Sonnet 43 (How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.) Essay Questions

How does the poet's decision to address her husband directly and repeat the key phrase of love ("I love thee") contribute to the poem's overall emotional effect?

The poet/speaker uses the word "thee" to establish right away that she is addressing her lover throughout the poem. Rather than merely speaking about her love to an unidentified listener, she is actually speaking directly to the subject of her poem. This creates an intimacy that gives the poem a very personal tone, as if it were a love letter. The reader, therefore, feels as if he is privy to the speaker's inner thoughts and even intruding upon the privacy of the lovers. In addition, the repeated use of the key phrase, "I love thee," adds power to the poem as it progresses. This is an affirmation of love that grows stronger and stronger with each line.

What poetic devices does the speaker use in order to portray her love for her husband as larger than life?

The speaker uses metaphor, spiritual references, and hyperbole to illustrate her love for her husband. In the first few lines, she uses a spatial metaphor as a means of explaining the vastness of her love. This metaphor is also a form of hyperbole, as she suggests that an abstract concept such as love can be measured. Her later references to the "old saints" she once loved in comparison to the love for her husband suggest that what she feels for him is on par with what one might feel for a saintly figure. Her love for her husband is therefore profound and exalted to a religious level. Lastly, she portrays her love as a physical experience that consumes her whole body. She loves her husband with every breath throughout her life, and she even feels that she could love him more in the afterlife. This hyperbole once again shows the extent to which she loves her husband.