English Literature / Unit 7 ENL 0603 short lesson, about 20 seconds
The Sonnets: Fair Youth and Dark Lady
Captions available
The idea
Shakespeare's hundred and fifty-four sonnets, published in sixteen-oh-nine and dedicated to an unknown "Mr. W. H.," trace a friendship with a beautiful young man and a romance with a dark lady. The anchor stresses that their autobiographical elements are unproven.
In practice
A young man, a dark lady, a mystery.
Where people slip
Do not treat the sonnets as diary.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Something wrong in this lesson? Flag it · Sources for English Literature