Introduction
William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 60: Like as the Waves Make Towards the Pebbl’d Shore discusses the connection between love, death, and time. William Shakespeare’s sonnets frequently address the cruel, impersonal march of time. The speaker claims that the moments of our lives endlessly move toward mortality, naturally depriving individuals of their attractiveness, similar to how waves endlessly roll onto the shore.
The poem is devoted to a young person whom the author intends to preserve within the text. The author believes this sonnet will endure over time, which is the main distinction between humans and art. It states that Shakespeare emphasizes the quick passage of time and the mortality of people, opposing it to the eternal love preserved in words.
The Relationship Between Time, Death, and Love in Shakespeare’s Sonnet 60
Time
It is possible to illustrate the idea of the relation of time, death, and love with the lines from Shakespeare’s sonnet. For instance, the speaker states, “Our minutes” resemble waves coming on the coast; similarly to how a new wave comes forward, the old wave is gone (Shakespeare 1). Consequently, a new instant “toil[s]” ahead when the old period is finished (Shakespeare 1).
Death
The writer uses this analogy to portray the flow of time as inescapable and unavoidable, with the “minutes” of human existence being drawn relentlessly toward “their end” (Shakespeare 1). It follows that individuals begin “crawling” into maturity, old age, and demise as soon as they are born (Shakespeare 1). In other words, life passes in a moment and is a quick passage to death.
According to the speaker, time is like a cruel deceiver who provides people with the pleasures of life in an instant, only to take them away. With time’s progress comes suffering and decline, emphasizing its evil character. The poet writes that as time passes, “parallels” are carved into their forehead (Shakespeare 1). Time is the brutal assassin who uses his “scythe” to “mow” humanity to death by feasting on all of the “rarities” of existence, including everything positive about being alive (Shakespeare 1). Therefore, the passage of time has a negative connotation, as the sonnet shows.
Love
The only chance for the person to survive, at least in the memory of others, is love. The speaker claims that the poem is a single thing that may “stand” the test of eternity (Shakespeare 1). According to Shakespeare, poetry can maintain people’s “worth” in text, even when the protagonists die from the “cruel hand” of the time (Shakespeare 1).
Therefore, poetry offers a certain level of longevity, as the author assumes. The narrator “hopes” that this is correct, but only history will prove it. In other words, love is reflected in the poet’s desire to write about the young person in verse, and it is the only way to eternity.
Conclusion
Sonnet number 60 by William Shakespeare’s Like as the Waves Make Towards the Pebbl Shore uses analogies and metaphors to show the inevitable and cruel character of time passage. The individual does not have the opportunity to escape from death, which will come and ruin everything. Poetry, in turn, is how people can express their love to others and the only way to preserve their love in the memory of future generations. The discussed sonnet that honors the young person is an example of the preservation of love through time that cannot be affected by death.
Work Cited
Shakespeare, William. Sonnet 60: Like as the Waves Make Towards the Pebbl’d Shore. Potery Foundation. Web.