Analysis of Sonnet 50

In Sonnet 50, the traveler is heavy-laden by sorrow: after some distance is traveled, the
vagabond resolves to face his fate. Through heart-wrenching diction and maddening imagery,
William Shakespeare intricately designs the longing heart of a traveler through his words.
Resounding in the readers mind are the phrases tired with my woe and the wretch and
finally, lovd not after the sonnet has ceased its steady drum because the severe diction used
draws attention as the reader empathizes with the enervated rider. These phrases convey an
image of brutality to the heart of the reader, fabricating a lost willingness to live without a
beloved friend nearby. In the sonnet, bloody spur and anger thrusts into his hide cause
turmoil, enveloping the speaker and inducing fearful images to surround the reader as the
cacophonous phrases leave a grim tone over the entire sonnet. Besides its imagery, the phrase,
anger thrusts into his hide is a brilliant use of personification; with anger as the subject, the
reader understands that the physical side and the emotional side of the speaker are not in
synchronization when the speaker later says, he answer with a groan, more sharp to me than
spurring to his side. Through the continued thoughts in the speakers mind, it is uncovered that
the speaker is driven by grief from leaving his dear friend, causing him to only see the pain,
suffering, and melancholy in the world. In addition, it unearths the thrashing his heart is enduring
because of the separation from his friend; he is therefore taking it out on his horse. Finally, in the
last line, My grief lies onward, and my joy behind is a wonderful example of the euphonious

and cacophonous letters joining together in a sorrowful but accepting way that shows the
resignation concerning the future of the speaker. In the end, the poet is powerless against his fate,
and therefore submits with a heavy heart while dragging his mount through his sorrowing trials.
Therefore, the poet feels a small triumph despite his unbearable grief: that he was able to unravel
a portion of his desperate longing for a sight of his beloved.