L’Abbé Sonnet 1 poem argues for the relationship between procreation and the speaker’s obsession with beauty. “From fairest creature we desire increase… Feed’s thy light’s flame with self-substantial fuel” (Shakespeare 1). The lines in the poem are unforgettable because they question the impacts of the man’s beauty and his unwillingness to bear children. According to Shakespeare (4), the world’s beauty is to have more gorgeous people, and the only way to achieve this desire involves procreation. The poems argue on the pros and cons of the society in forcing individual to bear children contrary to their wishes. Furthermore, the poem responds to the dilemma of beauty and its influence on conservatism. The poem’s persona blames the young man for good looks; the speaker becomes judgemental of narcissism. Therefore, the concern about the beautiful man in the poem exposes readers to the suspense of whether he is a homosexual or a moral individual who does not want to engage in early sex with women due to personal life choices.
Refusing to have beautiful children introduces the issue of sexuality and gender identity in society in the second script of L’Abbé Sonnets 1. “A rose is rose is an avatar of might, an avatar of meaning never to die” (L’Abbé 2). The rose in this contest is a metaphor referring to the beauty of a family; good families have many children that add value to the community. Shakespeare addresses a similar issue of procreation and the disobedience of a handsome man not to fall for societal expectations in rearing a family. A similar event is observed in the first poem, where the speaker forces the beautiful man to have children against his wishes. According to the speaker, beautiful people are often infertile; most of the group engage in homosexual acts to hide their inability to sire children. The issue of childbirth is similar in both scripts; nevertheless, L’Abbé Sonnet’s 1 explains gender identity and the contemporary popular cultures of sexuality. L’Abbé Sonnet’s 1 analyzes the germination of seeds and the flowering process to compare the procreation rates among beautiful people. The poet is angry with the handsome man based on his choice to turn the roses into attractive and flourishing flowers.
Shakespeare’s Sonnet’s 1 and L’Abbé Sonnet’s 1 addresses a similar issue of sexuality and procreation. The speakers in both poems claim that the man’s choice not to have a child is unknown to readers. Nevertheless, Shakespeare creates awareness regarding gender and the popular culture of sexuality in American societies. The first quatrain in the second poem illustrates the significance of procreation, and Shakespeare uses the metaphor of farming to refer to fertility. Sonnet 1 incorporates a beautiful rose to acknowledge the value of the handsome man. In both instances, Shakespeare encourages society to have as many children as possible because the future depends on the availability of the population. “How will your beauty be realized, covered in burns” (L’Abbé 2). The line in L’Abbé Sonnet’s 1 showcases the consequences of not having good plans to replace the extinct generation. The same concern is addressed in Sonnet 1 when Shakespeare says, “thereby beauty’s rose never dies” (Shakespeare 3). As a result, the comparison of L’Abbé Sonnet’s 1 and Shakespeare’s Sonnet’s 1 isolates procreation and the worth of children in the community as the main themes in the poems. The poems advocate for sex among adults for procreation and remind society to be conservative about sex education.
Works Cited
L’Abbé, Sonnet. ” Sonnet’s Shakespeare 154 Textile Winds, Or Aggrecultures, Or Ecolo Izations.” Harriet’s Legacies, 2022, pp. 256–63.
Shakespeare, William. “Sonnet 1: From Fairest Creatures We Desire Increase.” Poetry Foundation, Harriet’s Poems and Poets, Web.