Comment on the relationship between form and meaning in Shakespeare's 'Sonnet 20', and state briefly its context in relation to the rest of the sonnets.

In Elizabethan England, sonnets were extremely fashionable amongst poets, and it was common for poets to write customary love poems concentrating solely on the subject's positive aspects. Shakespeare broke away from the Renaissance tradition by forming his own methods, and by writing about a range of highly diverse concepts and themes. Sonnet 20, for example, is connected with anti-female ideas and homosexual love, which is in extreme contrast to the traditional poetic themes of the era. …

…ove with the youth. This has a somewhat Ovidian feel as it echoes the story of Pygmalion developing an infatuation for a self-created image. This sonnet can be interpreted in many ways, and it is unlikely that critics will ever be able to ascertain the true nature of Shakespeare's intentions. It is possible that this sonnet contains the key to identifying the subject of the 'young male' sequence, and even to uncovering Shakespeare's sexuality.