🌹 Stanza 132 - Literary Analysis

Shakespeare's Venus and Adonis

📖 Original Stanza

‘What have you urg’d that I cannot reprove?
The path is smooth that leadeth on to danger;       
I hate not love, but your device in love
That lends embracements unto every stranger.
You do it for increase: O strange excuse!
When reason is the bawd to lust’s abuse.

🔍 Line-by-Line Analysis

Line 1: "What have you urg’d that I cannot reprove?"

"What have you urg’d": What arguments or pleas have you put forward or insisted upon? Shakespeare uses "urg'd" to mean pressed for, presented with insistence, highlighting Venus's persistent attempts at persuasion.
"that I cannot reprove?": That I cannot easily refute, criticize, or condemn? "Reprove" here means to refute or prove wrong, indicating Adonis's confidence in dismissing her arguments.
Meaning: What arguments have you presented that I cannot easily refute or condemn?

Line 2: "The path is smooth that leadeth on to danger;"

"The path is smooth": Refers to something that appears easy, pleasant, and inviting on the surface. Shakespeare uses "smooth" to suggest a deceptive ease, a lack of obstacles, or a superficially appealing quality.
"that leadeth on to danger;": But which ultimately leads to harm, peril, or ruin. This is a proverbial statement, often used to warn against temptations that seem harmless but have destructive consequences. It implies Venus's seductive advances are alluring but ultimately harmful to Adonis's innocence or well-being.
Meaning: The path that seems easy and pleasant often leads to danger.

Line 3: "I hate not love, but your device in love"

"I hate not love": Adonis clarifies that his rejection is not of the concept of "love" itself, suggesting he understands or respects pure affection. This sets up a contrast with what follows.
"but your device in love": But your specific method, scheme, or contrivance in how you practice or pursue love. "Device" here refers to Venus's particular way of expressing love, which Adonis finds objectionable.
Meaning: I don't hate love itself, but rather I object to your particular method or manner of pursuing love.

Line 4: "That lends embracements unto every stranger."

"That lends embracements": That offers or freely gives physical embraces or intimate acts. "Lends" implies a casual, perhaps indiscriminate, giving without genuine commitment or selectivity.
"unto every stranger.": To anyone, indiscriminately, without prior connection or special affection. This is Adonis's accusation of promiscuity or lack of discernment on Venus's part, viewing her passionate nature as too generalized and not exclusive to him.
Meaning: The way you offer embraces indiscriminately to anyone.

Line 5: "You do it for increase: O strange excuse!"

"You do it for increase": You pursue sexual activity for procreation, to have offspring, or to multiply. Adonis sarcastically attributes a conventional justification for sex (i.e., fertility/procreation) to Venus, knowing her desire is purely passionate. This is a common, moralistic justification, which Adonis uses to highlight the absurdity of applying it to Venus's current pursuit of him.
"O strange excuse!": What an odd, unbelievable, or disingenuous justification! Adonis finds this reasoning utterly absurd, especially given Venus's overwhelming desire for pleasure and her status as a goddess.
Meaning: You claim to do it for procreation? What a strange and unbelievable excuse!

Line 6: "When reason is the bawd to lust’s abuse."

"When reason is the bawd": When intellect, rational thought, or cunning acts as a pimp or procurer. A "bawd" is a person who arranges immoral sexual encounters. This powerful metaphor accuses Venus of using her intelligence not to control or temper her desires, but to facilitate and enable them.
"to lust’s abuse.": To the misuse, perversion, or excessive and destructive indulgence of sexual desire. "Abuse" here signifies uncontrolled and harmful gratification of passion.
Meaning: When your reason (intellect) merely acts as a panderer facilitating the excessive and harmful indulgence of your lust.

🎭 Literary Devices

Device	Example	Effect
Metaphor	"The path is smooth that leadeth on to danger"	Compares Venus's seductive advances and the allure of unchecked passion to a seemingly easy route that nevertheless leads to peril, emphasizing the deceptive nature of her desires from Adonis's perspective.
Metaphor / Personification	"When reason is the bawd to lust’s abuse."	Personifies "reason" as a "bawd" (pimp), dramatically illustrating Adonis's accusation that Venus's intellect is not used for moral restraint but to facilitate and enable her excessive sexual urges, painting her actions as morally corrupt.
Rhetorical Question	"What have you urg’d that I cannot reprove?"	Adonis uses this to assert his intellectual and moral superiority, implying that Venus's arguments are weak and easily dismissed, reinforcing his steadfast resistance.
Sarcasm / Irony	"You do it for increase: O strange excuse!"	Adonis's sarcastic dismissal of a common justification for sex (procreation) highlights the perceived absurdity and disingenuousness of Venus's unbridled passion for him. It underscores his youth's disdain for what he sees as her carnal desires.
Alliteration	"lends embracements unto every stranger"	The repetition of the 'l' and 's' sounds creates a subtle, flowing rhythm that, ironically, describes the indiscriminate nature of Venus's "embracements," adding to the impression of their widespread, almost fluid, distribution.
Juxtaposition / Antithesis	"I hate not love, but your device in love"	Clearly distinguishes between the pure concept of "love" and Venus's specific, objectionable method of expressing it, thereby refining Adonis's rejection and showing his youthful idealism regarding love.

🎯 Overall Meaning & Significance in the Context of the Poem

Stanza 132 powerfully articulates Adonis's continued and increasingly sharp rejection of Venus's fervent advances. It marks a critical point where Adonis moves beyond simple bashfulness to outright condemnation of Venus's passionate nature. He frames her pursuit not as love, but as a dangerous, indiscriminate force ("The path is smooth that leadeth on to danger; That lends embracements unto every stranger"). This highlights the poem's central conflict: the clash between untamed, overwhelming desire (Venus) and chaste, principled restraint (Adonis).

Adonis's refusal is rooted in his perception of Venus's "love" as a form of "lust's abuse." He dismisses any potential justification for her actions, such as procreation ("You do it for increase: O strange excuse!"), seeing them as mere pretexts for indulgence. The most scathing line, "When reason is the bawd to lust’s abuse," is a profound indictment. It suggests that Venus, in her passionate pursuit, has perverted her own intellect, transforming it from a tool of discernment and control into an enabler of wanton desire.

This stanza underscores several broader themes in Venus and Adonis: * The Nature of Love vs. Lust: Adonis clearly distinguishes between genuine, pure love (which he does not hate) and Venus's specific, physical "device in love," which he equates with promiscuous lust. This sets up the fundamental opposition between innocent affection and aggressive carnal desire. * Youthful Chastity vs. Experienced Passion: Adonis's arguments emphasize his youthful purity and aversion to the unrestrained passion that Venus embodies. His resistance can be seen as an assertion of self-control and an almost puritanical moral stance against Venus's classical pagan sensuality. * The Dangers of Unchecked Desire: Adonis warns that Venus's path, while seemingly appealing, leads to "danger," implying ruin or moral degradation. This reinforces the idea that excessive passion, if not tempered by reason or virtue, can be destructive. * Gender Roles and Power Dynamics: The stanza also subtly inverts traditional gender roles, with the male (Adonis) being the resistant, chaste object, and the female (Venus) the aggressive, desiring subject. Adonis's cutting words momentarily give him a position of moral authority over the goddess of love, challenging her power.