Lovers fusing but remaining separate
The idea of lovers fusing to become one is an old theme in Western literature, from Plato to the Renaissance. In “The Phoenix and the Turtle,” Shakespeare does something different. The two lovers fuse, but at the same time, they remain separate. They have “Hearts remote, yet not asunder.” The two lovers possessed “Single nature’s double name.” That is, they share one nature but have two separate names or identities. Being separate allows them to recognize each other as individuals: “the Turtle saw his right / Flaming in the Phoenix’s sight.”
Mathematics
The love between the Phoenix and the Turtle breaks the laws of mathematics: “Two distincts, division none; / Number there in love was slain.” They remain one and two at the same time. In fact, their union can be described both as 1+1=2 and 1+1=1. This is why “Number” is killed. It cannot grasp the fact of their love. At the same time, Shakespeare drew on a belief that one was not a number since any number multiplied by one makes the same number.
Chastity
The Phoenix and the Turtle are described as representing “married chastity.” They have no “posterity,” which implies that they did not have a sexual relationship. Their love was mystical and spiritual rather than simply physical. Similarly, the chastity of the birds who gather at the funeral is also emphasized. The unnamed “bird of loudest lay” serves as the herald inviting all “chaste wings.” In this case, chastity means not only abstaining from sex but also purity of heart and intention. In addition, the crow joins the ceremony for the Phoenix and the Turtle because it is thought to reproduce through its breath rather than through sex. Both the two lovers and their mourners reinforce the theme of chastity.
Death of truth and beauty
With the death of the Phoenix and the Turtle, truth and beauty also die. In the Threnos section of the poem, beauty and truth (as well as rarity and grace) are described as “enclos’d in cinders.” The Phoenix and the Turtle are gone and have left no offspring behind. Similarly, there is no sign in the poem that the Phoenix will be reborn from her ashes. With the two lovers dead, “Truth may seem but cannot be.” Even if something seems like truth, it cannot be. Similarly, “Beauty may brag but ‘tis not she.” Even if something claims to be beautiful, it will not be so. The Phoenix and the Turtle were themselves beauty and truth made manifest. Without them, the world will not be the same.
Reason's confusion
In the poem, Reason is described as “confounded” or confused. The love between the Phoenix and the Turtle shocks Reason because it breaks the rules of logic. Reason sees “division grow together,” which is a contradiction. Something cannot be both divided and together at the same time. At the same time, the lovers are both “simple” (singular) and “compounded” (combined). Reason is so confused that it cries out in the poem and denounces itself, saying that love is the real reason, while reason is entirely lacking in reasonableness: “Love has reason, reason none.” The poem shows that certain truths cannot be grasped by reason alone. Love is one of these truths.
