Sonnet 32 - Speaker and Subject

Speaker and Subject

Shakespeare’s sonnets are typically classified in reference to speaker and subject. Sonnet 32 is commonly accepted as a “handsome youth” sonnet. This classification as a handsome youth sonnet is significant as it characterizes both the speaker and the subject within the sonnet: the speaker, as a man displaying his affection for the subject who is a young, handsome man.

The identity of the speaker is a well debated topic however. Some believe that the speaker is merely a character that Shakespeare has created as an expression of art. However, the speaker is often thought to be Shakespeare himself, thus giving the content of the sonnet a much more personal sentiment. Some depict the voice of the speaker merely as a “construct” character by the author to “generate…reader interest, sympathy, and involvement that deserve closer attention”. Thus the speaker is not a reflection of the author but instead an authorial tool to evoke interest from the reader.

In contrast, some critics believe that Shakespeare’s sonnets are “autobiograph” and that the two characters within the sonnet are Shakespeare and an unidentified male object of lust or affection.

Ultimately, there is “critical disagreement” over whether the character of Shakespeare’s speaker is ambiguous, Shakespeare himself, or a constructed character.