Compare/Contrast of Sonnet 18 and 130

Shakespeare was born in the year of 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. He was born at the beginning of the Elizabethan age, a most promising time for poetry, music, and drama. His exact birth date is unknown, but it is traditionally celebrated on April 23. Church records from Holy Trinity Church indicate that he was baptized there on April 26, 1564. Baptisms usually occurred within two or three days of a child’s birth. He was the third of eight children born to middle class parents. His father John was a Stratford businessman and prominent community leader. Shakespeare’s mother Mary Arden was the daughter of a local farmer, whose family paid her husband a handsome dowry.

Though no school record exists, Shakespeare most likely attended public school like other boys of his social class in England

In about 1611 Shakespeare retired back to his hometown and continued writing plays until 1613. He died on April 23, 1616, and was buried in Holy Trinity Church. There was never a publication of a collective edition of his plays, but in 1623 two members of his acting company published the great collection, which is now called the First Folio.

In Sonnet 130 Shakespeare “catalogues the overfamiliar tropes while denying their applicability to his own mistress”(Pequigney 166). Her physical description is as follows: her eyes are not like the sun; her lips are not red like coral; her breasts are not white like snow; her hair is black; and her cheeks are not rosy. There is more delight in perfume than in his mistress’ breath. Music makes a more pleasant sound than her voice. She is not a goddess because she walks on the ground. In the ending couplet, the persona proclaims his love for the mistress, her faults and all.

The years 1585 to 1592 are called the “lost years” because no records of any kind document his activities. By 1592 Shakespeare had gone to London, working as an actor and by that time had already became known as an established playwright. He became a principle shareholder and playwright of the successful acting troupe Lord Chamberlain’s men. In 1599 the Lord Chamberlain’s men built and occupied the Globe Theater in Southwark. It was here where many of Shakespeare’s plays were performed. In addition to his 37 plays, Shakespeare lent a hand in others, including Sir Thomas More and The Two Noble Kinsmen. He wrote two poems, including Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece. His 154 sonnets were published in 1609 and it is believed this one done so without Shakespeare’s approval.

. What is certain is that William Shakespeare never continued on to a university. It is believed that Shakespear

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