My Mistress' Eyes
William Shakespeare
Men are genuinely nice people, we just don't sound nice. The poem is satirical in a sense that it ridicules most love sonnets. A typical love poem would talk up the woman like she is some sort of goddess, incapable of error. That view of women is thrown out the window by the speaker! He describes his love as pretty plain, and somewhat off-putting. He describes her features as they are, and to be honest, the woman doesn't sound too attractive. However, the speaker makes the sonnet into something sweet by the end. He stats that "I think my love as rare as any belied with false compare" (Shakespeare 885). Despite all of her flaws and dullness (no offense to this woman), the speaker still loves her. Not just that, but he proclaims that he loves her so much that he can speak about her truthfully and still love her. He doesn't need to talk her up in a way that most sonnets do, he is attracted to her with all of her imperfections. Though he sounds mean throughout the poem, the speaker is chivalrous and is truly in love.
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