Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Please paraphrase Shakespeare's "Sonnet 149".

The real question of Sonnet 149 is who is this woman?

In fact, she is the lower soul of the poet, the part of all of us that accounts for the feelings of lust and anger. This insures that we will be fixated on lower biological urges, enabling us to reproduce and protect ourselves. We are compelled by nature -- God's plan -- to love this part of ourselves and serve it, as the poet tells us that he does.

This love blinds us to the "defect" of this way. We find this urge fascinating even though it may conflict with the desire for a higher, godly life, the aspect urged on us by our "higher soul," the latter represented as the "dear boy."

The "hate" felt from the lower part of himself is the contempt this part feels for the higher striving. Those that recognize this recognize that this is a form of love, but in the sonnet, the poet is in the phase where he is overwhelmed by these lower urges.

The two aspects are in opposition but are complementary and the good life consists of the balance we bring to the two urges.

In other words, this sonnet is part of the allegory that is Shakespeare's Sonnets. Its essence is identified in Sonnet 144 that describes these two "angels" that vie inside us. In this sonnet, the poet indulges in expressing his love for this lower part of himself. 

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