Ideas of Order: A Close Reading of Shakespeare's Sonnets

by Neil L. Rudenstine

Shakespeare's sonnets are the greatest single work of lyric poetry in English, as passionate and daring as any love poems we may ever encounter, and yet, they are often misunderstood. Ideas of A Close Reading of Shakespeare's Sonnets reveals an underlying structure within the 154 poems that illuminates the entire work, and provides a guide―for first-time readers as well as scholars―that inspires a new understanding of this complex masterpiece. Elizabethan scholar and former Harvard University president Neil L. Rudenstine makes a compelling case for the existence of a dramatic arc within the work through an expert interpretation of distinct groups of sonnets in relationship to one another. The sonnets show us a poet in turmoil whose love for a young man―who returns his affections―is utterly transformative, binding him in such an irresistible way that it survives a number of infidelities. And the poet and the young man are drawn in to a cycle of lust and betrayal by a "dark lady," a woman with the "power to make love groan."
Rudenstine's reading unveils the relationship between major groups of the expressions of love, the transgressions, the longings, the jealousies, and the reconciliations. This critical analysis is accompanied by the text of all of Shakespeare's sonnets. Accessible and thought-provoking, Ideas of Order is an invaluable companion to this cornerstone of literature.

Genres: Poetry, Shakespeare, Nonfiction, Literary Criticism, Criticism, Books About Books

256 pages, Hardcover

First published November 18, 2014

About the author

Neil Leon Rudenstine

Reviews

[Pearl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much has been written speculating about the identity of the young man, apparently the poet's patron, to whom so many of Shakespeare's sonnets are addressed; and, perhaps, there has been an equal amount of speculation about the identity of the "dark lady" of the sonnets. Rudenstine doesn't waste his time with identity speculation. They are there, addressed but unnamed, in the poems. Whether such persons existed in reality or as convenient persona in the poet's mind, Ruenstine's interest is to show how the sequence of the sonnets present a kind of story that reveal a wrestling with the nature of love, friendship, jealousy, vulnerability, beauty, talent, and the passing of time. In short, the order of the sonnets is not random, according to Rudenstine. Who assigned the order? Rudenstine does not say. But in presenting the sonnets as an ordered sequence, Rudenstine suggests a new way to read and understand the 154 sonnets.

The first large grouping, Sonnets 1-126 are addressed to the young man. The poet reveals him to be younger and richer and better looking and of higher station than the poet and these qualities lead to the vulnerability and sometimes base humiliation of the poet. Will he remain the young man's favored poet? his close friend or be cast aside? ("When in disgrace with Fortune and men's eyes/I all alone beweep my outcast state") Can he, the poet, outsmart time and preserve the young man's beauty and youth through his poetry? Rudenstine takes us through the sonnets to show how they reveal the poet's supreme confidence in his verse ("So long as men can breathe or eyes can see/So long lives this, and this gives life to thee."), to his doubt of his own talent, to his jealousy because of the inconstancy of his friend, to absences and reconciliations ("How like a winter hath my absence been"). The emotions are sometimes tranquil, sometimes accusatory, sometimes resigned, and often tumultuous. Rudenstine finds that in their order there is meaning, a drama if you will.

The subject of sonnets 127 - 154 is the poet's mistress, often referred to as the "dark lady" because of the way she is described in the poems. The poet is in her thrall. She is a bad influence on the poet; she is unfaithful to the poet. He knows this, yet he cannot give her up ("The expense of spirit in a waste of shame/Is lust in action,.../All this the world well knows yet none knows well/To shun the heaven that leads men to this hell.") If the poems addressed to the young man were more anguished because the love was greater, the poems to the mistress, which are more about lust than love, may be wittier and seem to bring more self-knowledge ("When my love swears that she is made of truth,/I do believe her though I know she lies/...Therefore I lie with her, and she with me,/And in our faults by lies we flattered be.")

The vicissitudes of love and beauty and talent and time rise and fall in the sequence. And a reader can still enjoy individual, favorite sonnets on their own.

[John Fredrickson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book, though not what I expected. By a "close reading" of the sonnets, I expected a read on the order of the work that Booth and/or Vendler have done. Instead, this book focuses on the existing sonnet sequence as (essentially) an autobiographical artifact, and explores some of the shifting dynamics that such a reading lends itself to.

This is a book that I will come back to. Anyone interested in the mystery that is Shakespeare would enjoy this.

[Paul Christy · Rating 1 out of 5]

154 sonnets and this book attempts to tease out their story ... But I found the book's prose harder to understand than Shakespeare's writing.

[Carl]

I hadn't thought much about the sequence of the sonnets nor read them all. Rudenstine writes clearly, arranges forcefully, and makes a reasonably compelling point -- a few analyses seem stretched to fit his thesis, here and there. My biggest takeaways, however, are (a) the mechanisms of Elizabethan patronage and class were repulsive, (b) the characters -- surely derived from real people, but I never assume that the depicted characters are drawn directly from life, and I appreciate how Rudenstine does not try to go all biographical on this -- are tiresomely far from admirable, and (c) the overall sonnet set is more annoying than I had ever thought it to be. Still, I gathered some interesting observations that will prove useful when some of these arise in the literature classes that I teach.

[Gayla Bassham · Rating 3 out of 5]

I probably would have gotten more out of this if I knew the sonnets better. I remain intrigued by the premise, which is that Shakespeare's sonnets form a sort of story arc; I think the author might have been better served if he had expanded this slim book a little bit and explicated his theories a little more.

[Mikelala · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks for this book. Really love it.

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[Gabe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice to have a very detailed look at the sonnets in order and a strong argument for them to have a set order. Although the writing was dry and the conclusion ended abruptly.

[谢林 Schelling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awwww William you big queen

[Lori Tian Sailiata · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm being generous with my stars (as per usual). Neil L Rudenstine is a distinguished professor whose life work involved teaching the Bard. That's my excuse for generosity. That said, I'm grateful I picked this up as a library loan. It would have been a grand waste of my money otherwise. The book is packaged rather deceptively. Only the first two-thirds is original content. The back third is a reprinting of the 154 sonnets in relatively large font. Approx. 100 pages for 154 sonnets. Also as he admits in the acknowledgements, his basic premise was news 50+ years ago. I would NOT classify this as a "close reading" of any of the 154 sonnets, but a defense of an academic career based on the theory that the sonnets are presented as a narrative starring a "Fair Youth" (male), a "Rival Poet" (male), and a "Dark Lady" (mistress) and these represent three individual and distinct personages with Shakespeare as the "I/Poet." This is starting to be challenged by newer academics. No doubt this is the reason for the book. While the argument does have some limited merit, it places the emphasis from the poems themselves to sequence in which they are presented, a sequence that may not be Shakespeare's intent. Even if it had been, the argument for a single controlling narrative doesn't always hold.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

while i had to wait a little longer for this book,i have to admit it was well worth the wait.i would like to thank the author and goodreads first reads for the chance at winning a free copy of this book "Ideas of order by neil l. rudenstine.
i hadnt dove into the works of shakespear when i was younger and now i regret it.this author brings light to the ideals and wonderment of shakespear and the sonets have meaning for me.
i would recommend this book to anyone who like me want a updated version of shakespears sonnets.
thanks you for this wonderful book.

[JHM · Rating 3 out of 5]

I stuck with this book for quite a while, but ultimately I just wasn't that interested in the subject.

The idea that the order of Shakespeare's sonnets has meaning, that it actually portrays the arc of a relationship, is interesting, and Rudenstine makes an excellent case. His analysis of the emotional journey seems accurate, and his writing was easy to understand.

The problem is that I finally realized that I simply didn't care enough to keep reading.

[Bill Connington · Rating 4 out of 5]

A clear and understandable reading of Shakespeare's sonnets. The author takes a "traditional" view. What makes the book unique is he sees the sonnets not as separate poems, but as an interconnected story--he conceives of them as chapters in an ongoing narrative.

[Mt. Lebanon Public Library]

Cindy's Pick
Call #: 821.3 Rud

[Monica Eppinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

A nice intro to the sonnets or a chance to read them again with fresh eyes. Dr. Eisenstein has an engaging style.