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Sonnet 130 Figurative Language

Decent Essays

The song “Heartless” by Kanye West and Shakespeare’s poem “Sonnet 130” have a similar message about hatred to one’s lover and use rather similar figurative language techniques to convey this message. The two passages use forms of simile to express their feelings towards their lover. West’s “cold as the winter wind when it breeze, yo” (2) and Shakespeare’s “My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun,” (1) show the hatred towards their lover. The words “nothing” and “cold” offer a negative connotation to their feelings for the other person they love. With Kanye West’s situation in the song, he is comparing his partner’s personality to the frosty, biting, cold winter winds when they are blowing. However, Shakespeare is comparing the dullness …show more content…

Despite the similarities, “Sonnet 130” has a slight twist at the end that the reader does not expect. Even though the poem is steeped with negative connotation, the speaker reveals that he still loves his companion. When the reader breaks down the poem line by line, the speaker is saying that even though his lover is rather unattractive, he still loves her for who she is: “And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare As any she belied with false compare” (13-14). This can also be a life lesson, showing how people sometimes only focus on what is on the outside, but it is the personality, trust, and other important characteristics that really matter in life. On the contrary, West focuses on a negative connotation and his hatred throughout the whole entire song by saying how cold she is because of the heartbreak he went through. West tells his relationship with his companion “the coldest story ever told,” (2). This line uses a hyperbole to exaggerate how much emotional pain he is in by saying that even though he only went through this one time, it is the harshest pain he has gone through, even though he could never now every single story in the

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