Sonnet 102 is one of the 154 sonnets written by English playwright and poet William Shakespeare. It is one of the Fair Youth sonnets, in which Shakespeare writes of an unnamed youth with whom the poet is enamored. Sonnet 102 is among a series of seemingly connected sonnets, from Sonnet 100 to Sonnet 103, in which the poet speaks of a silence between his Muse and himself. The exact date of writing is unknown, and there is contention among scholars about when they were written. Paul Hammond among other scholars believes that sonnets 61-103 were written primarily during the early 1590s, and then being edited or added to later, during the early 1600s (decade). Regardless of date of writing, it was published later along with the rest of the sonnets of the 1609 Quarto.
In the sonnet, the poet writes of why he has stopped showering his muse with flowery praise and adoration. In his analysis of Shakespeare's Sonnets, David West suggests that the sequence of sonnets 100-103 and the silence described are a response to the infidelity of the Fair Youth in the Rival Poet sequence of sonnets (78-86), which has caused a rift between the poet and his Muse. He writes of how immediately following the Rival Poet sonnets, the Poet begins to speak of his lover being false and having forsaken him. West claims that this ultimately culminates in sonnets 100–103, where the Poet expresses his regret over what has transpired.
Paraphrase
In this sonnet, the speaker is explaining that though he has been writing poetry in adoration of his muse less frequently, his feelings for him are as strong as they've ever been. Gwynne Blakemore Evans believes that this is an attempt to apologize for a period of silence. The poet goes on to explain that his silence is simply him not wanting to cheapen his praise by making it common. Below is a paraphrase of the sonnet written in prose:
My love is stronger than it's ever been, even though my love may seem to have diminished. I do not love less, even though I don't show it as much. Love becomes a commodity when it's spoken of too highly and too frequently. I used to sing my praises very frequently when our love was new, like the nightingale which sings in the summer and stops at summers end. It's not that the summer is less pleasant for the nightingale, it's simply that the songs of other birds fill the air, and when things become common, they become less dear. It's for this reason, I, like the nightingale, have stopped writing. I do not wish my poems to become boring.
Structure
Sonnet 102 is an English or Shakespearean sonnet. The English sonnet has three quatrains, followed by a final rhyming couplet. It follows the typical rhyme scheme of the form abab cdcd efef gg and is composed in iambic pentameter, a type of poetic metre based on five pairs of metrically weak/strong syllabic positions. The 8th line exemplifies a regular iambic pentameter:
× / × / × / × / × /
And stops her pipe in growth of riper days. (102.8)
The 1st and 3rd lines have a final extrametrical syllable or feminine ending:
× / × / × / × / × / (×) My love is strengthened, though more weak in seeming; (102.1) / = ictus, a metrically strong syllabic position. × = nonictus. (×) = extrametrical syllable.
Context
Sonnet 102 is a part of the Fair Youth sequence, and it is also connected with the surrounding sonnets (100, 101, and 103) in detailing a silence that has arisen between the poet and his muse. David West contends that this sequence may be in response to the Rival Poet sequence. The Rival Poet sequence of sonnets mention a rival for either the affections of the Fair Youth, or that they are addressing other writers that may be a "worthier pen" (Sonnet 79). There is a rather long list of people that scholars believe are likely candidates for the title of the fair youth addressed in the Sonnets: William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke; Philip Herbert, Earl of Montgomery; and Henry Wriothesley, Third Earl of Southampton are the most common candidates.
There has also been speculation of the identity of the Rival Poet. George Chapman and Christopher Marlowe, are typically considered to be the two most likely rivals, due to their publicity, profession, relations, and standing with Shakespeare during the presumed time of writing.