The sonnets, 130 and 292, written by William Shakespeare and Francesco Petrarch,
both shows their passionate love towards their woman and it is very interesting
to compare and contrast the two. Although their passionate mind was similar,
they differ in form, tone, and meaning. First of all, the form differs. The
Sonnet 130 is written in Shakespearean (English) format, which has the rhyme
scheme of a-b-a-b-c-d-c-d-e-f-e-f-g-g. It has three quatrains, four-line
stanzas, and ends with a couplet, a two-line stanza. Unlike Sonnet 130, Sonnet
292 follows the Italian (Petrarchan) form. This has a different rhyme scheme
that goes a-b-b-a-a-b-b-a-c-d-d-e-e, and it has an octave, the first eight lines
which tells the story, and the sestet, the last six lines which the speaker
comments on the situation. Although they differ in style, they both follow the
iambic pentameter. Secondly, the two sonnets differ in tone. Sonnet 292, like
many other sonnets, it idealizes the woman by using words such as the waving
hair of unmixed gold that shone, the smile that flashed with the angelic rays
that used to make this earth a paradise . (Lines 5-8) These words give the
sonnet a very beautiful and heavenly tone. In contrast, William Shakespeare
ridicules the physical appearance of his mistress by using words such as if
hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head, I have seen roses damask d, red
and white, But no such roses see I in her cheeks . (Lines 4-7) Although these
words doesn t give a beautiful and heavenly tone, it sets the sonnet up for the
meaning. The two sonnets differ in meaning greatly. The Sonnet 130, later gives
out the meaning when the author says I love to hear her speak (line 9). He is
stating that he loves her uniqueness, and for whom she is, not for her physical
appearance. The author also gives a little moral lesson to the readers that
people shouldn t love based on looks but for what they really are. In contrast,
in Sonnet 292, the author grieves for the loss of his love. His sorrow feelings
are well shown in the lines the vein of my accustomed art is dry, and this, my
lyre, turned at last to tears. (Lines 13-14) He is saying that his art was
motivated by the woman he loved but his desire and passion for art has run out
due to the loss. It is clearly shown that the two sonnets differ greatly in
form, tone, and meaning. I believe that this is due to the different time and
society the authors lived in. But these two sonnets show that no matter the time
and society, one s love towards another has always been passionate through out
history.