Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day - Sonnet XVIII | BOSEM Solved Textbook Exercises

 Board of Secondary Education Manipur (BOSEM)

Class - X
English Literature Reader (Poetry)
Chapter - 1

Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day

William Shakespeare

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate:

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer’s lease hath all too short a date:

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimmed,

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance, or nature’s changing course untrimmed:

But thy eternal summer shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st,

Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st,

So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

Substance of the Poem

The poem "Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?" aims to justify the beauty of the speaker’s beloved by likening it to a summer’s day. After highlighting some negative aspects of summer, the speaker concludes that his beloved surpasses it. Despite the brevity and occasional discomfort of summer, the beloved possesses timeless beauty that is always delightful to behold. In this sonnet, Shakespeare uses simple imagery to convey that the beloved’s beauty can coexist with summer and even surpass it, without being a mere substitute.

Analysis

The poem begins with the speaker posing a simple question: Can he compare his lover to a summer’s day? Traditionally, summer has been utilised in poetry to symbolise beauty. It is viewed as a time of rejuvenation, where the earth blossoms with flowers and wildlife after the harshness of winter. By comparing his lover to a summer’s day, the speaker suggests that their beloved represents a form of renewal, surpassing even the beauty of summer itself.

The speaker does not view summer as the pinnacle of beauty, as it can be fleeting, excessively hot, and harsh. Instead, he attributes this quality to his beloved, whose beauty will never diminish, even when facing the challenges of life and mortality. The speaker vows to immortalize his lover’s beauty through his verse, ensuring that it will endure beyond the passage of time.

So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee."

The speaker finds immortality for his beloved's love and beauty through poetry. Even though they may die and fade with time, the poem will endure, be recited, and outlast them. Therefore, through the words, the beauty of his beloved will also live on.

Shakespeare's sonnets are known for their simple imagery, in contrast to his plays, which often contain rich and layered imagery. In this sonnet, the sense of summer is conveyed through mentions of the 'darling buds of May' and the description of the sun as 'golden-complexioned'.

Interestingly, the poem does not provide a detailed description of the lover. Some scholars argue that the vagueness of the beloved's description suggests that the poem is not addressed to a specific person, but rather it is a love poem about love poetry itself, which will persist under the guise of being a love poem.

The final two lines seem to support this interpretation as they shift from describing the lover to emphasising the lasting nature of the poem. As long as people can read and breathe, the poem will endure, and the lover will also endure because he is the subject of the poem.

Textbook Exercises

I. Answer the following in a sentence each.

1. Who is thee?

Ans.: - "Thee" here is the poet's friend.

2. What does the wind do the flowers?

Ans.: - The wind shakes the flower - the darling buds of May.

3. What is "Summer's lease"?

Ans.: - "Summer's lease" signifies the duration of summer.

4. Whose 'gold complexion' is referred to in the poem?

Ans.: - 'Gold complexion' here is referred to the sun.

5. What are the 'eternal lines' mentioned in the poem?

Ans.: - The 'eternal lines' mentioned in the poem are the everlasting lines of the poem.

6. 'So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.' Identify 'this' in the above line.

Ans.: - This here represents the poem the poet has written for his friend.

II. Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Describe the beauty of a summer's day in England.

Ans.: - On a summer day in England, the weather is truly a gift. The country takes on an enchanting appearance during this time, as the summer day brings forth beauty and charm. Additionally, the temperature is just right, neither too hot nor too cold, adding to the allure of England's summer days. This is what makes a summer day in England so delightful.

2. 'Thou art more lovely and more temperate' Explain.

Or

How does the poet compare the beauty of his friend with that of a summer's day?

Ans.: - In England, a summer day is considered a blessing. It is characterised by its brightness, beauty, and loveliness. The temperature is just right, neither too hot nor too cold. However, the poet believes that the beauty of his friend surpasses that of a summer's day. He expresses that his friend's beauty is more lovely and constant, unlike the fleeting nature of a summer day. This is why he declares, "Thou art more lovely and more temperate."

3. 'And often is his gold complexion dimmed.' What does the poet mean by it?

Ans.: - The line "And often is his gold complexion dimmed" can be restated as "And frequently his radiant golden appearance is obscured." In this line, the poet describes how the sun's bright and beautiful golden complexion is often overshadowed or dimmed, likely by the presence of dark clouds in the sky. This conveys the transient nature of the sun's brilliance and beauty.

4. Why does the poet say 'every fair from fair sometimes decline'?

Ans.: - The poet suggests that nature is filled with captivating sights and sounds, such as the beauty of flowers, the warmth of summer, and the radiant glow of the sun. However, the beauty of a summer's day is fleeting and impermanent. It can be marred by unpredictable events or shifts in the natural order, leading to its eventual destruction. This is the essence of the line as conveyed by the poet.

5. 'Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade.' Why cannot death brag?

Ans.: - The poet suggests that death is an unstoppable force that no one can evade and nothing can withstand. However, the poet believes that death is powerless when confronted with the eternal beauty of his friend. The friend's beauty transcends mortality and becomes immortalised through art in the poet's verse. This interpretation captures the essence of the poet's intended message.

6. 'So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.' Explain.

Ans.: - The poet in the line expresses the enduring nature of his poem and the timeless beauty of his friend. He conveys that his poem is everlasting, as he believes that as long as people live and their eyes can perceive, his poem will endure. He further suggests that as long as his poem endures, it will bestow immortality upon his friend's beauty.

Extra Question

1. Why does the poet say that his friend's beauty is eternal?

Ans.: - The poet believes that his friend's beauty is immune to destruction by chance or natural forces. Even death cannot diminish his friend's beauty. As long as there are people alive with the ability to see, the poem will live on, granting everlasting life to his friend's beauty. Therefore, the poet asserts that his friend's beauty is timeless and everlasting.