Point of View

It is generally practice in literary analysis of contemporary poetry to treat the author and the speaker as two completely distinct entities. This allows the poem to stand on its own, without being influenced by the reading of the author’s biography. In early modern poetry, however, this is more complex. The idea that the poet bears no relation to the speaker did not exist at the time this poem was composed. Furthermore, the poet relies on his personal relationship with Shakespeare throughout the poem. The title, after all, is addressed to “my beloved author,” indicating the poet’s personal feelings. The speaker also writes from the intimate perspective of someone who knew Shakespeare well, as Jonson did.

He begins by explaining his own position, as writers in the elegiac form usually do – admitting that he is not “ample” to the task of writing Shakespeare...