Blazon and Counter-blazon in Shakespeare's Sonnets. The Usage of the Blazon in Comparison to its Traditional Use

Bachelor Thesis from the year 2022 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Literature, grade: 1,7, University of Duisburg-Essen, language: English, abstract: In this thesis, the central question that will be focused on is: How does Shakespeare use the blazon in his sonnets in comparison to its traditional use? To answer that question, intertextual analyses will examine the topos of the blazon by focusing on Shakespeare's representation of the Young Man and the Dark Woman in contrast to the traditional use of the blazon. Firstly, the terms 'topos' and 'blazon' will be explained to clarify the context. Also, the most ideal-typical poets and works will be mentioned to explicate their characteristics and the traditional use of the topos. Secondly, the focus will be on Shakespeare's sonnets. In this chapter, both the dark woman and the young man will be presented and analysed in their representations in the poems. This thesis aims to answer the question of how the blazon and counter-blazon are represented in Shakespeare's Sonnets. All texts that will be analysed can be found in the appendix. Nowadays, when people think of poetry, one might automatically connect it to love. Shakespeare or Spenser might come to mind when thinking about authors or poets. Poetry and especially love poems have specific themes like beauty that reoccur and are present throughout time. Shakespeare's sonnets contain a variety of poetical themes, such as time, beauty and love. Beauty is a theme that was popular to assign to women in the Elizabethan Age. In this period, female body parts were described in a detailed and poetic way to emphasise the beauty of the described persona. The description was made using imagery and language that was full of emotions. This poetic technique was named 'blazon' and got popularised during the Renaissance by Petrarch's influence. However, in Shakespeare's Sonnets, the theme of beauty is dealt with differently.