My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun...

External Form #1: Sonnet 130 by William Shakespeare can be found on p. 1034 of the Norton :)

This sonnet by William Shakespeare is one of his few outright humorous sonnets. It is written in the traditional English Sonnet format consisting of the abab cdcd efef gg rhyme scheme. It is fourteen lines, just as a sonnet is classified to be.

Shakespeare uses the 4-4-4-2 format, meaning three quatrains and and one couplet in that order. He uses each quatrain to build up to his ultimate point made in the final couplet. The first quatrain in Sonnet 130 consists of four separate comparisons of the speaker's lover. Each comparison (or lack thereof) is described in one line. For example, the speaker describes his mistress' eyes in line one, her lips in line two, and so on.

However, as he continues, the speaker builds up his argument and utilizes two lines for each argument. This gives the feeling of more passion and thought in the speaker's mind. The speaker uses two lines to describe his mistress' cheeks, breath, voice, and walk. The extra description and space gives more significance the the speaker's opinion of his mistress. However, we must remember that the speaker is building up to a certain point which he reaches in the final two lines, or the last couplet.

Here, the speaker admits that despite the most human characteristics of his mistress, he loves her more than anything. He would much rather love her for who she is than try to make false comparisons to make her seem more beautiful.

I don't think Shakespeare's only purpose in this sonnet is to speak of the mistress. He also seems to be mocking many kinds of the traditional love sonnet. He says that while this mistress may be ugly and less than graceful, she is true and rare. Petrach, an Italian writer, wrote most of his poems describing a woman he did not know but was in love with named Laura. It is possible that Shakespeare was mocking his style and subjects of writing in writing this sonnet.