What Metaphors and Symbols are Used in Sonnet 18 by Shakespeare? Is the Summer a Symbol for Youth?

    Shakespeare's Sonnet 18, "Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day?" is a masterful example of English poetry that captures the essence of love, beauty, and the eternal nature of art. This timeless sonnet is celebrated not only for its lyrical beauty but also for its rich use of metaphors and symbols. We will look into into Sonnet 18 to explore the metaphors and symbols employed by Shakespeare, focusing on the question of whether summer is a symbol for youth.

Metaphors and Symbols in Sonnet- 18:

Sonnet 18: "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?"

    Before we dive into the analysis of metaphors and symbols in Sonnet 18, let's first examine the poem in its entirety:

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate:

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer's lease hath all too short a date:

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd;

But thy eternal summer shall not fade

Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;

Nor shall Death brag thou wanderest in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou growest:

So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,

So long lives this and this gives life to thee.

 

Metaphors in Sonnet 18

    Comparing the Beloved to a Summer's Day: The central metaphor of the sonnet is Shakespeare's comparison of his beloved to a summer's day. This metaphor sets the stage for the entire poem, inviting the reader to explore the qualities and characteristics of the beloved by contrasting them with the features of a summer's day.

     "Thou art more lovely and more temperate": In the second line, the poet employs the metaphor of "more lovely and more temperate" to emphasize the superior nature of the beloved's beauty when compared to the extremes and fluctuations of a summer's day. The use of "temperate" suggests a balanced and harmonious beauty, in contrast to the potential excesses of summer.

You Can also Read: Shakespeare's Characterization. 

    "And often is his gold complexion dimm'd": Here, the metaphor of "gold complexion" is used to describe the sun's radiant appearance. The use of "dimmed" suggests that the sun's brilliance can be overshadowed by clouds or adverse conditions. This metaphor underscores the transient and imperfect nature of the summer day's beauty.

    "By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd": In this line, the poet employs the metaphor of "nature's changing course" to refer to the unpredictable and uncontrollable forces of nature. The term "untrimm'd" suggests that these forces can disrupt or alter the fair appearance of nature, highlighting the impermanence of natural beauty.

Symbols in Sonnet 18

    Summer: Summer in Sonnet 18 serves as a symbol of the transience and fleeting nature of beauty. It represents the passing of time and the inevitable decay that all natural beauty experiences. Summer is a symbol that Shakespeare contrasts with the enduring beauty of the beloved.

You Can also Read: Shakespeare's Wit & Humour.

     Eternal Summer: The phrase "thy eternal summer" symbolizes the beloved's beauty and virtues. It represents an eternal state of youth and attractiveness that will never fade. This symbol is used to emphasize the timeless and immortal nature of the beloved's qualities.

    "Eternal lines to time thou growest": The act of immortalizing the beloved's beauty in the written word becomes a symbol of preservation and immortality. The "eternal lines" represent the lines of the poem, which will keep the beloved's beauty alive through time.

    Death: The mention of Death in the sonnet symbolizes mortality and the inevitable passage of time. The idea that Death "brags thou wanderest in his shade" signifies the poet's conviction that, through the power of the poem, the beloved will escape the clutches of mortality and remain vibrant and eternal.

Is Summer a Symbol for Youth?

    The question of whether summer is a symbol for youth in Sonnet 18 has been a subject of debate among literary scholars and critics. While the sonnet clearly draws parallels between the beloved's beauty and the qualities of a summer's day, it does not explicitly equate summer with youth. Instead, the poem highlights the ephemeral nature of summer, emphasizing its brevity, unpredictability, and potential for imperfection.

    Shakespeare uses the changing characteristics of a summer's day to underscore the idea that all things beautiful and fair are subject to decline and decay. In this context, summer serves as a symbol for the fleeting and transient nature of beauty, but it is not a direct symbol for youth itself.

 

You Can also Read: Theme of Shakespeare's Sonnet-18.

 

    The key symbol for youth in the sonnet is the phrase "thy eternal summer. "This expression conveys the idea that the beloved's beauty and virtues will remain eternally youthful and unchanging, preserved through the act of writing. The emphasis here is on the everlasting quality of the beloved's attributes rather than the association of summer with youth.

    Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 is a masterpiece that uses metaphors and symbols to explore the themes of love, beauty, and the power of art to transcend time. While the sonnet draws comparisons between the beloved and a summer's day, it does not explicitly symbolize summer as youth. Instead, summer serves as a symbol for the impermanence of natural beauty, emphasizing its transience and vulnerability to change.

    The core symbol for youth in Sonnet 18 is the idea of "eternal summer" representing the unchanging and enduring nature of the beloved's beauty and virtues. Through this symbol, Shakespeare immortalizes the beloved, asserting that the written lines of the poem will keep the essence of the friend's youth and beauty alive for all time. In this way, Sonnet 18 stands as a testament to the power of poetry to capture and preserve the most precious qualities of the human heart.