‘Thy glass will show thee’. Re-locating voice in Shakespeare's Sonnets by performative speculation

Abstract

Upon the premise that Shakespeare’s sonnets display a variety of voices and therefore, among other things, they cannot be defined exclusively as “lyrical poems” in the modern sense, this paper approaches sonnets 129 and, more pointedly, 73, “re-locating” their poetic voices against the grain of more conventional interpretations, as examples of the inherent performativity of entire collection. The basic ideas are that 129 is far more ambiguous a piece than usually understood, ultimately resolved in ironic, comedic fashion; and that 73 is a reflection upon aging, indeed, but one that literally originates from a reflective surface, from an image in a mirror, and “plays out” as such. To be more precise, 73 is a sonnet in which the speaking voice proceeds as if from the poet’s reflection on the glass. This sonnet might even be said to perform the function of the explanation and motto of the emblem of a mirror reminding the seer of approaching death. In both cases, principles are discussed regarding their potential performance.