Understanding Iambic Pentameter and Shakespeare's Sonnet 130 | Study Guides, Projects, Research Poetry

AnalyzingPoems
IambicPentameter
Definition:Hereitis,folks.Probablythesinglemostusefultechnicalterminpoetry(andindrama,too).Shmoopers,ifyou
learnoneterminpoetry,letitbetheoldI.P.Ormaybemetaphor.Butyoualreadyknewthatone.
Let'sbreakitdown:
● Aniambisametricalfootthatconsistsofanunstressedsyllablefollowedbyastressedone—daDUM.
● Pentameansfive.
● Meterreferstoaregularrhythmicpatterninpoetry.
Soiambicpentameterisakindofrhythmicpatternthatconsistsoffiveiambsperline,almostlikefiveheartbeats:daDUM
daDUMdaDUMdaDUMdaDUM.
Let'stryitoutonthefirstlineofShakespeare'sTwelfthNight:
Ifmusicbethefoodoflove,playon.
Justreadthatlinealoudtoyourself,andyou'llbesuretohearthosedaDUMs.
Ofcourse,thoughmanypoetsusethisrhythm,itmightgetprettystinkin'boringafterawhileiftheydidn'tshakeitupabit.So
whileatonofpoemsarewritteniniambicpentameter,you'dbehardpressedtofindonethatfollowsthemeterperfectly.
Poetsliketomixitupwithmetricalvariationslikeextrasyllablesoroutoforderstresses.Besuretocheckoutourpageon
meterformore.
Iambicpentameterhassomemajorlyearlyroots,datingbacktoLatinverseandOldFrench,butChaucerisconsideredthe
pioneeroftheverseinEnglishanduseditforhisfamousCanterburyTales.Yep,it'sbeenaroundthatlong.
Sonnet130ispartofagroupofpoemsbyWilliamShakespearethatscholarsthinkwasaddressedtosomeonetheycall"The
DarkLady."Wegetlittleglimpsesofherinthispoem.Shakespearetalksaboutherhair,thecolorofherskin,etc.Mostly,
though,thispoemisagentleparodyoftraditionallovepoetry.Shakespeareusesthissonnettopokefunatthekindsof
exaggeratedcomparisonssomepoetsofhisdaymadewhentalkingabouttheirlovers.Hemakesfunofclichédimagesthat
werewornouteventhen,like"eyeslikethesun,"and"skinaswhiteassnow."Thesekindsofoverthetopcompliments
appeareverywhereinpoemsbywriterslikePetrarch,whowrotefamousItaliansonnetsinthe14thcentury.Althoughnoone
issurewhetherthewomanShakespeareistalkingaboutreallyexisted,readerscanseehowwellheusesthissonnetto
skewerlamepoeticclichés.
WHYSHOULDICARE?
So,whenwesaythewords"lovepoem,"whatpopsintoyourhead?Maybeyou'vealwaysthoughtthatalovepoemhadto
besappy,likesomethingyou'dfindinaValentine'sDaycard.Ifwetoldyouthatthelovepoemwehadinmindwasover400
yearsold,thatmightmakeitevenworse,right?Oldlovepoemsbringtomindflowerylanguageandthekindofunrealistic
glopthatyoucouldneverbringyourselftosaywithastraightface.
But,ifyouthinksappylovepoemsareridiculous,you'renotalone–that'sprettymuchhowShakespearefelttoo,andhe
spendsthesefourteenlinesrippingthatkindofpoemapart.Shakespeare'sSonnet130isaparodyofthekindofinsincere,
sicklysweetlovepoemsthatauthorshavebeenwriting(andalotofpeoplehavebeenhating)forcenturies.Now,don'tget
uswrong,we'renotantilovepoetryandwecangetintothesappystuffsometimestoo.Butwe'renotfansoflameclichés,
andwethinkit'sprettyfuntowatchShakespearegototownontheminthissonnet.X
Sonnet130islikealovepoemturnedonitshead.Usually,ifyouweretalkingaboutyourbeloved,youwouldgooutofyour
waytopraiseher,topointallthewaysthatsheisthebest.Inthiscase,though,Shakespearespendsthispoemcomparing
hismistress'sappearancetootherthings,andthentellingushowshedoesn'tmeasureuptothem.Hegoesthroughawhole
laundrylist,givingusdetailsabouttheflawsofherbody,hersmell,eventhesoundofhervoice.Then,attheend,he
changeshistuneandtellsusabouthisrealandcompleteloveforher.


Understanding Iambic Pentameter and Shakespeare's Sonnet 130, Study Guides, Projects, Research of Poetry

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Analyzing Poems

Iambic Pentameter

Definition:Here it is, folks. Probably the single most useful technical term in poetry (and in drama, too). Shmoopers, if you

learn one term in poetry, let it be the old I.P. Or maybe metaphor. But you already knew that one.

Let's break it down:

● An iamb is a metrical foot that consists of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one—daDUM.

● Penta means five.

● Meter refers to a regular rhythmic pattern in poetry.

So iambic pentameter is a kind of rhythmic pattern that consists of five iambs per line, almost like five heartbeats: daDUM

daDUM daDUM daDUM daDUM.

Let's try it out on the first line of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night :

If mu sic be the food of love, play on.

Just read that line aloud to yourself, and you'll be sure to hear those daDUMs.

Of course, though many poets use this rhythm, it might get pretty stinkin' boring after a while if they didn't shake it up a bit. So

while a ton of poems are written in iambic pentameter, you'd be hard pressed to find one that follows the meter perfectly.

Poets like to mix it up with metrical variations like extra syllables or out of order stresses. Be sure to check out our page on

meter for more.

Iambic pentameter has some majorly early roots, dating back to Latin verse and Old French, but Chaucer is considered the

pioneer of the verse in English and used it for his famous Canterbury Tales. Yep, it's been around that long.

Sonnet 130 is part of a group of poems by William Shakespeare that scholars think was addressed to someone they call "The

Dark Lady." We get little glimpses of her in this poem. Shakespeare talks about her hair, the color of her skin, etc. Mostly,

though, this poem is a gentle parody of traditional love poetry. Shakespeare uses this sonnet to poke fun at the kinds of

exaggerated comparisons some poets of his day made when talking about their lovers. He makes fun of clichéd images that

were worn out even then, like "eyes like the sun," and "skin as white as snow." These kinds of over the top compliments

appear everywhere in poems by writers like Petrarch, who wrote famous Italian sonnets in the 14th century. Although no one

is sure whether the woman Shakespeare is talking about really existed, readers can see how well he uses this sonnet to

skewer lame poetic clichés.

WHY SHOULD I CARE?

So, when we say the words "love poem," what pops into your head? Maybe you've always thought that a love poem had to

be sappy, like something you'd find in a Valentine's Day card. If we told you that the love poem we had in mind was over 400

years old, that might make it even worse, right? Old love poems bring to mind flowery language and the kind of unrealistic

glop that you could never bring yourself to say with a straight face.

But, if you think sappy love poems are ridiculous, you're not alone – that's pretty much how Shakespeare felt too, and he

spends these fourteen lines ripping that kind of poem apart. Shakespeare's Sonnet 130 is a parody of the kind of insincere,

sickly sweet love poems that authors have been writing (and a lot of people have been hating) for centuries. Now, don't get

us wrong, we're not anti love poetry and we can get into the sappy stuff sometimes too. But we're not fans of lame clichés,

and we think it's pretty fun to watch Shakespeare go to town on them in this sonnet.X

Sonnet 130 is like a love poem turned on its head. Usually, if you were talking about your beloved, you would go out of your

way to praise her, to point all the ways that she is the best. In this case, though, Shakespearespends this poem comparing

his mistress's appearance to other things, and then telling us how she doesn't measure up to them. He goes through a whole

laundry list, giving us details about the flaws of her body, her smell, even the sound of her voice. Then, at the end, he

changes his tune and tells us about his real and complete love for her.

SONNET 130

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;

Coral is far more red than her lips' red;

If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;

If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.

I have seen roses damasked, red and white,

But no such roses see I in her cheeks;

And in some perfumes is there more delight

Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.

I love to hear her speak, yet well I know

That music hath a far more pleasing sound;

I grant I never saw a goddess go;

My mistress when she walks treads on the ground.

And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare

As any she belied with false compare.

ANALYSIS: SPEAKER