Piled Stones and Pyramids

The "piled stones" and "star-ypointing pyramid" to which the speaker refers early in the poem symbolize traditional ways of mourning important people (2-4). These monuments have a history of housing the most revered figures, such as the pharaohs of Ancient Egypt who were considered gods on earth. For the speaker of "On Shakespeare," these traditional representations of a person's importance are insufficient to mark Shakespeare's legacy. Instead, he suggests that a better representation of Shakespeare's influence lies in the way his audience was affected by his work.

Unvalued Book

The "unvalued book" of Shakespeare's symbolizes his poetic skill and his literary oeuvre (11). The speaker asserts that each person who encountered Shakespeare's work was deeply affected by it. By referring to Shakespeare's extensive repertoire as a "book," Milton suggests that he is framing Shakespeare more as a poet than a playwright. This is a...