An analysis of the Stylistic Features in sonnet29

（云南大學英語語言文學，云南 昆明 650091）

【Abstract】： Shakespeare is a famous poet in English Renaissance period. He has produced lots of brilliant literature works. Among them， his sonnets play an important role in the history of world literature. They not only contain strong feelings， but also express profound themes. On the basis of stylistics theory， this paper would like to analyze the stylistic features of sonnet29 from three aspects （phonology， rhetoric and lexis）. Through stylistic analysis， we can not only find out the charm o f its form， but also see how the stylistic features contribute to its theme. Thus， we can have a deep understanding toward sonnet29.

【Key words】： stylistic features； theme； sonnet29

1. Introduction

William Shakespeare （1564-1616）， is a great English playwright and poet. During his whole life， he wrote 154 sonnets and 2 long poems. The 154 sonnets impress people of the later generation with its rich images， diction and profound themes. Sonnet 29 is one of 154 sonnets. It is part of the Fair Youth sequence， which are addressed to a young man while the last 28 sonnets are addressed to a woman. According to Wekipedia’s description， sonnet 29 states the speakers’ status of outcast and failure， but the speaker still feels better upon thinking of his beloved. It is written in the typical Shakespearean sonnet form， having 14 lines of iambic pentameter ending in a rhymed couplet. （Wikipedia， par.1）.

2. Literature Review

There are a lot of studies on the sonnets at home and abroad. Domestically speaking， the studies of the sonnet 29 are still rare. There are about 9 journals which analyze sonnet29 from different ways. For example， Li Huijun compares sonnet 29 with sonnet66 mainly in accordance with their rhetorical devices and artistic skills （49-53）. Through study of the form， imagery and diction of the sonnet 29， Tong Xiaomu tries to reveal the love theme （37-38）. Xue Lifeng analyze the theme of sonnet29 mainly from its structure and language perspectives （245）. In another article， the two authors give a study on the four steps of the whole sonnet， including the opening， developing， changing and concluding （Gao and Zheng， 21-22）. Shen Yuge also give an artistic exploration of sonnet29 from 3 aspects （109-110）. Deng Fei（60-62） points out three desires （orexis， lust， power） embedded in the sonnet. Also， he compares three Chinese translation versions of the sonnet29 in another journal. Lu Xiaojun also have an appreciation of the poetic language in sonnet 29（34-37）. Liu Wangyu gives his own analysis of this sonnet in accordance with the rhythm and structure （30-31）.

Externally speaking， the studies on the sonnet 29 are much more than at home. For example， in JSTOR database，when I search the key words “sonnet 29 * William Shakespeare ”， the search result is 37671. Since the result number is too large， so I shorten the key words to “sonnet 29”， there are about 13170 journals.

Through review above， it seems that no scholar in home or abroad tried to analyze sonnet29 from the stylistics perspective. Even though some of them applied the stylistics theory to interpret sonnets， but they didn’t focus on sonnet29. So， on the basis of those previous studies， I want to apply the stylistics theory into my interpretation of sonnet29 so as to have a comprehensive understanding of it. Moreover， we can also explore how the poem’s style contributes to its theme.

3. Stylistics

What is stylistics？ According to Liu Shisheng， he believes that stylistics is the branch of linguistics that studies language style. It explains the relationship between the text and its context.（Linguistics： An Advanced Course Book， p.489）. Another scholar， Xu Youzhi also points out that poet can take advantage of the poetry language from all levels. For example， the phonology level， the lexical level， the rhetorical level and semantic level etc. （220）.

Then， we can see， stylistics is a branch of linguistics which studies style in a scientific and systematic way concerning the linguistic features of different varieties of language at different levels. Then， with this scientific and systematic way， I will analyze the stylistic features of sonnet29.

4. Stylistic Features of Sonnet29

4.1 Phonological features

4.1.1 The deviation of its rhyme scheme： abab cdcd ebeb ff

Overall， sonnet29 follows the basic structure of Shakespearean sonnets， containing fourteen lines and written in iambic pentameter， and composed of three rhyming quatrains with a rhyming couplet at the end. Most domestic scholars， like Tong Xiaomu and Xue Lifeng， deem that its rhyme scheme should be “abab cdcd efef gg”. However， the foreign scholar have a different idea about the rhyme scheme， for example， Murdo William McRae notes that the repetition of the b-rhyme in lines 2 and 4 （\"state\" and \"fate\"） as well as 10 and 12 （\"state\" and \"gate\"）. McRae says that the duplication of the b-rhyme redirects the reader's attention to the lines， and this \"poem within a poem\" pulls the piece back together in a way that contrasts its original pulling apart. Philip C.McGuire also points out that b-rhyme doesn’t correspond to the rhyme scheme of Petrarch sonnet even though its logical organization does. Meanwhile， it doesn’t belong to Spenserian sonnet either， because the b-rhyme only binds the first and third quatrains while the Spenserian sonnets’ rhyme interlocked by each quatrain. He thinks that the repetition of b-rhyme scheme belongs to deviant rhyming （306）.

I’m more inclined to agree with the two foreign scholars’ opinions， the rhyme scheme should be “abab cdcd ebeb ff”---six rhymes rather than seven---and such a deviation is closely related to the theme. Considering the expression of theme in this sonnet， I think that the twice use of b-rhyme， especially the double “state”， helps the poet to show two different status： the outcast state and the joyful state.

4.1.2 The alternative use of different meter：

When it comes to the metrical foot in sonnet29， most of the domestic studies believe that iambic pentameter is the only one which it takes. But， Shen Yuge writes in his paper that the metrical foot is changed in some lines （109）. As far as I’m concerned， I agree with Shen. And I believe that alternative use of different meter is closely related to the speakers’ emotion. For example， the third line in the first quatrain “And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries”， “”trouble deaf” are characteristically trochaic. The two stressed syllables deviates the iambic model， moreover， the pronunciation [e] are used in two constant syllables： “deaf and heaven” .Then， the combination of trochee pentameter and assonance produce a tense music rhythm， which appropriately expresses the speakers’ depression and discontent. Besides， other lines also applied trochee pentameter to show the speakers’ emotive variation and the development of the sonnet. For example， “when in” “wishing me” “featured like” “Yet in” “Haply I” “Like to”， all of these trochee pentameters explain the changes in speaker’s inner world： depression， admiration， relief. And in the last line “That then I scorn to change my state with kings”， with the speaker seeks the comfort from the listener， he is enlightened and relieved. The iambic pentameter is applied again. So， we can see that the alternative use of the iambic and trochee perfectly correspond to the variation of speakers’ emotion as well as the sonnet’s development.

4.2 Rhetoric features

The development of stylistics can dates back to the study of rhetoric in ancient Greeks and Romans. For example， Gorgias（485-380B.C） puts up with the idea that rhetoric is an art of a craft. （493-495）. Shakespeare is such an excellent carpenter mastering rhetorical craft perfectly. In sonnet29， he uses several rhetorical techniques to express the speakers’ idea vividly.

For example， simile is used in the fourth line of quatrain3. The poet describes his joyful and happy state as the skylark arising to the sky. Li writes in his book that the skylark is a symbol of the “blithe spirit”. （68）. Such a figurative art properly expresses the speaker’s joyful and relieved status. Besides， personification is also used by the poet. In the third line， the poet takes one word “deaf” to describe the indifferent “heaven”， a helpless and cold circumstance is imagined and created in readers’ mind. Then we can delicately feel the depressed situation of the speaker.

4.3 Lexical features

In this sonnet， two main lexical features are presented. Firstly， seven negative words appear in the first quatrain. For example， “disgrace” “beweep” “outcast” “trouble” “bootless” “cries” “curse”. These negative words just like depressed signs from the speakers’ heart. Imperceptibly， those negative words deliver the bitter sarcasm and discontented state of the speaker.

Secondly， in the whole sonnet， the same word is repeatedly used by the poet. For example， “l(fā)ike” occurs in the second quatrain three times， one time in third quatrain. The four “l(fā)ike” all mean “wish to be”， the first three “ like” express the speaker’s strong desire to being others. While the fourth “l(fā)ike” describes the relieved feeling of the speaker. Another example is “state”， it appears three times in the whole sonnet. The first “state” expresses the speakers’ unappreciated feelings. The second one shows the joyful status of the speaker. The last one is a pun， which not only means the love accompany of the listener but also denotes the empirical power. Anyway， the repeated use of the same word implies the speaker’s feeling and helps the expression of the theme.

5. Conclusion

From the analysis above， we can clearly see the three stylistic features in sonnet29. Phonologically speaking， both the deviation of traditional Shakespearean rhyme scheme and the alternative use of two different meters correspond to the variation of speakers’ emotion as well as the sonnet’s development. By using the rhetorical technique， the four stages of speaker’s inner world （the depression， admiration， relief and enlightenment） are vividly presented in front of the readers. Besides， from the lexical level， the negative words gathering in the first quatrain just imperceptibly deliver the bitter sarcasm and discontented state of the speaker. While the repeated use of the same word also implies the speaker’s feeling. All in all， the three stylistic features all help to the expression of the theme.

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McGuire， Philip C. “Shakespeare’s Non-Shakespearean Sonnets.” Shakespeare Quarterly 38.3（1987）：304-319. Print.

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