The Principal Characters of Shakespeares Sonnets :: William Shakespeare, Sonnets

One of the many intriguing aspects of Shakespeares Sonnets is the identicalness of the principal characters inside them, of which there are three - The Young part - The Dark Lady - The Rival Poet Nowhere in the Sonnets are these stack explicitly identified and their anonymity has spawned much debate as to who these populate could have been. The content of the Sonnets that refer to these people however, undoubtedly show that these were hence real, living people and non imaginary inventions by the author for the pursuit of literary exercise. Many poets of the Elizabethan and Jacobean age wrote verse to others and did not refrain from identifying who they were addressing. Some poems were clearly commit to the addressees, such as Spensers Prothalamion which is utilize in honovr of the dovble marriage of the 2 Honorable & vertuous Ladies, the Ladie Elizabeth and the Ladie Katherine Somerset, Daughters to the Right Honourable the Earle of Worcester and espoused to the t wo worthie Gentlemen M. Henry Gilford, and M. William Peter Esquyers. And Spenser makes clear that the poem is about the Somerset ladies within the poem itself by punning on their names in the 4th. stanza save rather Angels or of Angels breede Yet were they bred of Somers-heat they say. Where poems were not explicitly dedicated to the addressee their identity could still be found in the poems verse, such as in Sidneys Astrophel and Stella Doth euen grow flush, meaning my Stellaes name and Rich in altogether beauties which mans eye can see Beauties so farre from reach of words that we chagrin her praise saying she doth excell Rich in the treasure of deserud renowne, Rich in the riches of a royall heart, Rich in those gifts which giue theternall crowne Who, though most rich in these and eury part