Poetry

He first published “Venus and Adonis” in 1593, followed by “The Rape of Lucrece” in 1594. While both narrative poems contain sexual themes, their views on love versus lust are in stark contrast. After the theaters reopened, Shakespeare continued to write poetry and went on to publish “The Passionate Pilgrim” and “The Phoenix and the Turtle.” The last of his poems were published in his 1609 quarto, containing 154 sonnets and “A Lover’s Complaint.” The sonnets cover an array of themes: different types of romantic love, real beauty versus clichéd beauty, and the responsibilities of being beautiful.

This Standard Ebooks edition includes all of his poems and is based on William George Clark and William Aldis Wright’s 1887 Victoria edition, which is taken from the Globe edition.

This book is part of the Standard Ebooks project, which produces free public domain ebooks.