Sonnet 154 by Shakespeare

William Shakespeare's Sonnet 153 and Sonnet 154 are based upon a poem attributed to the Greek poet Marcianus Scholasticus. The poem describes how Cupid has his love brand stolen by nymphs. Sonnet 153 and Sonnet 154 are described as Anacreontic, after the name of a Greek writer who wrote love poems.

The poem not only presents a different version of the traditional Petrarchan mistress, but rather a Dark Lady (from sonnet 127-154). This sonnet also flouts the idea that the poet can make the subject immortal through the authorship of their work. The portrayal of the mistress in this work is different than those of any previous Renaissance sonneteers because it abandons the courtly love tradition where the poet elaborately celebrates the worth of his unattainable lover.

Interpretations

 * Bohdan Poraj, for the 2002 compilation album, When Love Speaks (EMI)
 * David Tennant, reads this, alongside several other sonnets in From Shakespeare With Love, released in 2009 as a celebration of 400 years of Shakespeare