🌹 Stanza 136 - Literary Analysis

Shakespeare's Venus and Adonis

📖 Original Stanza

With this he breaketh from the sweet embrace        
Of those fair arms which bound him to her breast,
And homeward through the dark laund runs apace;
Leaves Love upon her back deeply distress’d.
Look, how a bright star shooteth from the sky
So glides he in the night from Venus’ eye;

🔍 Line-by-Line Analysis

Line 1: "With this he breaketh from the sweet embrace"

"With this": Refers to Adonis's preceding words or actions, specifically his firm refusal of Venus's advances, prompting his sudden decision to leave.
"he breaketh": "Breaketh" is an archaic third-person singular present tense ending (-eth), emphasizing Adonis's forceful, decisive action. It implies a struggle or an abrupt rupture rather than a gentle disengagement, highlighting his strong desire to escape.
"sweet embrace": Describes Venus's hold on him, likely from her perspective or an objective one that acknowledges the amorous intent. The word "sweet" contrasts sharply with Adonis's internal feeling of being "bound," revealing the disparity in their desires.
Meaning: At this moment, Adonis forcefully frees himself from Venus's loving embrace.

Line 2: "Of those fair arms which bound him to her breast,"

"fair arms": Refers to Venus's beautiful arms. "Fair" signifies her beauty and physical attractiveness, which are part of her allure, yet insufficient to sway Adonis.
"bound him": This phrase is key to understanding Adonis's perspective. It suggests he felt constrained or imprisoned, not willingly held. It highlights his lack of desire and resistance to Venus's advances, framing her affection as an unwelcome restraint.
"to her breast": Emphasizes the intimate physical closeness from which Adonis is extricating himself, underscoring the deep level of connection Venus sought and Adonis rejected.
Meaning: He broke free from her beautiful arms that had held him tightly pressed against her chest.

Line 3: "And homeward through the dark laund runs apace;"

"homeward": Indicates his direction and strong desire to return to his own domain, away from Venus and her amorous pursuits, likely to his hunting grounds.
"dark laund": "Laund" is an archaic term for an open space, a glade, or a lawn, often used for hunting. "Dark" suggests the time of day (night or early morning) or implies a sense of obscured vision or secrecy surrounding his hurried departure.
"runs apace": Means "runs quickly" or "at a swift pace." This emphasizes the urgency and speed of his escape, showing his eagerness to put distance between himself and Venus.
Meaning: And he runs quickly towards home through the dark, open grassland.

Line 4: "Leaves Love upon her back deeply distress’d."

"Leaves Love": "Love" here is a personification of Venus herself, or perhaps the concept of love embodied by her. By leaving Venus, Adonis is literally abandoning "Love." This elevates Venus's suffering to a universal scale.
"upon her back": Implies that Venus is prostrate, either having fallen from the struggle, or simply lying there in despair. It paints a picture of her vulnerability and defeat.
"deeply distress’d": Describes Venus's profound emotional pain, sorrow, and anguish. "Distress'd" conveys a state of deep emotional suffering, emphasizing the devastating impact of Adonis's rejection on her.
Meaning: He leaves Venus, who embodies love, lying on her back, profoundly distressed and in immense pain.

Line 5: "Look, how a bright star shooteth from the sky"

"Look, how": An imperative inviting the reader to observe or visualize the upcoming comparison, drawing immediate attention to the simile.
"bright star": Refers to a meteor or a shooting star. It's a vivid, transient image associated with sudden appearance and rapid movement.
"shooteth from the sky": Describes the swift, sudden, and seemingly unguided descent of a meteor. This emphasizes the speed and fleeting nature of Adonis's departure, as well as its sudden, almost inexplicable quality from Venus's perspective.
Meaning: Just observe how a brilliant star streaks rapidly across the night sky.

Line 6: "So glides he in the night from Venus’ eye;"

"So glides he": Directly links Adonis's movement to the shooting star. "Glides" suggests a smooth, effortless, and rapid movement, almost ethereal or supernatural. It reinforces his detachment and swiftness.
"in the night": Reaffirms the setting and adds to the sense of stealth and the mystery of his vanishing act. It suggests he disappears into obscurity.
"from Venus’ eye": Highlights that his departure is observed from Venus's perspective. He vanishes from her sight, leaving her alone with her grief. This emphasizes her helplessness and his inaccessibility.
Meaning: In the same swift and silent manner, he disappears into the night, vanishing from Venus's sight.

🎭 Literary Devices

Device	Example	Effect
Alliteration	"breaketh from the breast" (L1-2) "dark laund" (L3) "deeply distress’d" (L4)	The repetition of consonant sounds (b, d, l) adds a musical quality and emphasizes key words. In "breaketh from the breast," it highlights the force of his separation. In "dark laund," it creates atmospheric imagery. In "deeply distress’d," it underscores the intensity of Venus's suffering.
Personification	"Leaves Love upon her back deeply distress’d." (L4)	"Love" is personified as Venus, or as an entity left behind and suffering. This elevates Venus's individual heartbreak to a more universal, conceptual rejection of love itself, intensifying the emotional impact and suggesting a profound consequence of Adonis's action.
Simile	"Look, how a bright star shooteth from the sky / So glides he in the night from Venus’ eye;" (L5-6)	Compares Adonis's swift departure to a shooting star. This emphasizes his speed, fleetingness, and almost ethereal or supernatural vanishing act. It highlights his inaccessibility and Venus's helplessness as he disappears from her sight, suggesting an almost cosmic indifference to her passion and foreshadowing his inevitable, sudden departure from life.
Imagery	"sweet embrace," "fair arms," "dark laund," "bright star shooteth from the sky"	Creates vivid sensory details that allow the reader to visualize the scene and experience the emotions. The contrast between the "sweet embrace" and the "dark laund" enhances the dramatic tension, while the "bright star" provides a striking visual of his sudden disappearance.
Pathos	"deeply distress’d" (L4)	The explicit description of Venus's emotional state ("deeply distress’d") evokes sympathy and pity from the reader for her suffering. It contrasts sharply with Adonis's indifferent and rapid departure, highlighting the emotional imbalance in their encounter.

🎯 Overall Meaning & Significance in the Context of the Poem

Stanza 136 marks a critical turning point in Venus and Adonis, signifying Adonis's definitive and forceful rejection of Venus's ardent advances. It vividly captures the moment Adonis breaks free from her embrace, highlighting his urgency and almost violent determination to escape. The description of Venus's arms as having "bound him" reveals Adonis's perspective: he perceives her affection as a constraint rather than a pleasure, underscoring the fundamental disconnect between their desires. His hurried flight "homeward through the dark laund" emphasizes his desire for freedom and his preference for the wildness of nature over the embraces of love.

The stanza then shifts focus to Venus, portraying her immediate and profound suffering as she is left "upon her back deeply distress’d." The personification of "Love" being left behind intensifies her personal heartbreak into a universal tragedy of unrequited affection. The powerful simile comparing Adonis's departure to a "bright star shooteth from the sky" is highly significant. It elevates his escape to something both majestic and fleeting, like a cosmic event. Adonis becomes as unattainable and elusive as a shooting star, underscoring his complete lack of reciprocal desire and his single-minded pursuit of his own interests (hunting). This imagery not only accentuates his speed and stealth but also foreshadows his eventual, sudden, and irreversible death, an event as swift and final as a meteor disappearing. This moment solidifies the poem's central themes of unrequited love, the conflict between passion and indifference, and the tragic consequences of obsessive desire. Venus is left defeated and heartbroken, while Adonis remains stubbornly aloof and unyielding.