The Poems

Fiction & Literature, Short Stories, Classics, Literary
Cover of the book The Poems by William Shakespeare, Random House Publishing Group
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Author: William Shakespeare ISBN: 9780307422637
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group Publication: August 26, 2009
Imprint: Bantam Classics Language: English
Author: William Shakespeare
ISBN: 9780307422637
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Publication: August 26, 2009
Imprint: Bantam Classics
Language: English

The Poems

Shakespeare’s greatest achievement in nondramatic verse was his collection of 154 magnificent sonnets that portray a tumultuous world of love, rivalry, and conflict among a poet, an aristocratic young man, a rival poet, and a mysterious “dark lady.” More profound than other Elizabethan sonnet sequences and never surpassed as archetypes of the form, these poems explore almost every imaginable emotional complexity related to love and friendship. Some poems are dark, bitter, and self-hating, others express idealism with unmatchable eloquence–and all are of quintessential beauty, part of the world’s great literary heritage.

In addition to his sonnets, Shakespeare published two long poems early in his career: Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece. Immediately popular in Shakespeare’s time, they display a richness that can also reward us with insights into the powerful imagery of his plays.

Rounding out this volume are two minor poems, “A Lover’s Complaint” and “The Phoenix and Turtle,” thought to be part of Shakespeare’s early writings.

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The Poems

Shakespeare’s greatest achievement in nondramatic verse was his collection of 154 magnificent sonnets that portray a tumultuous world of love, rivalry, and conflict among a poet, an aristocratic young man, a rival poet, and a mysterious “dark lady.” More profound than other Elizabethan sonnet sequences and never surpassed as archetypes of the form, these poems explore almost every imaginable emotional complexity related to love and friendship. Some poems are dark, bitter, and self-hating, others express idealism with unmatchable eloquence–and all are of quintessential beauty, part of the world’s great literary heritage.

In addition to his sonnets, Shakespeare published two long poems early in his career: Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece. Immediately popular in Shakespeare’s time, they display a richness that can also reward us with insights into the powerful imagery of his plays.

Rounding out this volume are two minor poems, “A Lover’s Complaint” and “The Phoenix and Turtle,” thought to be part of Shakespeare’s early writings.

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