Sense; / In right or wrong they call her Conscience” (ll.
9–11). In extending the conceit around his unnamed
(at least in this sonnet) “she,” Drayton concludes by
bringing to the poem back to himself: “These of the
Soul the several functions be / Which my Heart, light-
ened by thy love, doth see” (ll. 13–14). Sonnet 12
refl ects the author’s desire to utilize the metaphysical
genre of poetry, later popularized by John Donne,
which emphasized spiritual and intellectual pieces over
lighter, love-inspired works.
The poem is written in the ENGLISH SONNET form,
but its three quatrains rhyme in an abba scheme rather
than the more common abab pattern before ending in a
rhyming COUPLET. It utilizes iambic pentameter, though
the meter is not as strong as in Drayton’s other SON-
NETs. Still, as an early example of metaphysical poetry,
Sonnet 12 remains one of Drayton’s more introspective
and thus interesting works.
See also IDEAS MIRROUR (OVERVIEW), PERSONIFICATION.
Michael Cornelius
Ideas Mirrour: Sonnet 13 (“You’re not alone
when you are still alone”) MICHAEL DRAYTON
(1594) Sonnet 13, also known as “Amour XIII,” was
part of the original 1594 collection called Ideas Mir-
rour, but it was the 21st poem in the sequence, being
renumbered to the 13th piece by the fi nal edition of
- The entire SONNET SEQUENCE concerns the poet’s
love for and unswerving dedication to a woman he
calls Idea, who has been identifi ed by critics as Lady
Anne Rainsford, a childhood friend of the author’s.
In Sonnet 13, which MICHAEL DRAYTON dedicates “To
the soul” (something he also does for Sonnet 12), the
author utilizes the same metaphysical genre he used in
the 12th SONNET. Yet while the subject matter of Sonnet
12 is inspiring and hopeful, Sonnet 13 refl ects the grim
tone of Sonnet 8. The poems use the metaphor of decay,
but in Sonnet 13, the decay is focused on inanimate
objects: “Metals do waste and fret with canker’s rust, /
The diamond shall once consume to dust, / And freshest
colours with foul stains disgraced” (ll. 2–4). Even the
author’s words, immortal in Sonnet 6, are now fallible to
decay: “Letters and lines we see are soon defaced” (l. 1).
In some ways, the sonnet reads as a response to Dray-
ton’s critics: “Paper and ink can paint but naked words,
/ To write with blood of force offends the sight” (ll. 5–6).
It is also, however, a rumination on the act of writing
itself and the frivolous nature of fame. The “shadow” of
Drayton’s lady Idea encourages him to continue writing,
despite the harshest criticism or the fl eeting wanes of
fame: “That everything whence shadow doth proceed /
May in my shadow my love’s story read” (ll. 13–14).
Drayton concludes, somewhat triumphantly, that his
work will live on after his death, if only as a refl ection of
his great love.
Sonnet 13 is written in the ENGLISH SONNET form,
but its three quatrains rhyme in an abba scheme rather
than the more common abab pattern before ending in a
rhyming COUPLET. The subject of his own writing
appeared consistently throughout Drayton’s works,
and Sonnet 13 remains a key example of this aspect of
the poet’s oeuvre.
See also IDEAS MIRROUR (OVERVIEW).
Michael CorneliusIdeas Mirrour: Sonnet 61 (“Since there’s no
help, come, let us kiss and part”) MICHAEL
DRAYTON (1594) Sonnet 61, also known as “Amour
LXI,” is MICHAEL DRAYTON’s most famous SONNET. It
held the same place in all versions of Ideas Mirrour.
The opening line is remarkable: “Since there’s no help,
come, let us kiss and part” (l. 1). Drayton has realized
the futility of pursuing his lady love and asks only for
one fi nal kiss before eternally giving up the chase. Yet
in the second line, he changes his mind: “Nay, I have
done, you get no more of me” (l. 2). Drayton has
resolved to end this love forever: “Shake hands for
ever, cancel all our vows, / And when we meet at any
time again / Be it not seen in either of our brows / That
we one jot of former love retain” (ll. 5–8). The rest of
the sonnet concerns the effects losing his love has on
the poet and on passion: “Passion speechless lies, /
When Faith is kneeling by his bed of death / And Inno-
cence is closing up his eyes” (ll. 10–12). The use of
PERSONIFICATION emphasizes the poet’s personal devas-
tation. Though the speaker recovers in the fi nal COU-
PLET, the poem remains a devastatingly simple treatise
on the potential woes that are in wooing, and it has224 IDEAS MIRROUR: SONNET 13