Sonnet 129

In total, Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets, which were published in 1609. Of these 154 poems, only the last 25 are considered the “Dark Lady” sonnets, which “Sonnet 129” is part of. Introduced just two sonnets before this one, the Dark Lady is a mistress of the speaker who contrasts with the Fair Youth, the subject of most of the sonnets up to this point. In this early sequence of Dark Lady sonnets, the speaker describes the unconventional beauty of the woman, in what may often seem like unflattering terms. Despite this, the speaker feels intense sexual desire for the woman, leading to feelings like jealousy.

The sonnet was a popular poetic form in England for two centuries before Shakespeare adopted it. The form was first popularized in Italy by the poet Petrarch, and later adapted by the English poets Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey. Sonnets in the Petrarchan tradition were usually about love—often an unrequited love for a highly idealized and unobtainable woman. The beloved woman was often described using a blazon, or a list of the woman’s desirable physical and personal attributes, depicted in elaborate metaphors and similes. The speaker in the Petrarchan-style sonnet would often dwell upon the torments of his unfulfilled passion, while also admiring the beloved lady’s beauty, chastity, and apparent perfection.

While Shakespeare followed most of the traditional elements of the English sonnet (most notably, its structure), he did introduce many alterations to the traditional tropes. Perhaps his greatest change comes in this sequence of poems, when he describes the object of the poetry (the Dark Lady) in realistic terms instead of in idealized ones. In the Dark Lady sonnets, the speaker openly admits that the object of his affection has many faults: His Dark Lady has dark skin instead of the pale skin prized by Tudor culture, she has bad breath, and she is the envy of nobody. Nevertheless, the speaker still lusts after her. This is in stark contrast to not only the typical Petrarchan mistress, but also the Fair Youth, whom Shakespeare has described as angelic, young, and full of life.

The sonnets are also often preoccupied with the dynamics of a volatile and apparently mutual affair instead of depicting the idealized, unrequited love of the Petrarchan tradition. “Sonnet 129” is especially notable for its frank depiction of unrestrained sexual desire and its unromantic aftereffects. Eventually in the sonnet sequence, the speaker worries that the Dark Lady is taking the Fair Youth from him, and a love triangle emerges. Ultimately, the speaker turns on the Dark Lady just as he believes she has turned on him.

There has been much popular and scholarly speculation regarding the possible identity of the Dark Lady and debate as to whether or not the affair Shakespeare depicts is based on any autobiographical event. Definitive proof is unlikely to be unearthed. Regardless of why the sonnets were written or whom (if anyone) they are about, the Dark Lady sonnets remain some of the most famous in the English literary tradition.