Sonnet+130+Analysis

At first glance, this sonnet may seem to be a traditional romantic poem, confessing a man's love for his beautiful mistress. However, by taking a closer look at the words, you can see that, rather than glorifying her beauty, he is describing her honestly. Rather than saying her eyes are beautiful, he says they are not like the sun. Instead of describing her beauty and qualities, he compares her to magnificent things. He says everything that is more beautiful and better, and that she doesn't live up to it. He's being harshly honest. Rather than saying that she has luscious dark black locks, he says her hair is like black wires, and she's not blonde. (Like every mans fantasy.) Even though it may seem like he does not like her because of her numerous faults, he still says that his love for her is rare and like no other.