Legend of Shakespeare - Sonnet I Quiz

Answer: Agriculture

When Shakespeare wrote "fairest creatures", he meant anything that is living and is "most beautiful". When he said "increase", he was referring to procreation. The entire line is actually about wanting to increase the harvest. The metaphor here is explaining that, when breeding, the best are used (same with plants as it is with the animals). If the best are used, the best offspring are born. The "lesser" plants and animals will create lesser offspring, but Shakespeare is saying that we desire the best.

To "modernize" this line, it could read simply:

"From the best creatures we want better."

Answer: Rose

When Shakespeare wrote this line, he was implying that, by breeding the best of the best, beauty itself will never die. He was not talking about a literal rose; it was merely a symbol for ALL things that are beautiful. According to the next line of the sonnet, everything will eventually die. But beauty remains, if you breed the best.

Answer: Hair - Heir

"His tender heir might bear his memory."

Shakespeare used the word "tender" to mean young and delicate. By "bearing his memory", Shakespeare is saying that a child will hold on to the memory of his parents. Each memory will be passed down through generations. So, a son, for instance, will bring honor to his family's name.

Answer: Substantial

"Feed'st thy light's flame with self-substantial fuel".

Candles and oil lamps were common during Shakespeare's life. When they burn, they "feed'st thy light's flame." "Self-substantial fuel" means fuel that is produced from oneself. For instance, this is implying that a candle should fuel itself. He is hinting that fuel should be renewable.

Answer: Gluttony

In Shakespeare's time, food storage was unknown. If there was an over-abundance of food, they would eat. Many would become a bit chubby, because those during this time period would eat when there was food. Of course, the opposite was also true. In trying times when not many crops were produced, all would eat less. Since they did not store the food, they would not be able to use the food from the previous year to sustain them during the difficult famines.

Answer: Being an enemy of yourself

If "thy self" is "thy foe", that means you are your own enemy. "To thy sweet self too cruel" means refusing to give yourself a future by not procreating. Basically, what Shakespeare means is that you are being cruel to yourself for dying before you have offspring to continue on your name.

Answer: Ornament

"Thou that art now the world's fresh ornament."

Shakespeare is speaking about the youths of the world. They are the fresh youths of today, the new leaders of tomorrow.

Answer: Spring

"And only herald to this gaudy spring."

It seems Shakespeare had a thing for using the seasons in his sonnets. In this case, he uses "spring". When he says "only herald", he means the main, or unique, messenger. In another sonnet, he called the lark the "herald of the morn" and the owl a the "herald of the night".

Answer: The glutton eats his share as well as the world's share

The reason to pity the world does not come until the next (and final) line of the sonnet. It is in that line that Shakespeare mentions that the glutton eats his share as well as the share of the world. Since the glutton is eating the world's share, they don't get their share; and thus, Shakespeare said "pity" the world".

Answer: Youths

Shakespeare directed the majority of this sonnet to the youths. Though he does speak about gluttony quite a lot, he is speaking about these gluttonous ways TO the youths.

The entire sonnet would not fit in the conclusion text, so please, enjoy Shakespeare's first sonnet in its entirety below.

"From fairest creatures we desire increase,
That thereby beauty's rose might never die,
But as the riper should by time decease,
His tender heir might bear his memory:
But thou contracted to thine own bright eyes,
Feed'st thy light's flame with self-substantial fuel,
Making a famine where abundance lies,
Thy self thy foe, to thy sweet self too cruel:
Thou that art now the world's fresh ornament,
And only herald to the gaudy spring,
Within thine own bud buriest thy content,
And, tender churl, mak'st waste in niggarding:
Pity the world, or else this glutton be,
To eat the world's due, by the grave and thee."