SONNET 73
SAQ :
1. What season is depicted in the first quatrain and how is it symbolic?
The first quatrain describes late autumn, symbolized by "yellow leaves, or none, or few," which
represents aging and the approach of death, highlighting the poet’s physical decline.
2. What do the "bare ruin’d choirs" in line 4 symbolize?
"Bare ruin’d choirs" symbolize the empty branches of trees after leaves have fallen. They represent
loss and desolation, emphasizing the decline of youth and vitality.
3. How does Shakespeare use the metaphor of twilight in the second quatrain?
Twilight represents the late stage of life, the fading light after sunset symbolizing the poet’s nearing
death and the inevitable "black night," or eternal rest.
4. What does "death’s second self" refer to in the poem?
It refers to night as a metaphor for death, the state that concludes life and seals everything in rest,
reinforcing the theme of mortality.
5. Explain the significance of the fire imagery in the third quatrain.
The glowing fire on ashes symbolizes the poet’s remaining vitality, which is dying out, fueled by
what once sustained youth, illustrating life's transient nature.
6. How does the poet describe the process of aging in this sonnet?
Aging is described as a gradual fading—like leaves falling, twilight dimming, and fire burning
down—showing life’s progression toward its natural end.
7. Why does the poet say "This thou perceiv’st, which makes thy love more strong"?
The awareness of inevitable loss deepens the lover’s affection, making the love more sincere and
intense because it knows it must end soon.
8. What role does time play in the sonnet?
Time acts as a force that leads to decay and death, representing the unstoppable progression
toward old age and the eventual end of life.
9. How does the poem reflect the theme of mortality?
Through vivid seasonal and natural metaphors, the poem vividly portrays the inevitability of death
and the transient nature of human life.
10. What is the emotional tone of the sonnet?
The tone is melancholic yet tender, blending sorrow over aging with a deep appreciation for love
intensified by the prospect of loss.
11. Why does Shakespeare use natural imagery to describe aging?
Natural imagery like autumn leaves, sunset, and fire reflects familiar cycles of life and death,
making the abstract concept of aging more relatable.
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SONNET 73
12. How does the structure of the sonnet support the poem’s message?
The three quatrains each present a distinct metaphor of aging, building a layered understanding of
decline, while the final couplet delivers the emotional conclusion on love.
13. What does the phrase "consum’d with that which it was nourish’d by" mean?
It means that the fire of life is dying out because it is being consumed by the very fuel (youth’s past
vigor) that once kept it alive, symbolizing inevitable aging.
14. How does the sonnet portray the relationship between life and death?
Life and death are shown as interconnected stages, with life’s end foreshadowed by natural decline,
and death seen as a peaceful final rest.
15. What is the overall message Shakespeare conveys about love in this poem?
The sonnet suggests that love becomes stronger and more valuable as life nears its end because
the knowledge of loss intensifies emotional bonds.
16. How does the sonnet reflect the Renaissance humanist view of life?
It acknowledges human mortality realistically while emphasizing the dignity of love and the
meaningfulness of life’s fleeting moments.
17. Describe how the imagery evolves from the beginning to the end of the poem.
The imagery moves from autumn leaves (external aging), to twilight (liminal phase), to dying fire
(internal fading), showing a deepening sense of decline.
18. What is the significance of the phrase "ere long" in the final line?
"Ere long" means "soon," highlighting the urgency and limited time left, which underscores the
preciousness of love and life.
19. How might this sonnet relate to Shakespeare’s understanding of his own mortality?
The sonnet reflects a personal meditation on aging and death, suggesting Shakespeare’s awareness
of his limited time and the desire to deepen love before life ends.
20. In what way does the sonnet encourage the reader or the addressee concerning love and
mortality?
It encourages cherishing love deeply now, because recognizing mortality makes love more
precious and intense, urging appreciation before it is lost.
21. explain the metaphor of Late autumn, twilight, and glowing fire in this poem.
The metaphors of late autumn, twilight, and glowing fire in the poem represent different stages of
aging and approaching death:
• Late autumn: This metaphor appears in the first quatrain with "yellow leaves, or none, or few, do
hang." Autumn symbolizes the later stage of life when vitality is fading, just as leaves fall from trees.
It reflects the physical decline and the approach of life's end.
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SONNET 73
• Twilight: In the second quatrain, twilight signifies the time just after sunset, a brief period before
darkness. It represents the poet’s life nearing its conclusion, a transitional phase between life (day)
and death (night). Twilight is a fragile, fading light that underscores the inevitability of the coming
night.
• Glowing fire: The third quatrain uses the metaphor of a fire glowing on ashes to show the last
remnants of life’s energy. Like a fire that survives only on what’s left to burn, the poet’s life is
sustained by the past, slowly dying out. This metaphor portrays the internal struggle against the
fading of youth.
Together, these metaphors vividly trace life’s decline from outward physical changes (autumn leaves)
through the fading moments of existence (twilight) to the diminishing inner strength (glowing fire), all
moving toward death.
Long Questions & answers:
1. Substance of the poem.
Shakespeare's Sonnet 73 employs three poignant metaphors to evoke the speaker's encroaching old age
and mortality. In the first quatrain, late autumn manifests through "yellow leaves, or none, or few" clinging
to shivering boughs—mere "bare ruin'd choirs" echoing vanished birdsong—symbolizing physical decay
and desolation.
This quatrain employs the metaphor of twilight—the dim, transitional glow after sunset—to depict the
speaker's life as a fragile interlude between vitality (day) and finality (night). The fading light in the west
evokes inevitable diminishment, a momentary hesitation before "black night" engulfs it.
The third portrays a dying fire's embers atop "ashes of his youth," a deathbed where vitality expires,
consumed by its former nourishment, illustrating self-destructive transience.
This triad of images compels the beloved to perceive the speaker's frailty, paradoxically intensifying love.
The poem teaches that knowing life is short makes love deeper and more precious.
2. “In me thou see'st the twilight of such day / As after sunset fadeth in the west”,
How does the poet use the image of sunset to convey the theme of aging? Explain how this
imagery connects to the overall message of the sonnet. 3+3
The poet uses the sunset image to depict aging as a gradual, inevitable fading of life's light, much like the
sun's glow diminishes post-sunset before night fully descends. This twilight represents the speaker's late-
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SONNET 73
life stage: a fragile, transitional phase between youthful vigor (full day) and death (black night), evoking
vulnerability and the "inexorable march toward ultimate rest".
This imagery connects to the sonnet's core by layering metaphors of decline—autumn, twilight, dying
fire—to make the beloved perceive the speaker's mortality, paradoxically strengthening love: awareness of
impending loss ("which thou must leave ere long") intensifies affection. Thus, sunset underscores time's
transience, urging deeper cherishing of fleeting bonds.
3. “That time of year thou mayst in me behold / When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang”
Why does the poet mention "yellow leaves, or none, or few"? how does this imagery reflects the
poet's feeling about aging and life? 3+ 3
The poet mentions "yellow leaves, or none, or few" to evoke late autumn, portraying the sparse, fading
foliage on trees as a vivid metaphor for his own advancing age and physical decline. This triplet of
possibilities—"yellow" (withering early autumn), "none" (bare late autumn nearing winter), or "few"
(scattered remnants)—captures uncertainty and inevitability, mirroring life's unpredictable yet relentless
approach to barrenness.
This imagery reflects the poet's melancholic acceptance of aging as harsh emptiness and loss, with
shivering boughs and "bare ruin'd choirs" (empty church ruins once filled with birdsong) evoking desolation,
faded vitality, and silenced joy. It conveys sorrow over transience—youth's vibrancy gone—yet ties to the
sonnet's message that such frailty deepens love's intensity before inevitable death.
4. What are the three images presented in ‘Sonnet 73’? what common message do the convey?
The three quatrains of ‘Sonnet 73’ present three different imageries to reveal his aging condition to his lover.
Late Autumn - Yellow leaves, or none, or few, hang on bare, shivering boughs likened to "bare ruin'd choirs"
where birds once sang. This depicts physical decay and emptiness.
Twilight After Sunset - The fading light of day in the west, overtaken by black night—"Death's second self"
that seals all in rest—portrays life's fragile transition to oblivion.
Glowing Fire on Ashes - A dying fire lies on the ashes of its youth, expiring on the deathbed nourished by
its own fuel, illustrating inner vitality's self-consuming end.
All three convey inevitable aging as gradual loss—from external barrenness, to liminal fade, to internal
extinction—urging the beloved to cherish love more deeply amid transience ("which makes thy love more
strong")
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SONNET 73
5. “This thou perceiv'st, which makes thy love more strong, / To love that well which thou
must leave ere long.” What is the person addressed as 'thou' expected to perceive? how does
the person perceive it? what will be effect of this perception? 2+2+2
The person addressed as "thou" (the beloved) is expected to perceive the speaker's advancing age and
mortality, depicted through the three metaphors of late autumn, twilight, and dying fire in the preceding
quatrains. The poet expects him or her to perceive the senility and imminent death of the poet.
This perception arises directly from observing the speaker's frail state—"This thou perceiv'st"—as the vivid
images of decay compel recognition of life's transience and the speaker's imminent end.
The effect is paradoxical intensification of love: awareness of impending loss makes affection "more strong,"
urging deeper cherishing of the present bond despite its brevity.
6. “That on the ashes of his youth doth lie, As the death-bed whereon it must expire”, What lies
on the ashes of its youth? How does the poet philosophically describe its expiry? 3+3
What lies on the ashes of its youth is the last faint glow of the fire. In the poem, the fire symbolizes the
poet’s life and vitality. The “ashes of youth” represent the energy, passion, and strength of youth that have
already been used up. Now only a weak flame remains, resting on the remains of what once burned brightly.
This image shows that the poet has reached the final stage of life, where youth is gone and only a small
portion of life is left.
Philosophically, the poet describes expiry as a natural and inevitable process. The fire dies on the very
ashes produced by its own burning. In the same way, human life ends because it slowly consumes itself
over time. Youth, which once nourished life, finally becomes the cause of its decline. Thus, death is not
sudden or violent but a calm, natural ending—life gently burning itself out.
LDORADO
