Read the following passage from William Shakespeare's "Sonnet 73" (published in 1609) carefully before choosing your answer.
(1) That time of year thou mayst in me behold
(2) When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
(3) Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,
(4) Bare ruin'd choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.
(5) In me thou see'st the twilight of such day
(6) As after sunset fadeth in the west,
(7) Which by and by black night doth take away,
(8) Death's second self, that seals up all in rest.
(9) In me thou see'st the glowing of such fire
(10) That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,
(11) As the death-bed whereon it must expire
(12) Consum'd with that which it was nourish'd by.
(13) This thou perceiv'st, which makes thy love more strong,
(14) To love that well which thou must leave ere long.
In the third quatrain (lines 9–12), the speaker compares his state to a dying fire that is "Consum'd with that which it was nourish'd by." How does this figurative language contribute to the development of the speaker's reflection on aging?
- AIt reveals the poet's personal regret that he wasted his early career on trivial matters rather than writing serious poetry.
- BIt provides a literal description of a cold, neglected fireplace to emphasize the speaker's poor living conditions.
- It suggests that the very experiences and energy that sustained the speaker's youth are now contributing to his decline.Answer
- DIt serves as a metaphor that labels the speaker's passion as a fire, without connecting it to the larger theme of mortality.
- EIt signals a shift toward optimism by implying that the speaker's passion will be reborn from the ashes.