🌹 Stanza 47 - Literary Analysis

Shakespeare's Venus and Adonis

📖 Original Stanza

Sometime he trots, as if he told the steps,
With gentle majesty and modest pride;
Anon he rears upright, curvets and leaps,
As who should say, ‘Lo! thus my strength is tried;
And this I do to captivate the eye        
Of the fair breeder that is standing by.’

🔍 Line-by-Line Analysis

Line 1: "Sometime he trots, as if he told the steps,"

"Sometime": An archaic form of "sometimes," indicating a recurring but not constant action. Shakespeare uses this to show the variety of the horse's movements.
"he": Refers to Adonis's horse, the subject of this descriptive passage.
"trots": A specific, controlled gait of a horse, characterized by diagonal pairs of legs moving forward together. Shakespeare chooses this word to convey the horse's disciplined movement, contrasting with wilder galloping.
"as if he told the steps": This phrase personifies the horse, suggesting it moves with such precision and rhythm that it appears to be consciously counting or measuring each stride. It emphasizes the horse's grace, control, and almost intelligent awareness of its own movement.
Meaning: "Sometimes the horse trots with such deliberate precision, as if it were consciously counting each of its steps."

Line 2: "With gentle majesty and modest pride;"

"gentle majesty": An oxymoron, combining the opposing concepts of softness/control ("gentle") with grandeur/dignity ("majesty"). This phrase beautifully captures the horse's powerful yet restrained presence, indicating it is noble and dignified without being overwhelming or wild. Shakespeare uses this to highlight the horse's refined nature.
"modest pride": Another oxymoron, juxtaposing self-assertion/high opinion of oneself ("pride") with humility/lack of boastfulness ("modest"). This describes the horse's self-assuredness and awareness of its own beauty and power, yet without arrogance or ostentation. It suggests a quiet confidence.
Meaning: "Moving with a dignified yet controlled power, and a self-assuredness that is not arrogant."

Line 3: "Anon he rears upright, curvets and leaps,"

"Anon": An archaic adverb meaning "soon," "presently," or "at once," indicating a sudden and immediate change in action. This signals a shift from the controlled trot to more dynamic movements.
"rears upright": Describes the horse lifting its forelegs off the ground and standing on its hind legs. This is a dramatic and powerful display of strength and training.
"curvets": A specific, high-level dressage movement where the horse performs a series of controlled, high jumps, lifting its forelegs and then its hind legs, landing nearly in the same spot. This showcases extreme agility, balance, and advanced training.
"leaps": General term for jumping. Combined with "rears" and "curvets," it conveys the horse's exuberance, energy, and athleticism. Shakespeare uses these active verbs to depict a magnificent, showy performance.
Meaning: "Suddenly, the horse stands on its hind legs, performs high, controlled leaps, and jumps with energetic power."

Line 4: "As who should say, ‘Lo! thus my strength is tried;"

"As who should say": A strong instance of personification, meaning "as if someone (or the horse) were saying." It explicitly attributes human speech and intentional communication to the horse.
"Lo!": An archaic interjection meaning "look!" or "behold!" It serves to draw immediate attention, mimicking a speaker commanding an audience.
"thus my strength is tried": "In this way, my strength is demonstrated" or "my power is proven." The horse is metaphorically boasting about its physical capabilities, showing off its prowess through its actions. "Tried" here means "tested" or "proven through action."
Meaning: "As if the horse were saying, ‘Look! This is how I demonstrate my strength and skill!’"

Line 5: "And this I do to captivate the eye"

"And this I do": Refers back to all the powerful and graceful actions described in the preceding lines (rearing, curveting, leaping, demonstrating strength). The phrase emphasizes the deliberate and purposeful nature of the horse's display.
"to captivate the eye": To completely engross, fascinate, or hold someone's gaze and attention. The horse's performance is not random; it's a deliberate visual spectacle designed to attract and impress a viewer. Shakespeare uses this to highlight the performative aspect of courtship.
Meaning: "And I perform all these actions specifically to capture the attention and admiration of..."

Line 6: "Of the fair breeder that is standing by.’"

"Of the fair breeder": "Fair" means beautiful or lovely. "Breeder" here refers to a female horse, a mare, particularly one that is capable of reproduction. This reveals the ultimate purpose of the stallion's display: to attract a potential mate. This detail grounds the horse's magnificent show in the biological imperative of courtship and procreation.
"that is standing by": Indicates that the mare is an immediate and close observer of the stallion's performance. The proximity emphasizes the direct target audience of the display.
Meaning: "...of the beautiful female horse standing nearby."

🎭 Literary Devices

Device	Example	Effect
Personification	"as if he told the steps," "With gentle majesty and modest pride," "As who should say, ‘Lo! thus my strength is tried; / And this I do to captivate the eye / Of the fair breeder’"	Attributes human intellect, emotion, and deliberate intention (counting steps, feeling pride, speaking, performing to impress) to the horse. This makes the horse's actions relatable and purposeful, drawing a direct parallel to human courtship rituals and making the animal's behavior a commentary on the poem's human characters. It adds a layer of wit and charm to the description.
Oxymoron	"gentle majesty," "modest pride"	Combines contradictory terms to create a deeper, nuanced description. "Gentle majesty" highlights the horse's powerful yet controlled dignity, while "modest pride" suggests self-assurance without arrogance. This enriches the characterization of the horse, showing its complex and admirable qualities.
Imagery	"he trots, as if he told the steps," "rears upright, curvets and leaps," "fair breeder that is standing by"	Uses vivid sensory details to create a strong mental picture of the horse's movements and the scene. The dynamic verbs and descriptive adjectives bring the horse's performance to life, allowing the reader to visualize its grace, power, and the immediate context of its display.
Alliteration	"told the steps," "modest pride," "strength is tried" (subtle), "fair breeder"	The repetition of initial consonant sounds ("t," "m," "s," "f") creates a sense of musicality and rhythm within the lines, enhancing their poetic quality and making them more memorable and pleasant to read. It adds a subtle emphasis to the words.
Symbolism/Allegory	The stallion's deliberate display of strength and beauty to "captivate the eye / Of the fair breeder" functions as a direct symbolic parallel to Venus's ardent pursuit of Adonis throughout the poem.	This entire scene acts as an allegory for the larger theme of natural desire and courtship. The horse's instinctive and successful demonstration of power to attract a mate mirrors Venus's efforts to seduce Adonis. It naturalizes and normalizes the powerful drive of desire, contrasting with Adonis's youthful resistance and highlighting the universal nature of procreative urges across species. The horse's active role suggests that such displays of passion are inherent and often effective.

🎯 Overall Meaning & Significance in the Context of the Poem

This stanza provides a magnificent and detailed description of Adonis's horse, showcasing its extraordinary grace, power, and controlled athleticism. However, its primary significance lies not just in the vivid imagery, but in its profound allegorical connection to the main narrative of Venus and Adonis.

The horse's deliberate performance, described with human-like intention ("as if he told the steps," "As who should say"), culminating in a grand display "to captivate the eye / Of the fair breeder that is standing by," serves as a direct parallel to Venus's relentless and passionate pursuit of Adonis. Just as the stallion employs its physical prowess and inherent desirability to attract a mate, Venus uses her beauty, eloquent speeches, and ardent advances to win Adonis's affection. The "fair breeder" is the female horse the stallion aims to impress, mirroring Adonis as the object of Venus's desire.

This parallel serves several key purposes within the poem's broader themes:

Naturalizing Desire: By presenting an animal engaging in a sophisticated courtship ritual driven by the fundamental urge to procreate, Shakespeare universalizes and naturalizes the powerful drive of desire and passion. It suggests that such urges are inherent in nature, not merely human constructs, thus implicitly validating Venus's actions as part of the natural order.
Highlighting Adonis's Resistance: The stallion's successful and purposeful display contrasts sharply with Adonis's youthful disinterest in love and procreation. The animal kingdom, as depicted here, embraces its natural impulses, making Adonis's coldness seem somewhat unnatural or naive in comparison. The horse's vigor and intent underscore the "folly" of Adonis's refusal to engage in the "sweet pleasure" that is depicted as a universal force.
Gender Roles and Agency: Interestingly, while the main poem has Venus (female) as the active pursuer, this stanza reverses the typical dynamic by showing a male (stallion) actively displaying for a female (mare). This reversal might subtly comment on the poem's main dynamic, perhaps suggesting that while the male often displays, the female's passion (as with Venus) can be equally, if not more, potent and active.
Foreshadowing/Dramatic Irony: The stallion's virile display and success with the mare can be seen as an ironic counterpoint to Adonis's own eventual fate and his rejection of Venus's life-affirming love. The horse embodies the natural vitality and generative power that Adonis, through his preference for hunting over love, ultimately shuns, leading to his untimely death.

In essence, this stanza functions as a miniature drama of courtship, reflecting and amplifying the central themes of love, desire, and the natural world's imperatives, providing both a mirror and a commentary on the main human narrative.