Holy Sonnet XIV

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for a wider audience as he is trying to get people to see his point of view. This is that the conventional blazon of the love sonnet is inaccurate and either ridiculous or impossible.


The language used for each sonnet is both different and surprising. In Shakespeare’s sonnet the language is interesting because in a love sonnet the reader does not expect language like "black wires grow on her head’ or "her breasts are dun". Shakespeare uses this language to ridicule the descriptions in other love sonnets. For example, he makes us think how unnatural it would be to have lips the colour of coral. By using harsh descriptions Shakespeare also manages to show his love for his mistress just as effectively as if he had written a conventional love sonnet. He tells us that even if his mistresses’ breath did "reek" he would love her anyway.


The language John Donne uses is also surprising although it is slightly less obvious than the Shakespearean sonnet. ...

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that that which we use today. This influences our interpretation of the sonnet. For example, today we would use the word "reeks" as an uncomplimentary description of a bad smell. When Shakespeare uses the word "reeks" to describe his mistress’s breath he is simply saying that her breath smells, not that it smells unpleasant.


It could be said that John Donne’s sonnet is more personal than Shakespeare’s sonnet as it is addressing a feeling that is probably felt only by him. Shakespeare is giving his views on love, a feeling that is known throughout the world. Although Shakespeare’s views of the love sonnet are controversial many people would have been able to ...

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