Metaphor in Sonnet 29

Monetary metaphors such as “wealth” suggest that the speaker is still tied to the physical-material world although he claims that he has “arisen” from “sullen earth.” This metaphor undermines the claim he makes within the couplet.

Like “state,” the meaning of “arising” mixes the spiritual and physical world. One can “rise” in fortune, rank, or sleep. It can also metaphorically signal a “rising” out of depression or similar dejected mental state. “Arises” in this line blends all of these images to equate the ebbing movement of all desires in this poem: the speaker’s desired objects or states are all subject to rising and falling.

In this metaphor, the speaker imagines his “state,” rather than his unchanging love or self, singing praises to his lover. The repetition of “state” destabilizes the claims of the poem because state is never fixed and constantly changing. This suggests that the speaker’s mind is less at ease at the end of the poem then he would have his audience believe.