, near the turning point of line 9. Here, one reads "I love to hear her speak . . ." Though he then continues to say that her voice lacks the rapture of music, he still loves to hear her speak. This shows that love might, indeed, be felt for this average and plain woman.Though her eyes are dull, she has plain cheeks, and her voice is not the most pleasing, but he loves her. A few more lines build up to this surprising conclusion.

The surprise in the last few lines seems even more a twist on the odd tone of this sonnet. Instead of saying that she is not good enough for him, his realizations of homeliness only prove the "love is rare" in line 13. Perhaps this rare love is that of true love. This love is not the fairy tale love a romantic would write about in another sonnet, but the true love Shakespeare has captured.

Truth comes in many forms, including the harsh sonnet of love that Shakespeare wrote in Sonnet 130. He shows his mistress in the starkness of her beauty, and accepts her. He loves her for who she is and not as some goddess up on a pedestal. No romantic mood lighting falls on the sonnet’s subject. No candles are lit to soften the flaws of a lover’s face. No incense is burned to mask any unpleasant odors. Instead, the poet presents the value of love, unmasked and true. This healthy view of love shines through, overshadowing the dull eyes she has, but not the naked truth woven expertly throughout.

 To see the sonnet in its entirety, go to:

http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/user/sorcan/otherpoetry/sonnet130.html

Have a difference of opinion? Think that Shakespeare doesn't show love at all, but something else? Tell me!