Xue 1

Krystle Xue
Sonnet Analysis
In Sonnet 142, love has a mask: it may be joyful, but it can deceive and steals things
away. William Shakespeares use of organic personification and lawful/economic or religious
diction explores the poets thought of love, or in this case, how love is the poets sin. The use of
alliteration in the line robbed others beds revenues of their rents showed that the poet is
trying to show how love can steal something away. The alliteration creates an emphasis on the
words robbed, revenues, rent to explain what he wants to express--love will rob you of
your rent. The first few lines states that the poet thinks so badly of love, he goes far enough to
state, love is my sin. The use of the words sin and sinful help support his problem or to
explore it. The word sin is used only three times, but it stays in your head as you try to
understand the poet throughout the poem. The poet uses the words grounded on sinful loving
to explain that he is stuck on loving someone, he doesnt want to love. He also uses lawful and
economic diction to show how love can take things away from you, Robbed others beds
revenues of their rents. or lawful. Love is a human with beauty. The description of the scarlet
ornaments clearly relates to lipstick, bringing the listener to think of what Love looks like: a
young beautiful lady or a young handsome man. The phrase whom thine eyes woo if someone
decides to look into the eyes of someone in love, there will be happiness and joy. Even though
love has a mask, it has ups and downs like a roller coaster. The hidden message the poet is saying
is that although love is his sin, its also one of the most beautiful forces of human nature; yet it
comes with a price.