Sonnet 130 Theme of Appearances. "Appearances" is a major theme in Sonnet 130, since our speaker spends a lot of the poem talking about what's wrong with his mistress's looks. He does a pretty complete dissection of her face, her body, and her smell. read more
In Shakespeare’s sonnets, falling in love can have painful emotional and physical consequences. Sonnets 127 – 152, addressed to the so-called dark lady, express a more overtly erotic and physical love than the sonnets addressed to the young man. But many sonnets warn readers about the dangers of lust and love. read more