Metaphors are used extensively throughout Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 73” to paint a picture. Conceptions, or “fanciful extended metaphors,” have long been used in love poems, and Shakespeare himself used them in his play As You Like It. In “Sonnet 73,” Shakespeare shows his mastery of this form of poetry. A metaphor is demonstrated by a straightforward comparison of two things, in which one thing is referred to as if it were the other. The speaker expresses their feelings about growing older in “Sonnet 73,” using a variety of metaphors. Poems, just collections of interchangeable metaphors, are uncommon; this one is not one of them. A story about a person who gradually accepts that his time on this planet is limited and that he will not be around for much longer, Shakespeare employs three central metaphors in this sonnet to convey his emotions to the reader: There’s one about growing older, one about dying, and then there’s one about love. A beautiful poem is created by combining these three metaphors.
Shakespeare uses a blooming fall tree in full bloom as his first metaphor in Hamlet. According to this quotation, the author compares himself to a tree at a point in its life cycle when all of its leaves are yellow or completely absent. Shakespeare compares himself to an old tree in one of his plays, representing the passage of time. Shakespeare’s hair could fall out in the same way that the tree’s leaves do. Shakespeare’s bones deteriorate over time, just like the tree. This is not because he expresses it explicitly but because his lover notices it in him. During this “time of year,” the “yellow leaves” are nearly totally off the trees and the boughs “shake against the cold.” We have arrived at that time of year in late October. Winter’s coming is heralded by these allegories, which allude to the season’s inherent melancholy. In this case, it appears that the speaker’s season and age are inextricably linked. Given that winter is traditionally associated with the end of the year, the speaker is likely to die within the next few months.
Another example of metaphor: “In me, thou seest the twilight of such day” He then says, “Which black night will eventually take away, death’s second self, which seals up all rest.” When a tree dies, the surrounding atmosphere changes dramatically. This is how a person’s life ends, according to Shakespeare. As the sun begins to set, the narrator continues to describe the scene, saying, “As after sunset fadeth in the west,” If you pay close attention to what is being said, it appears that Death has a second self as the light fades into the darkness. As night falls, the speaker’s youth is revealed to have faded with time, as depicted in this poem. The light emitted during “black night” will eventually go out on its own. The poet wrote this poem while facing the prospect of Death for the second time.
William Shakespeare’s last metaphor compares himself to a blazing bush. In this scene, Shakespeare’s previous metaphor was used. “In me, thou seest the glowing of such fire That on the ashes of his youth lie, As the deathbed whereon it must expire, Consumed with that which it was nourished by,” it is said (Shakespeare, ii). Shakespeare is extinguished on the stage as the flames die down. Even though the logs that formerly fed the fire have long since been destroyed, the speaker sees himself as a smoldering ember. It makes no difference that the speaker and his love haven’t seen each other in a long time; they have a strong emotional bond. The speaker uses paradox as a metaphor to show that their passion is as fierce as the flames of an engulfing fireball.
In conclusion, when questioned about the play, Shakespeare replies, “thou perceivest, which enhances thy love, to love that well which thou shalt quit ere long” (568). The author demonstrates the interconnectedness of all three concepts by establishing this link. Many people believe that you should make the most of your love while still alive because it will eventually fade and be forgotten. The icing on the cake is that she intends to be by his side throughout his senior year (Brandt).
Works Cited
Brandt, P. A. “Metaphors and meaning in Shakespeare’s sonnet 73.” The Shakespearean International Yearbook, 2017, pp. 123-132, doi: 10.4324/9781351145329-6.
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