“When I do count the clock that tells the time” is reflective of how in life, both death and time are inevitable forces. The tone of this sonnet is bitter to a degree, but more reflective of the juxtaposition of beauty and the grief which life has to offer. Time is seen as a destructive force which we all will succumb to in the end.

The first quatrain deals with decay and the idea that time stands still for no man, even if man is sitting still. The narration begins with a thought of time. In the first two lines the narrator says all hope in life will eventually turn to dust when the "hideous night," or death, approaches. In the second line, the word “brave” describes the day as being glorious, and the word “hideous” describes the night as being sinister. “And see the brave day sunk in hideous night”. Here, “sunk” represents the sundown, and the

The first quatrain appears to be a tribute to the “glorious” sun. “Flatter the mountain tops with sovereign eye,” gives the impression that the sun makes the mountains appear more radiant than they actually are. The use of the word “sovereign” implies the sun is a great and powerful entity. Who rules over the earth and is the divine power; just as a king would see himself. “Gilding pale streams with heavenly alchemy” pertains to the art of alchemy, where a base metal would be turned into the most treasured of metals – gold. This reference to alchemy gives rise to the idea of illusion, as alchemy was a deceptive art. There is a word play on “sun”, the use of the

It is interesting that this is Shakespeare's 12th sonnet because twelve represents the cycle of the clock. The iambic pentameter also highlights the ticking of a clock, and therefore life as well.

Some topics in this essay:
EFEF GG, , iambic pentameter, rhyming couplet, life death, ticking clock, glorious morning seen”, “full glorious morning, “when count clock, violet past prime, life flowers, morning seen” beautiful, life grow, third quatrain, rhyme scheme, death inevitable, rise idea,