Sonnet 12

I thought that Sonnet 12 was very exciting with its wide use of imagery and symbolism. Throughout the entire sonnet, Shakespeare uses the change in seasons to represent the progression of time and the death of youth. He does this by using two opposing ideas such as the “brave day and hideous night,” that not only use personification and imagery but symbolization with the brave day symbolizing beautiful youth in the boy and hideous night as aging and death. He also represents the death of youth through the changing seasons. The line, “And sable curls all silvered o’er with white” not only represents beautiful hair turned gray but also the snow in winter which is significant as winter represents aging and death. I found that the last quatrain was the most important part of this sonnet because it proved its true meaning. Shakespeare again urges the boy to take advantage of his youth and beauty because it will die and be stolen away by time.