On Shakespeare's Sonnet, "When my love swears she is made of truth"

1. What other meaning, besides "tells the truth" does the phrase "made of truth" have?
2. What is a paradox? — Hint: See the GLOSSARY AND INDEX OF LITERARY TERMS (407-415). How does one resolve a paradox? (Hint: you can find the answer on p. 111, but the word "resolve" is not used.)
3. What is the paradox is line 2? How can the paradox in line 2 be resolved? (Hint: read the following line, paying particular attention to the "That.")
4. What are two denotations meanings of the word "lie" that are important in understanding what is going on?
5. What is a quatrain? What is a couplet? How many quatrains are there in a Shakespearean sonnet, and what is their location within a Shakespearean sonnet? Where is the couplet in a Shakespearean sonnet? — Hint: See the GLOSSARY AND INDEX OF LITERARY TERMS (407-415).
6. What is commonly said about the relationship between the quatrains and the couplet in a Shakespearean sonnet? — Hint: See the GLOSSARY AND INDEX OF LITERARY TERMS (407-415).
7. How does the first word (or phrase) of each the quatrains and the couplet reveal the structure of this sonnet?
8. What are two meanings of the word "vainly" that are appropriate to the situation described in the poem?
9. Explain the play on "Simply" and "simple" in lines 7-8.
10. What are two meanings of the word "habit" which are appropriate to the situation described in the poem?
11. What are two meanings of the word "told" which are appropriate to the situation described in the poem?

1. What should you do if you believe that your boyfriend/girlfriend/life partner/husband/wife is having sex with someone else?
2. What do you think most people would do if they discovered that their boyfriend/girlfriend/life partner/husband/wife was having sex with someone else?
3. What do you think you would actually do if you came to believe that your boyfriend/girlfriend/life partner/husband/wife was having sex with someone else?
4. Can you sympathize with the speaker of Shakespeare's sonnet?
5. Can you sympathize with the mistress of the speaker of Shakespeare's sonnet?

1. In Shakespeare's sonnet, "When my love swears she is made of truth," the speaker, with a wry tone, delivers the wisdom that in a relationship, it's best to live and let live.
2. In Shakespeare's sonnet, "When my love swears she is made of truth," an older man tries to convince himself that he has a good relationship with a younger woman, but we can see that he is only fooling himself out of desperation.