William Shakespeare broke the code of traditional sonnets established in England in his time both in his choice of content and organization of theme as he subtly poked fun at the romantic ideals of his age. English sonnets generally followed the Petrarchan ideal, in which an idealistic feminine figure was presented as both the cause and the balm for all of the male lover’s sorrows. His feelings for her cause him to experience multiple emotional extremes while also inspiring him to reach new spiritual heights. Shakespeare’s sonnets, such as Sonnet 55 “Not marble nor the gilded monuments”, alter this traditional theme, attempting to replace it with something more permanent than the external and changing attributes of the human form. At the same time, Shakespeare also alters the sound of the sonnet as he adjusts the way in which the theme is delivered from the traditional sestet/octet organization to one based on three quatrains and a couplet. These ideas become clear as they are applied to Sonnet 55 “Not marble nor the gilded monuments.”
Shakespeare changes the content of the traditional sonnet in this particular poem by placing the focus on the true permanence of the image rather than the physical ‘permanence’ of the woman herself. In the Petrarchan tradition, the expected content was an idealized portrayal of the physical attributes of the idealized feminine to such a degree that she couldn’t possibly be a real woman (McLaughlin, 1999). Recognizing that the human body is doomed to decay and disintegration, Shakespeare constantly sought more permanent means of honoring the thought of his muse. In this sonnet, he turns to the more timeless yet still ultimately vulnerable forms of architecture to emphasize the greater longevity of a masterful sonnet as compared to these structures. After describing how the greatest monuments eventually become “unswept stone, besmear’d with sluttish time” (Shakespeare 4) and how “wasteful war shall statues overturn” (5), he indicates his poetry will be able to outlast these types of monuments because of its ability to be preserved within a hearts and minds of lovers “Even in the eyes of all posterity / That wear this world out to the ending doom” (11-12). Therefore, while Shakespeare is still satisfying his cultural expectations within his sonnet in that he is directly addressing the concept of idealized love, he changes the focus to emphasizing the emotion of love itself as being worthy of preservation as it is embodied, for him, in the figure of the woman to whom he has written the poem. Her memory is preserved better through this memory of love than through any attempt to capture her outward appearance or specific attributes.
Shakespeare can also be seen to change the traditional format of the sonnet in his delivery of the theme. A common feature of the traditional sonnet is the concept of a turning point within the poem’s theme. “The sonnet can be thematically divided into two sections: the first presents the theme, raises an issue or doubt, and the second part answers the question, resolves the problem or drives home the poem’s point” (McLaughlin, 1999). In the Petrarchan ideal which was the standard for much of England, this turning occurs at the end of the first eight lines, which is called the octave. The answer or point of the poem is then provided in the last six lines of the poem, which are called the sestet. However, Shakespeare broke the theme down a little more. In most of his sonnets, including this one, it can be seen how he broke the theme down into three quatrains (four-line sections) which each work to develop a portion of the main idea and then concludes the poem with a final heroic couplet, two lines that rhyme with each other, as a means of answering the question. In the first quatrain of this poem, Shakespeare presents the problem of building monuments as honorariums because when the culture dies, the buildings stop receiving care and are then overcome by nature. The second quatrain focuses on what happens when buildings receive too much attention, “Nor Mars his sword nor war’s quick fire shall burn / The living record of your memory” (7-8). The third quatrain switches the tone to promise that the woman’s memory will “pace forth; your praise shall still find room” (10), but after pointing out the problems of architecture as a means of preserving a memory it is difficult to imagine how this promise might be kept. Shakespeare provides his answer in the final couplet, promising that “till the judgment that yourself arise / You live in this, and dwell in lovers’ eyes” (13-14). In other words, until she is walking around in the flesh again after judgment day, she will be remembered within the lines of his poetry and in the emotional looks exchanged between lovers.
In his treatment of content and form, Shakespeare breaks the codes of the traditional sonnet even while he delivers on the expectations of his audience. Expectations for sonnets held that they should be about idealized love, which Shakespeare delivers. However, while other poets were painting unrealistic pictures of their lovers’ divine attributes and going into great detail regarding how they were inspired to new spiritual realms simply because of their woman’s beauty, Shakespeare focuses on the real question at stake, that being the emotion of love itself. In doing this, he fundamentally changes the content of this form of poetry from one of physical idealization to one of emotional response. At the same time, he also changes the format of the sonnet form. In changing the delivery of the theme to three quatrains and a couplet instead of an octet and sestet, Shakespeare introduces a change in the typical rhythm of the poetic form, forcing his audience to pay closer attention. As a result, he delivers on his promise – Shakespeare’s poetry is still remembered today as the poetry of true, undying love.
Works Cited
- McLaughlin, Damon. “Sonnet.” Craft of Poetry. (1999). Web.
- Shakespeare, William. Sonnet 55: “Not marble nor the gilded monuments.” The Complete Pelican Shakespeare. New York: Viking, 1969.