Sonnet 138
E498373
Sonnet 138 is one of William Shakespeare’s best-known sonnets, notable for its ironic exploration of love, deception, and self-delusion in a mature romantic relationship.
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
English sonnet
ⓘ
Shakespearean sonnet ⓘ poem ⓘ |
| addressee | a mistress ⓘ |
| author | William Shakespeare NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| centralConflict | tension between truth and comforting lies ⓘ |
| collection | Shakespearean sonnets NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin | England ⓘ |
| firstLine | When my love swears that she is made of truth ⓘ |
| form | sonnet ⓘ |
| hasCoupletFunction | epigrammatic conclusion ⓘ |
| hasInfluenceOn | later interpretations of Shakespeare’s treatment of the Dark Lady ⓘ |
| isFrequentlyAnthologized | true ⓘ |
| isOftenGroupedWith | Dark Lady sonnets NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| laterPublication | Shakespeare’s Sonnets (1609) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| literaryDevice |
antithesis
ⓘ
irony ⓘ metaphor ⓘ paradox ⓘ wordplay ⓘ |
| literaryMovement | Elizabethan literature NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| literaryPeriod | English Renaissance NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| meter | iambic pentameter ⓘ |
| notableFeature |
exploration of mature love rather than idealized love
ⓘ
mutual acceptance of lies in a relationship ⓘ self-conscious commentary on truth and falsehood ⓘ use of paradox ⓘ |
| numberOfLines | 14 ⓘ |
| originalPublication | The Passionate Pilgrim NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| originalPublicationYear | 1599 ⓘ |
| rhymeScheme | ABAB CDCD EFEF GG ⓘ |
| sonnetSequencePosition | 138 ⓘ |
| speaker | an aging male lover ⓘ |
| subjectMatter |
the speaker’s awareness of his mistress’s lies
ⓘ
the speaker’s own lies about his age ⓘ the speaker’s willingness to be deceived ⓘ |
| theme |
aging
ⓘ
appearance versus reality ⓘ deception ⓘ love ⓘ mutual dishonesty ⓘ self-delusion ⓘ sexual relationships ⓘ trust ⓘ |
| tone |
cynical
ⓘ
ironic ⓘ wry ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.