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Difficulty: HardExtended Metaphors and Conceits

The Sundial

Upon the garden’s terrace stands the plate of stone,
A silent watcher of the passing day,
Whose bronze gnomon, in darkness left alone,
Can shape no shadow when the sun's away.
It waits the touch of the celestial eye
To write the hours upon its marble breast;
So is my soul, which looks toward thy sky,
A useless block, by heavy shade oppressed.
For when thy countenance is turned from me,
And clouds of absence veil thy warming beam,
No shadow marks the hours of my decree,
No digits measure out my sorrow's stream.
The silent bronze remains, but tells no time;
I live unnumbered till thy light return.

In the poem, how does the extended metaphor of the sundial function to develop the speaker's portrayal of their emotional state?

  1. A
    It underscores a sudden shift in the speaker's attitude from profound sorrow to joyful acceptance of their isolation.
  2. B
    It reveals the poet’s personal resentment toward the constraints of writing poetry under a strict patron's eye.
  3. It conveys that the speaker's internal sense of existence and the structure of their life are fully contingent upon the beloved's attention.Answer
  4. D
    It suggests that the speaker is physically paralyzed by the passage of time and the inevitability of death.
  5. E
    It serves to catalog the physical properties of bronze and marble to highlight the poem's historical setting.

Answer

The correct option is the one stating that the speaker's internal sense of existence and the structure of their life are fully contingent upon the beloved's attention.
The correct option is correct because the poem establishes an extended metaphor (conceit) comparing the speaker's soul to a sundial and the beloved's presence to the sun. Just as a sundial remains functional and can only measure time when illuminated by the sun, the speaker's life and sense of existence are depicted as entirely contingent upon the beloved's attention and presence.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the core comparison of the conceit in the poem.
The speaker compares their soul to a sundial ('So is my soul... A useless block') and the beloved to the sun ('thy warming beam', 'thy light').
To identify the tenor (the speaker's soul/emotional state) and the vehicle (the sundial and the sun) of the extended metaphor.
2
Trace how the metaphor develops throughout the passage.
A sundial requires sunlight to function; without it, it is a silent, useless piece of stone. Similarly, the speaker cannot measure time or feel alive without the beloved's presence.
To determine the overall thematic function and meaning of the extended comparison.
3
Evaluate the answer choices against the textual evidence.
The option stating that the speaker's sense of existence is contingent upon the beloved's attention is directly supported by the text, while other options rely on literal misinterpretations, biographical assumptions, or incorrect tonal shifts.
To select the most accurate analytical interpretation of the conceit.

Key Concept

Analyzing how an extended metaphor or conceit develops a speaker's thematic argument or emotional portrayal throughout a poem.
Estimated Time:2m 0s
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Topics

Extended Metaphors and Conceits

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