Our big winner is “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” And the runner-up is "My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun."
The recent poll asked the question:Of the following Shakespeare sonnets, which one do you most admire?
And the choices were the following:
- 1 From fairest creatures we desire increase
- 18 Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
- 116 Let me not to the marriage of true minds
- 126 O thou, my lovely boy, who in thy power
- 130 My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun
And the winner is “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” This sonnet won 75% of the votes. And the runner-up is “My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun,” which earned 25% of the votes.
The two winners are, in fact, the most widely anthologized and studied Shakespeare sonnets.
The following articles will help you become better acquainted with the lesser known, but equally worthwhile, sonnets:
- Shakespeare Sonnet 1: 'From fairest creatures we desire increase'
- Shakespeare Sonnet 116: 'Let me not to the marriage of true minds'
- Shakespeare Sonnet 126: ‘O thou, my lovely boy, who in thy power’
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