1. SONNET 116: lesson
Thursday, 20 September 2018

2. TEXT The ! Shows the strength of conviction here.
A strong caesura following enjambment stresses the power of the statement. It is also an impediment to the flow of the poem
Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove: O no! it is an ever-fixed mark  That looks on tempests and is never shaken; It is the star to every wandering bark, Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken. Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks  Within his bending sickle's compass come:  Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,  But bears it out even to the edge of doom.    If this be error and upon me proved,    I never writ, nor no man ever loved. 
The ! Shows the strength of conviction here.
Natural stress of Iambic Pentameter lands on NOT ?FOOL… why?
Again the stress is on the negative, rather than on love.

3. Quick quiz:
How many lines make up a Sonnet? What is the form of a Shakespearean Sonnet? What other poem you have read is also a sonnet? Is the structure the same? What do we call the change in focus at line 9? What is the technical term for the last 6 lines of a sonnet? What is the technical term for the four line groups in a Shakespearean sonnet?

4. Ideas:
Pairing of words Imagery of the Sea Time and love as enemies

5. Pairs:
. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove: Can you think of any reason why Shakespeare is so keen to use these pairs in the opening lines? What might he be representing in language here?

6. The Sea and nature
Much loved by Shakespeare as a source of imagery… O no! it is an ever-fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken; It is the star to every wandering bark, Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken. What do you think the “bark” represents in this metaphor? Why do you think that the sea is used so often to metaphorically explore the travails of the human condition?

7. Time and Love
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks Within his bending sickle's compass come: Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, But bears it out even to the edge of doom. Love is not controlled by time… what specific ideas do the highlighted words give you?

8. Conclusion
If this be error and upon me proved, I never writ, nor no man ever loved. What is the poet saying here? Why is he saying this – what point is he making?

9. Essay thinking…
Question: Write about the attitudes to love in Sonnet 116 and one other poem. (which would you choose?) Answer: Points you could make: Both poems explore the power of love. In Sonnet 116 love's ability to endure "even until the edge of doom" is praised. In Sonnet 116 love endures until time’s end. This might compare to love fading over time, for example. Language associated with endurance and constancy shows a positive attitude to love in Sonnet 116.