For Friday: Intermission--Staging the Sonnets

So far, we’ve read the better part of 110 Sonnets—that’s a lot of Shakespeare!  So before we finish Sonnets 111-154, I want you to reflect on what we’ve read and how Shakespeare intended us to read/interpret it.  What are The Sonnets anyway?  Clearly, they’re not a collection of random poems because they respond to one another, develop similar themes, and seem to advance an invisible storyline that lies just beyond our view.  However, if they do have a plot, where is it—who does it involve—and what is at stake for the ‘players’? 

For your response, I want you to write a brief sketch of potential ‘story’ for The Sonnets.  Pretend this is an outline for a potential play or film: who are the main characters, how does their relationship develop, what obstacles do they encounter, and when (and how) does the breakup occur?  Cite several Sonnets as reference points to your story (you can either quote a line or two or simply reference them) and think about how individual Sonnets connect and advance the story.  Above all, try to conceptualize The Sonnets as a drama that could be acted out and has all the elements of a good tragedy—or comedy(?).

NOTE: You don’t have to take into account every single Sonnet: your story can conveniently avoid those that don’t fit neatly into your scheme, or you can just focus on a small section, say Sonnets 1-19.   However, try to cast your net as widely as possible and consider what Shakespeare might have wanted us to see/experience with The Sonnets.  Remember, this is still just an informal response, so just a page or two will do.