Sonnets & Lover’s Complaint by William Shakespeare (Penguin Classics)

Description

“Sonnets & Lover’s Complaint” is a collection of poems written by the renowned English playwright and poet, William Shakespeare. The collection consists of 154 sonnets and a long narrative poem titled “A Lover’s Complaint.”

Shakespeare’s sonnets are considered among the greatest achievements in English poetry. They were likely written between the late 16th and early 17th centuries, although the exact dates are uncertain. The sonnets explore themes of love, beauty, time, mortality, and the complexities of human emotions. They are composed in a specific form of poetry consisting of 14 lines, typically written in iambic pentameter, with various rhyme schemes.

Each sonnet within the collection is a self-contained poem, although they are often grouped together thematically. Some of the most famous sonnets include Sonnet 18 (“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”) and Sonnet 116 (“Let me not to the marriage of true minds”).

“A Lover’s Complaint” is a longer poem that tells the story of a young woman’s lamentation over her lost lover. It explores themes of love, betrayal, and the fickleness of human relationships. While the authorship of “A Lover’s Complaint” has been attributed to Shakespeare, its inclusion in the same volume as the sonnets remains a subject of debate among scholars.

Overall, “Sonnets & Lover’s Complaint” showcases Shakespeare’s mastery of language, poetic form, and his ability to delve into the depths of human emotion. It remains a significant contribution to the world of poetry and continues to be studied, appreciated, and enjoyed by readers and scholars alike.