Sonnet 43 (4.1)

Hello Shakespeareans and welcome back to the Secret Five Act Structure of the Sonnets Podcast.  Today, we’re going to do a deep dive into Sonnet 43, which is also known as Sonnet 4.1.  As such, if you haven’t already, I highly encourage you to study this poem before and after listening to the episode.  You are about to hear some incredibly bold claims.  Therefore, it is my hope that you will check everything I tell you and take nothing at face value.  The best way for you to do that is to already have an incredibly rich understanding of Sonnet 43 irrespective of my additional commentary.

Also, I just want to make a quick note for the listeners.  This poem is a delicious treat, and I believe it has the potential to, in the future, skyrocket in relevance.  As you will see today, I believe this sonnet falls squarely into the, “how did we miss this category?”

And also, before I forget, I want to remind you that my email is sonnetspodcast@gmail.com and the website for the podcast is www.sonnetspodcast.com.  Please put in the www or else it won’t work.

Now, as we jump in, I want to be honest.  This episode might be a little tedious.  I’m not trying to scare you off, but I do want you to understand what I’m trying to do.  Most of the episodes for Season 2 are twenty to thirty minutes long.  I think that’s a good length, and, as you can see, this episode is noticeably longer.  The reason for that is because Sonnet 43 is so dense.  As you’re going to hear, I’m going to go line by line, even word by word through this poem.  In my opinion, Sonnet 4.1, as it’s also known, is the most underrated and underappreciated of all the 154 sonnets.  It’s so important.  Yet, at the same time though, it’s also one of the most challenging.  I have some amazing things to say, and I have tons of textual evidence to back my claims, but I can also admit, this might be a little bit tedious for a podcast.  Please don’t think that I’m apologizing for a poorly written episode.  I’m proud of my script, I worked hard on it, and I feel like I’ve said everything I want to say and everything I need to say.  For the claims that I’m trying to make though, I believe that I must back them up with hard evidence.  My conclusions are not based on wishcasting.  Rather, they are based on Shakespeare’s words, which, as I’ve stated for this poem, are very difficult to sparse.  

There are three types of poems in The Sonnets.  There are those that are easy to understand, there are those that are hard to understand, and there are those that are impossible to understand.  If you want an example of a poem that’s too hard to understand, just read Section 9.  It’s very opaque by design, but that’s a topic for a different episode.  Sonnet 43 can be understood, but it takes work.  I’ve read the poem probably 50 to a 100 times, and I still have to read it slowly.

So, in case my analysis gets a little too boring for you, I’m going to front load my main ideas.  That way, even if you skip the rest of the episode, you’ll know the main takeaways.  Additionally, if you want to understand how I came to these conclusions, well, you have the rest of the episode or you can read the transcript.  So, without further ado, here are the four main topics.  These are the four ideas I most want you to know about Sonnet 43.  These themes are important for not just this poem, but for the entirety of Section 4.

Number one.  The Secret Structure is real and written about in the work.  Sonnet 4.1 is going to introduce the idea that Secret Structure is central to Section 4’s story arc.  So, it’s not just a framework anymore.  It’s now actually part of the narrative.

Number two.  The Secret Structure was intentionally hidden.  So, not only does it exist and not only is part of the story, we get an explanation for why no one ever knew about it.  Seemingly, the Bard hid it.  We’ll get a variety of reasons, but the true motive isn’t that important because we'll never really know.  What is important is that we have textual evidence explaining that the structure was supposed to be a secret.

Number three.  Understanding the structure makes The Sonnets much better.  I believe this point cannot be understanded.  It’s one thing to know what the structure is, but it’s another thing altogether to see how it enhances the work.  The way I describe it is that understanding the Secret Five Act Structure makes The Sonnets twice as good.  But let’s be honest.  My opinion on this isn’t that important, at least not compared to Shakespeare himself.  Hence, we have textual evidence from the Bard himself.  He strongly asserts that the secret structure makes his poems better, and there’s no higher authority than that.

And last, number four.  Sonnet 43 is probably an early sonnet.  This is not just my opinion, and it’s not without merit.  I haven’t read all of Shakespeare’s plays, but I’ve read more than 20.  There’s a clear progression after the plague ended in 1594.  That’s about a year or two before when Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream came out.  The plays before this period are lyrically rougher and a bit harder to read.  The stories and characters are still great, but, objectively speaking, Richard III is harder to read than Henry V and the dialogue in The Taming of the Shrew is not as smooth as Twelfth Night.  You might be wondering why this is important, so I’ll just say it.  If Sonnet 43 was written before 1594, it reveals two pieces of information: they are that the 11x14 structure and the fact that it was a secret - these were always the author’s intent.  Obviously, this is speculation, but it’s not without merit.  If this poem was an early sonnet, given its subject matter, we can surmise that the Bard lived out the second half of his life without ever uttering a word about this great literary accomplishment.  The real William Shakespeare is such an elusive individual, and we’ll never really know who he was.  But, if this truly is an early sonnet, it tells us so much about the man, and suggests that even in his own lifetime, he was incredibly private.

So, those are my four big ideas.  The secret structure is part of the narrative, and it was always meant to be hidden.  Knowing the structure makes the work better and this may have always been the plan, going back to early in Shakespeare’s writing career.  If you get nothing else from this episode, I hope you remember this.  And lastly, I’ll say it again: I’m sorry that this episode is so long, but I can’t make these claims without backing them up.  So, hopefully you understand why the length is what it is.  It’s because this poem is so important.

I have plenty more to say on these topics, but it’s time to connect them to the text.  So, let’s begin.  Sonnet 4.1 is the first poem of Act 2.  Thanks to our understanding of the structure, we have the ability to come to this poem with expectations.  The first is that this sonnet must start a new story arc and introduce new themes or at least a new approach to old ones.  It also needs to set up Section 4 and Act 2 as a whole.  The first, ninth, thirteenth and fourteenth sonnets of each section are what I call Key Sonnets.  Due to their location, they must handle the heavy lifting necessary to make the structure work.  This is not the approach that scholars currently take, but this is how we will look at every single sonnet.  As they say in real estate: location, location, location.  Well that’s true for us too.  A sonnet’s location tells us what the sonnet’s job is within the section before we read it and it directs us on how to interpret the poem afterwards.

Here is Sonnet 4.1:

When most I wink, then do mine eyes best see,

For all the day they view things unrespected;

But when I sleep, in dreams they look on thee

And, darkly bright, are bright in dark directed.

Then thou whose shadow shadows doth make bright,

How would thy shadow’s form form happy show

To the clear day with thy much clearer light

When to unseeing eyes thy shade shines so?

How would, I say, mine eyes be blessèd made

By looking on thee in the living day,

When in dead night thy fair imperfect shade

Through heavy sleep on sightless eyes doth stay?

All days are nights to see till I see thee,

And nights bright days when dreams do show thee me.

Here’s the No Fear Version of the poem:

“My eyes work best when I’m asleep, because all day they look at things I don’t care about. When I sleep, my dreaming eyes alight on you and glitter brightly in the dark, having found your bright image there. Given that your shadowy dream-image brightens even the dark, how bright might you appear in daylight, when your own light is so much clearer? How bright, when your shadow shines so brightly to my eyes blinded by darkness? What good would it do my eyes to see you in the daytime when they already look at your beautiful image in the dead of night, as I sleep? Every day is as dark as night until I get to see you again, and every night is as bright as day when I see you in my dreams.”

So, here’s my first question: to whom is this poem directed?  Who is the actual audience?  This may not be the first question that comes to your mind, but I believe it’s essential if we want to establish how we’re going to interpret this poem today.  Obviously, the simple answer is the Young Man.  For us, the young man means the personification of the poems.  Hence Shakespeare is talking to his Sonnets.  He says, “thee,” as in T-H-E-E thee four times, “thy” three times, and “thou” once.  So, case closed, right?  Maybe, but, as I just stated, this answer is too simple.  

Yes, Sonnet 4.1 is directed at the poems, but, and here’s my second question: are they listening?  In other words, is this a soliloquy?  Is this the type of love poem that a poet would deliver to someone else or keep private?  Sure, a writer could share this with their lover but that’s not a given.  Sonnet 4.1 is an internal monologue.  So, here’s what we need to decide, and this will have a major impact on not just this poem and the section, but the entire sonnet sequence as a whole.  We need to ponder: if this is a soliloquy, then that means that the intended audience is either the general reader or you and me specifically.

I know, this is a scary proposition.  Sonnet 4.1 is about a secret, and lucky for us, we have a really good candidate for what the secret actually is.  Therefore, the true audience of this poem could be the people who understand the structure.  This may seem like a radical leap, but it’s important that we consider this now.  You may disagree with me or you may wish to reserve judgment until you’ve heard more, and I respect that, but I think it’s important we have this discussion, and we can revisit it later if need be.  Either way, I will now go line by line through the poem and explain everything.

Quatrain 1, Line 1: “When most I wink, then do mine eyes best see.”

The first word I’m drawn to is “wink.”  Obviously, this can be a reference to sleep, as in, “I need to catch a few winks.”  Plus, there are multiple references to sleep throughout the poem.  So, the simple, easy answer is to say that “wink” means “sleep” and nothing more.  But, what if that’s wrong?  The other way to interpret “wink” is an inside joke or some sort of secret understanding.  If I wink at a friend, it will convey a lot of information.  Not sure what that will be, but both parties will know.  Possibly everyone else in the room will have no idea what that wink meant, and that’s part of the point.

So, how does that interpretation of a person winking their eye apply here?  Is Shakespeare winking at us?  And by us, I am not referring to any general reader.  No, I am talking about people who know about the Secret Structure.  The people who don’t know about or don’t believe that this is Sonnet 4.1 - they’re asleep to the fact that Shakespeare is winking at us.  As a result, for the rest of the poem, they will be left in the shadows.  They are basically eavesdropping on a conversation filled with inside jokes.  They may figure out a little, but they are unable to grasp the full context of what’s being said.  It’s like Shakespeare is talking to us in a different language.

Having said that, “When most I wink” is a strange grammatical construction.  According to No Fear Shakespeare, this translates as, “when I’m asleep.”  So, what does “most” mean?  Is it an intensifier to indicate the power of Shakespeare’s wink to us?  Maybe, but the grammar is odd.

The second half of line one is, “then do mine eyes best see.”  If you listened to multiple episodes of this podcast, then you’ve likely heard me say that the word e-y-e-s eyes is usually a stand-in for quote “words.”  Depending on the context, it can mean that specific poem, the section or act, or the entire work as a whole.  Much of the time, my reading is that he’s talking about the work as a whole with the understanding of the existence of the Secret Structure.  However, within the context of this line, “then do mine eyes best see,” this does and does not work.  Can the poems see?  Kind of no, but also yes?  The idea of the wink is that we see the poems better, not that the poems see themselves better.  So, this is a little contradictory.  But, I don’t think this is a roadblock or a deadend.  If the Bard is winking at us because we’re in the know, then it’s logical that we see the poems better.  This interpretation makes sense, but I believe there is room for debate over an exact meaning.

Line 2: “For all the day they view things unrespected.” 

Let’s start with “day,” and expand this discussion to conversations about day versus night and being asleep versus being awake.  Shakespeare is not the first or last poet to use these ideas as metaphors for life and death.  Daytime or being awake is a poetic device commonly used to describe being alive and night or being asleep is a regular stand-in for death.  So, while you may wish to interpret this element of the poem differently, this is my approach.  My reading is that Shakespeare knows that the secret structure will be discovered after he’s dead, and he’s reflecting on this while he’s alive.

“For all the day they view things unrespected.”  If the day is a reference to the narrator talking about his lifetime, then “all the day” is a strong textual clue.  It suggests that Shakespeare intends to keep this secret into his death.  “All the day” is an non specific amount of time, but it can easily be read to mean all the rest of his natural life.  If so, this is Shakespeare telling us that he has no intention of sharing his secret.  He is acknowledging to us that the structure exists, the secret is intentional, he’s taking the secret to his grave, and he expects readers to eventually discover it.

But what will these readers see?  Well, their eyes will view what the Bard describes as “things unrespected.”  So, first off, quote “unrespected” is a rare word that doesn’t pop up in my dictionary.  In The Sonnets, it is used exactly twice.  Once here, and a second time in Sonnet 4.12.  I’m not going to jump ahead, but I will say that Sonnets 4.10-4.12 are all an extension of Sonnet 4.1.  The use of “unrespected” is not a coincidence, and I will talk about that more in the episodes for those poems.

In the meantime, what does “unrespected” mean within the context of this poem?  What is unrespected or what is being unrespected?  For me, this is an easy answer: the Secret Five Act Structure.  Not just the structure, but also the way it completely reinvents the manner in which we read the poems.  You and I read these poems very differently than the average scholar.  Quite frankly, they are missing a lot.  Therefore, they are not able to fully respect the beauty of the poems.  Hence, “unrespected.”

Now, because this is daytime, then we know that in his lifetime, Shakespeare is claiming that he and he alone saw the true greatness of what he was writing.  So, maybe “mine eyes” are Shakespeare’s actual eyes, but, in most cases, “eyes” usually means something else.  Either way, it doesn’t massively alter the main idea of the poem.

Line 3: “But when I sleep, in dreams they look on thee.”

The first part of this is easy.  “But when I sleep” means after Shakespeare is dead.  However, the second part is tricky: “in dreams they look on thee.”  We can guess who “thee” is.  It’s probably the poems, but who are “they” and what are their dreams?  Could “they look on thee” be a reference to all readers?  Sure?  Maybe.  But can’t it also be a reference to the select few to whom the Narrator is winking at?  It can, right?  Personally, I think yes, but there is room for multiple interpretations because we have to figure out what “dreams” means.  

Is it that we are dreaming?  The only real maps we have for this are the principles of the five act structure, the form of the sonnet, and the poems themselves.  Shakespeare left us plenty of clues, but nothing definitive beyond that.  Outside of this podcast, over the past 20 years, I’ve told this idea to plenty of people.  Many of them have told me, “Seriously? You’re dreaming dude.”  The implication is that this is all in my head and I am delusional.  Full disclosure, this criticism is not new to me.  So maybe Shakespeare suspected that anyone later on who proclaimed this would be thought of as a bit of an oddball.  However, this is probably just be me superimposing my personal experience onto the poem.

On the other hand, another option is itself a little wacky, but not absurd.  Since we already established the idea that Shakespeare is directly communicating with those in the know, my question is this: what is our mode of communicating back with the writer?  Now, please don’t overthink this.  I’m not suggesting that we try to communicate with a ghost.  Rather, he is talking to us through his words and giving us clear indications that there’s a puzzle.  We have some of the pieces and it’s our job to reconstruct that which has been previously “unrespected.”  However, we’ll never really know if we can get it completely right.  By that, I mean we’ll do our best, but it’s impossible for us to read between every line.  As such, I think it’s fair to describe this activity as “dreaming.”  We’re doing our best to solve the riddle of one of the most private writers in history, but if someone thinks they always know the meaning, that they can explain everything, then my guess is that they are dreaming.

Line 4: And, darkly bright, are bright in dark directed.

This is the start of three consecutive lines to use repeated words.  For this line, we have “darkly bright” and “bright in dark.”  This wordplay is definitely designed to reach out and grab our attention.  Having said that, here’s my first question: should we think “darkly bright” and “bright in dark” mean similar things?  I don’t know your thoughts, but mine are that these two meanings have nothing in common beyond word choice.  It’s like saying one person is “pretty amazing” and another is “amazingly pretty.”  We know those expressions have completely different meanings.  So, what about here?  If someone or something is bright, we assume they are clever or smart.  For example, “that girl is bright” or “you have a bright idea.”  Both are compliments implying smart.  So what about “darkly bright?”  “Darkly” is not a reference to darkness, as in the absence of light, or at least it doesn’t have to be.  Rather, it is a reference to either cunning or deviousness.  For example: “that devious girl is bright” or “your idea on how to win the game is pretty dark.”  “Darkly” can also have evil implications.  Is it evil for Shakespeare to have created this secret?  Maybe, but I don’t think so.  Rather, he is “darkly bright.”  He was a genius who demonstrated his talents in a way that most people never suspected.  He also hid his ideas and left them in the dark.  So, “darkly bright” could mean “hidden genius” or “evil genius.”

Moving on, “Bright in dark directed” is about something completely different.  It’s not about the writer, but rather the readers.  As we will see later in the poem, there are many references to darkness representing the “unrespected” parts of the work that are lost to most readers.  They are in the dark with quote “unseeing eyes.”  However, to become respected, one needs to fully understand the poems.  The Narrator tells us there is brightness and directions.  They are currently in the dark, but there are ways to find the light.  

This is where I will jump up on a soapbox for a moment.  I believe the directions are the Secret Five Act Structure, or at least if we use the principles of storytelling relating to plays and sonnets.  This will direct us towards the light.  Otherwise, there is no clear road map.  Hence, I believe Shakespeare is indicating the importance of the structure.

Quatrain 1.  We’re four lines in and moving at a snail’s pace.  Sorry about that, but this poem is so important that I wanted to say everything.  Most poems are not this dense, and having said that, I want to do a quick recap before proceeding.

Here’s a slightly embellished translation of everything we just covered:  When readers are in on the joke, then these poems make a lot more sense.  My whole life, the world hasn't been able to respect what I’ve created, but, after I’m dead, future readers will try to puzzle it out.  They’ll realize my cunning genius and follow my directions towards understanding.

How was that?  What do you think?  Is that paraphrased translation feasible or is it trash?  Because, if you’ve got a better idea, I’d love to know it.  Regardless, this is how I see it.  Whether you agree or disagree with me, I want my conclusions to be clear.

Now it’s time for Quatrain 2.  Line 5: “Then thou, whose shadow shadows doth make bright.”

To start, for “shadow shadows,” the first word is a noun and the second is a verb.  The phrase, though awkward, makes sense, but the main idea to observe is that Shakespeare clearly seems to want to draw attention to the idea of a shadow.  So, what is a shadow?  There are three main definitions and all could apply here.  According to my kindle dictionary, a shadow can be: A - A dark area or shape produced by a body coming between rays of light and a surface.  B - Partial or complete darkness.  And C - the shaded part of the picture.  All three have merit for us.  In the case of A, a dark shape, we’re trying to understand Shakespeare.  For the purpose of this metaphor, he’s blocked the sun and we’re on the other side, trying to look through the shadows to see the Bard.  If it’s B, darkness, the suggestion is that this idea has been lost to history, in complete darkness for four centuries.  Lastly, if it’s C, the shaded part of a picture, The Sonnets is art.  A painter uses shadows to enhance their picture and create depth.  It’s not the only factor in whether or not a piece of art is good, but elite artists absolutely use shadows to enhance a painting.  As we’ll see in Sonnet 4.11, Shakespeare will describe the Secret Structure as watching fresh blooming flowers on an already beautiful tree.  In other words, the poems themselves are why we read The Sonnets, but this is the little extra, the shadows on the edges, that elevated the work to being something better.

“Then thou, whose shadow shadows doth make bright.”  I think there are many ways to interpret “shadow shadows.”  My favorite is that the secret structure is so opaque that it makes night look like day.  Regardless though, we end up at the same destination: brightness - the place of being able to fully understand The Sonnets.  At the same time, Shakespeare is telling us that it’s not easy.  Readers must understand sonnets, five act plays, know the structure, and be able to decode the work.  It’s a rare skill set, and here Shakespeare acknowledges it.  

Line 6 - “How would thy shadow’s form form happy show.”

Line 6 starts a three line question, but, for this episode, I prefer to continue with the line by line format.  So, now we’ve got the word, “form.”  “Thy shadow’s form form.”  In a microscopic sense, we don’t need to further debate what shadow means.  It’s what is hidden.  The most interesting word in this line, the one Shakespeare absolutely wanted us to see, is “form.”  According to my dictionary, as a noun, there are 22 different definitions of form, and, as a verb, there are 11 different definitions.  That’s a lot of options, but for our purposes, I want to focus on shape and structure.  What I mean by this is, “shadow’s form form” means: the format created by the secrets.

And here’s the question for you to decide?  Does this new approach create a happy show?  It might seem like a moot point, but it’s not.  The whole point of the secret structure is that it creates a “happy show,” something to entertain us.  As well see later in Sonnets 4.10-4.12, Shakespeare loves the idea that the secret structure makes the poems more fun to read.  We cannot overlook this.  Shakespeare is trying to entertain us.

Line 7 - “To the clear day with thy much clearer light” or in context with Line 6 - “How would thy shadow’s form form happy show to the clear day with thy much clearer light.”  I find line 7 both transparent and opaque.  “Clear day” can easily mean a world in which everyone knows about the secret structure, but what about “thy much clearer light?”  Shakespeare has been fairly straightforward that the secret is in the shadows, but now it’s supposed to be a source of illumination?  Maybe.  If we interpret “form” to mean the form of the sonnets and the formula of five act plays, then yeah, sure they are a spotlight.  I know this reading helps my case, but I feel like there are other interpretations.  Maybe I’m right.  Maybe I’m wrong.  Or, maybe I’m wrong about being wrong.

Either way, let’s finish this second quatrain and answer the question.  Line 8 - “When to unseeing eyes thy shade shines so?”  Or “How would thy shadow’s form form happy show to the clear day with thy much clearer light when to unseeing eyes thy shade shines so?”

Okay, that's a bit opaque, but don’t worry, I will explain the full question.  First, though, we have to talk about “unseeing eyes.”  As I’ve already stated in this episode and in prior ones, e-y-e-s eyes almost always means words or poems.  Now, we can get super metaphysical and suggest that the poems are unaware of the fact that they are structured.  Maybe, but it’s a complex idea that contradicts the idea of transparency.  Having said that, it’s a fascinating topic to explore, and I do believe it has merit, but that’s not what I think it means.  In this instance, “unseeing eyes” is a reference to the readers who’ve missed the shadows.  The suggestion is that Shakespeare openly asserts that no one knows what he’s done.  Readers have eyes, but they don’t see.  This is another very bold textual reference that the secret is both real and intentionally hidden by the author.

But, let’s answer this question: “How would thy shadow’s form form happy show to the clear day with thy much clearer light when to unseeing eyes thy shade shines so?”

Let’s remember that this is a question that starts with the word “how?”  Shakespeare may give us his answer after the turn or in the couplet, but right now, let’s ignore the answer and focus on the question.  So, here’s one way I would rewrite Quatrain 2: And you, my poems, have secrets that no one can see.  How can the world appreciate the bright clear truth of your complexities when readers are blind and unable to see you?

I realize I’m editorializing here a bit, but unlike the man 400 years dead, I’ve actually had to live in a world that’s content to keep all of this in the shade.  Regardless, I hope that rewrite makes my point.  You may disagree or agree partly.  It’s all okay to me.  My goal is to clearly articulate what I see so that you as a listener can come to your own conclusions.

And now, it’s time for the turn.  Line 9.  If you know how sonnets work, and since you’re listening to me, I will assume you do, then you know this is an important moment in the poem.  When best executed, a turn will shift, expand, or change the narrative at this juncture.  What will happen this time?  Well, much like Quatrain 2, it’s a long question.  However, instead of being 3 lines long, this one is four lines - the full quatrain.  So, going in, we can know that this question will be complex just based on the nature of the fact that Shakespeare needed four lines to create it.

Line 9: “How would, I say, mine eyes be blessed made.”

The first part of this question is reflexive.  The Bard is talking to himself.  He wants to know how his poems can be considered great.  This is a fascinating start to a question.

Line 10: “By looking on thee in the living day.”  Or, “How would, I say, mine eyes be blessed made by looking on thee in the living day.”  I believe the most important word in this poem is “living.”  The implication is that Shakespeare intends to take this secret with him to the grave.  This is another clear reference that the structure was meant to be a secret, and seemingly we can surmise he actually accomplished this feat.  The idea is that Shakespeare could read his poems while he was alive and fully appreciate them, but how can they be great if only he understands them?  However, this is only part two of a four line question.  So, let’s keep going.

Line 11: “When in dead night, thy fair imperfect shade.”  Or “How would, I say, mine eyes be blessed made by looking on thee in the living day when in dead night, thy fair imperfect shade.”  Okay, keeping in theme with the last line, the most interesting word here is “dead.”  As in “dead night.”  This is a very clear clue that this poem isn’t about days and nights, it’s about the poems before and after the death of the writer. 

The phrase that gets my attention is “fair imperfect shade.”  Let’s just start and give Shakespeare the full benefit of the doubt.  “Fair imperfect” is 4 syllables long.  Seemingly, the Bard could have subbed in countless other options.  So, the fact that we have the words “fair” and “imperfect” tells us that these are the words he wanted to use.  I say this because Shakespeare is possibly giving us a new idea here.  He’s telling us that the secret structure is nice, but not flawless.  This is worth noting for two reasons.  First, Section 4 is not formatted correctly.  It breaks the rules.  This is a subtle clue that maybe the Bard is self-aware that this section will be different, and maybe that it won’t be as good as he wanted.

This sort of humility is not surprising to find in the work. The Narrator uses humility and self-degradation many times.  The irony is that he’s doing it now.  This is the moment when Shakespeare is making amazing revelations, yet he chooses now to remind us that he wishes he had done better?  I’m a little surprised personally, but that’s just my opinion.

Having said that, if this really was an early sonnet, maybe Shakespeare suspected that his 11x14 framework would be imperfect from the get go.  So, he pondered this and then everything worked out.  Whether this is possible or not, the fact is the Bard chose “fair imperfect shade.”  He’s suggesting that it’s really good, but not flawless.

Line 12: “Through heavy sleep on sightless eyes doth stay?” Or, “How would, I say, mine eyes be blessed made by looking on thee in the living day when in dead night, thy fair imperfect shade through heavy sleep on sightless eyes doth stay?”

Let’s zero in first on “sightless eyes” because it’s a clear callback to “unseeing eyes.”  In both instances, my assertion is that this is a reference to the readers who don’t know about the secret structure.  The fact that Shakespeare mentions them twice clearly indicates that it’s an important idea. 

Okay, but what is “heavy sleep?”  We’ve said that night and day represent something else other than night and day.  Then what about “heavy sleep?”  My reasoning is that this represents a hibernation period of sorts.  Or more specifically, four hundred years of hibernation.  Shakespeare couldn’t have known this or maybe he didn’t care, but this is a clue that the full scope of his poetry wouldn’t be known until the secret woke up.  It’s so crazy to imagine a 30 year old Shakespeare having these ideas bouncing around in his head.  He hadn’t written most of his masterpieces, but he was already trying to immortalize himself with a secret.  Truly, it’s hard for us to fathom.

Couplet.  Line 13: “All days are nights to see till I see thee.”

Okay.  If “day” is life and “night” is death, then this could be read as "Life” will feel like being dead until I see you.

And jumping to the end.  Line 14: “And nights bright days when dreams do show thee me.”

This line, in juxtaposition with the one before it, can be read as: death will feel like life when the secret wakes up from its slumber and Shakespeare’s poetic greatness is fully revealed to the world.

The couplet is potentially an incredibly bold statement.  There is a certain amount of loneliness and sadness here.  The narrator accepts that this secret will be his for the rest of life but hopes it will be discovered after he’s dead.  For us, this is so emotional and engaging.  Many readers say that Shakespeare poured out his heart in the Sonnets.  Well, doesn’t that apply here?

One word I really want to highlight from this couplet is the word T-H-E-E “thee.”  It’s used twice.  “All days are nights to see till I see thee, and nights bright days when dreams do show thee me.”  Do you remember much earlier in the episode when I asked the question: who is the audience?  The answer I most liked is that it was us, the readers who know the Secret Five Act Structure.  Well, I like to read this line as though Shakespeare is directly talking to us.  I realize this isn’t completely consistent with the poem because I’m suggesting that the 2nd person audience is shifting.  To that I say, this is partially correct.  However, I think two things can be true.  Yes, the audience is supposed to be the poems, but the real audience is us.  As such, “when dreams do show thee me” can be a line from Shakespeare telling us how special it is to him for us to have this relationship.  As such, he is showing us his true self.  Now, I don’t think this answers most of the questions most scholars have always had.  Rather, it reveals a new dimension.  Shakespeare is so private that he’d take his secret to the grave, but he really wants it to be discovered and he values our unique relationship with him.  Again, I could be wishcasting, but this is a special feeling.  We feel closer to Shakespeare.

Furthermore, if this poem was written by 30 year old Shakespeare, we can put this within the context of his life.  While there are references to humility, I do not think this is a humble poem.  It’s about as bold as you can get, and it was written before the Bard had achieved his true greatness.  Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, The Tempest, The Merchant of Venice, Henry IV Part 1, and so many more.  None of these plays had been written based on the timelines we have.  A 1594 Shakespeare would have only composed about 8 plays.  That’s less than 25% of his total.  Not nothing, but still we have to consider that this version of Shakespeare wanted to achieve literary immortality with great poems and infamy with a secret that he would take to his grave, all while becoming the greatest writer who ever lived.  This is such an amazing poem.

So, what do you think?  Let’s step back and consider everything I’ve rambled on about in this episode.  I know this poem is a little opaque, and yet it’s genius.  Absolute genius.  The last thing you must decide is: what I have told you - is any of this seriously plausible?  From my perspective, this poem is dripping wet with innuendos. Furthermore, within the harsh confines of the 11 by 14 structure, this poem does everything expected from the first sonnet of a section.  

Additionally, was this a quote “happy show” for you?  Did you enjoy reading Shakespeare this way and did you enjoy seeing things that most readers have never seen?  Did you like that moment ago when you suddenly gained a potentially new perspective on Shakespeare the writer?

I hope so.  However, these are my conclusions, and ultimately it’s not my job to convince myself.  It’s my job to convince you.  In the end, every listener can have their own opinion.  My wish is that you'll read the text and make your own informed decision.  It’s possible that you agree with me in theory, but believe I’m not interpreting this poem correctly.  That’s fine with me.  I’m not perfect.

In the end, I hope this brings you joy.  There’s a great story here and I wanted to share it.  However, we’re only getting started with Section 4, which I’ve already told you is my favorite section.  I’m sorry for the long episode, but I didn’t really feel like I had a choice.  When you do a deep dive into a deep poem, things like this can happen.  Thanks for listening and see you next time.