Nicholas Eaton

13 August 2014
Ms. Gardner
English 10H 0 Period
Rays of all colors fill the sky of the mind,
So pure, so bright, so filled with life,
With their sheer power, yet so kind,
Yet despite their beauty, so filled with strife.
Yet, The last of them signal something more,
Than just an ending of the cycle,
The darkness that follows is the score,
To a song truly maniacal.
In the crystal grove of the night,
Where the mind become reality,
Yet all thats theres a lack of light!
Perhaps it is just human falicy.
Without the promise of morning rays,
How would we know the day?

Unthrifty loveliness, why dost thou spend a

Upon thyself thy beautys legacy? b

Natures bequest gives nothing, but doth lend, a
And, being frank, she lends to those are free. b
Then, beauteous niggard, why dost thou abuse c
The bounteous largess given thee to give? d
Profitless usurer, why dost thou use c
So great a sum of sums yet canst not live? d
For having traffic with thyself alone, e
Thou of thyself thy sweet self dost deceive. f
Then how when nature calls thee to be gone, e
What acceptable audit canst thou leave? f
Thy unused beauty must be tombed with thee, g
Which usd lives th' executor to be. G

In sonnet 4, Shakespeare aims to show someone he has affection for how they are
wasting their time trying to make themselves someone different, and how everybody is born
with their own unique beauty. Through the verses, the poet comes to terms with the others
decision to beautify themselves. The bitter and tantalizing diction helps support the longing
tone shown throughout the sonnet. However, Shakespeare weaves into his compliments
aggressive words such as niggard to contradict the seemingly sweet tone. Also, the
euphonious tone mixed with somewhat cacophonous statements helps emphasize
Shakespeares deep desire for the target to just be themselves for once. For example, diction
such as unthrifty loveliness shows the poets love for the recipient, yet diction such as
beauteous niggard demonstrates his slight discontent for how they choose to handle
themselves. The sonnet shows a progression in the poet as the original serenity turns into an
anger. This change is so drastic that at the beginning, Shakespeare uses a complimenting
tone, and by the end he is talking about the lovers death. For example, in the first line
Unthrifty loveliness can be seen to regard the recipient as perhaps imprudent with money,
but beautiful none the less. However, in the final lines, Thy unused beauty must be tombed
with thee seems to resonate an evil vibe, as if to say the person is so worried about how
they appear that they will die without ever showing anyone the beauty of their real self. In
conclusion, Shakespeares Sonnet 4 tells a tale of longing to change a loved one, yet with the
poets hands tied. It is a concise depiction of human tendency to want to change what we
cannot, and a look into Shakespeares opinion of true beauty.