In the poem "Accuse me thus: that I have scanted all…" (Sonnet 117) by William Shakespeare, written in 1609, the author lists out charges against him in an almost legal manner. It is unknown whom he is being disloyal to in the sonnet, but the author is letting the reader know of the things that he has done to offend or even anger them. By using such special devices of style as metaphors, the author paints the picture of a man that has been unfaithful and disloyal, but recognizes his acts and still has love.
The sonnet reads like a rap sheet of the author. He lists the things that he has done wrong to show that he fully understands what he has done wrong and the impact of his actions on his relationship. In lines 5 and 6 of the sonnet, it states, "That I have frequent been with the unknown minds and given to time your own dear-purchased right." This means that the poet has been with people for unknown reasons and devoted the time and loyalty that belongs to his love over to them. This right of time belongs to his love because it is the return gift that she gets for giving herself to him. That's why it is so hurting when he devoted it to someone else, someone unimportant even.
The next offense the author mentions is in
. . .
He is saying that he just went with anything that came along and pushed him a bit, like a sail catching wind. They are things that each person of the relationship must deal with and learn to either embrace or stray away from. Shakespeare has always dealt with the idea of truth and honesty and loyalty (or lack there of) in his sonnets. As readers of the sonnet, we don't know what happened, if he was forgiven and accepted or if the relationship was over. In my own words, he's saying "Look, I've down this and I've done that…. I don't know of one person that would let their boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife get away with that. It would be like giving her a test of some sort.
As ridiculous as this sounds, it is what the author is stating. " He uses the metaphor of himself being a sailboat and letting the wind take him away from his love, without any resistance.
Although the sonnet does contain several admissions by the author, nothing really ever gets into detail. " His using a metaphor from archery here by saying "Bring me within the level of your frown…. Then he mentions the firing once he's in aim.
Approximate Word count =
1097
Approximate Pages =
4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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