"From fairest creatures we desire increase,
That thereby beauty's rose might never die"

So begins the first sonnet in a tone of optimistic hope portraying Shakespeare in a slight pessimistic light that is not unknown to the avid reader. In this particular sonnet the theme is that of the preservation of beauty. Shakespeare creates within the sonnet a world of beauty, that is threatening to collapse if action is not taken, and here in this sonnet he is struggling to find the solution. Shakespeare is afraid that time will pass and he will lose his sense of beauty or that it will die with him, lost to the next generations and essentially the future world. “His tender heir might bear his memory”. This line tells us that he considers passing his philosophies down through his family line, but knows that is not the solution he is looking for as it does not give absolute promise. The next lines are of inner controversy, portraying himself as his “foe” if his solution is one too selfish, which would contradict his original goal. “Pity the world, or else this glutton be: To eat the world’s due, by the grave and thee.”

The first reasoning of sonnet eight “Music to hear, why hear’st thou music sadly? Sweets with sweets war not, joy delights in joy” we can only speculate upon that Shakespeare reasoned this out of his own experiences in life. This philosophy, if you will, probably came to him after much hardship and inner turmoil to have reached these conclusions or they could be simply speculations of his own. Although these sonnets are reminiscent of Shakespeare’s life experiences, I believe that he writes also to be interpreted by the individual mind to be prone to any meaning the reader gleams personally from his pages. “By mutual ordering, Resembling sire and child and happy mother, Who all in one pleasant note do sing” In this verse Shakespeare speaks of the unity and joy of a family. The obvious speculation is he was a family oriented person taking much joy in his family. This sonnet strikes me as a very happy piece on the rhythm at which a family operates musically keeping order and peace creating unity and joy as has been portrayed in the verse.