1a. Who or what does the speaker address in line 1?
2a. What questions does the speaker ask in lines 10 and 11?
3a. What, in the speaker's experience, do beauties do regarding love?
4a. What signs show the moon's feelings?
5a. Judge whether the speaker feels understood in his pain. Explain how you know.
1b. Why do you think the speaker chooses such a confidant?
2b. What do you learn about the speaker's own experience from these questions?
3b. How has the speaker been treated by his beloved?
4b. How do you think the speaker is acting in response to rejections?
5b. Compare and contrast the speaker of Sidney's Sonnet 31 with the speaker of Wyatt's "Whoso List to Hunt." Think about how they have been treated by the objects of their affection and their attitude toward love.
Image. What is the main image in this sonnet? Describe the image. How does the speaker react to this image?
Personification. The moon is personified in this selection. Describe the characteristics of the moon. What purpose does this personification have in this sonnet?
1. Images can relate to any of the five senses. Write five images, one for each sense, that share a common mood.
2. Imagine that the moon responds to the speaker. Write a poem or paragraph that answers the questions in the sonnet.
3. What is your definition of love? Write a personal essay that expresses your views on love.
Using a Thesaurus to Find Colorful Language.Rewrite the following passage using more colorful nouns, verbs, and modifiers. Use a thesaurus if you need help. Cupid's arrow hit its mark. My heart hurts because my beloved doesn't know me. We walk the same streets and hear the same birds call. The white moon looks down upon us both as we sit under the same black sky. But she might as well be on the moon, for she thinks not of me.
Moon Research.Depending on what you have been assigned, research symbolic meaning and folk beliefs about the moon, or research the moon from a scientific perspective. See page 295 in your text for more details. Research Log
Sources Used:
Avoiding False Arguments. Read the Language Arts Survey 5.3, "Avoiding False Arguments and Propaganda." Explain the faulty reasoning in each of the following arguments.
1. Everyone scorns love once they get it.
2. I love him because he is so lovable.
3. I dated a freshman once. Never again—they're too immature.
4. Nobody will ever love you because you're a loser.
