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Sonnet 29: When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes by William Shakespeare

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The speaker is having a terrible day — feeling like a failure, envious of those around him, and convinced that even God isn’t listening.

Poet
William Shakespeare
Composed
1609 · Renaissance
Form
sonnet
Core theme
Despair
The PoemFull text

Sonnet 29: When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes

William Shakespeare, 1609

When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes I all alone beweep my outcast state, And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries, And look upon myself, and curse my fate, Wishing me like to one more rich in hope, Featur'd like him, like him with friends possess'd, Desiring this man's art, and that man's scope, With what I most enjoy contented least; Yet in these thoughts my self almost despising, Haply I think on thee,-- and then my state, Like to the lark at break of day arising From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven's gate; For thy sweet love remember'd such wealth brings That then I scorn to change my state with kings.

Public domain

Sourced from Project Gutenberg

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§01Quick summary

What this poem is about

The speaker is having a terrible day — feeling like a failure, envious of those around him, and convinced that even God isn’t listening. But then he thinks of the person he loves, and suddenly, none of that matters. That single thought lifts his spirits so much that he wouldn’t trade places with a king.

§02Themes

Recurring themes

§03Line by line

Stanza by stanza, with notes

  1. When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes / I all alone beweep my outcast state,

    Editor's note

    The opening quatrain paints a bleak picture: the speaker is at his lowest point. "Disgrace with fortune" indicates that his luck has soured, while "men's eyes" suggests his reputation has taken a nosedive as well. He’s crying in solitude— "beweep" is a stark, almost harsh word that conveys deep, raw emotion rather than composed sorrow. "Outcast state" reveals his sense of total alienation from society.

  2. And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries, / And look upon myself, and curse my fate,

    Editor's note

    He prays, but heaven isn't listening — "deaf heaven" paints a striking, almost bitter picture. "Bootless" signifies useless or fruitless, so his prayers feel like they're going nowhere. He then looks within and despises what he finds. This is self-pity at its peak: he's cursing his own existence.

  3. Wishing me like to one more rich in hope, / Featur'd like him, like him with friends possess'd,

    Editor's note

    Now comes the comparison spiral. He glances around, feeling envious of everyone: this guy has better prospects, that one has better looks, and another enjoys a wide circle of friends. The repeated "like him, like him" captures the restless, darting nature of envy—he can't focus on just one thing to desire. "Rich in hope" refers to someone with a bright future, something the speaker feels is missing in his own life.

  4. Desiring this man's art, and that man's scope, / With what I most enjoy contented least;

    Editor's note

    He envies the talents ("art") and opportunities ("scope") of other men. The last line of this quatrain hits hard: even what he usually loves brings him no joy at the moment. This is the hallmark of deep despair — the things that typically save you no longer work.

  5. Yet in these thoughts my self almost despising, / Haply I think on thee,-- and then my state,

    Editor's note

    The volta—the turn—arrives here. The word "Yet" indicates this shift. "Haply," meaning by chance or luck, is key: the beloved's thought isn't something forced or willed; it simply comes. And once it does, everything changes. Shakespeare keeps us in suspense over the line break, making us wait to see what "my state" will become.

  6. Like to the lark at break of day arising / From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven's gate;

    Editor's note

    This is one of Shakespeare's most stunning images. The lark was the highest-flying songbird known to people in Elizabethan times, celebrated for its song at dawn. The speaker's soul rises just like that bird — soaring from "sullen earth" (the heavy, grey ground of his despair) directly to "heaven's gate." Notice how heaven, which felt "deaf" just eight lines earlier, is now a place of joyful arrival. Love has achieved what prayer could not.

  7. For thy sweet love remember'd such wealth brings / That then I scorn to change my state with kings.

    Editor's note

    The closing couplet wraps up the argument effectively. The memory of being loved is called "wealth" — a clear nod to the financial and social envy present in the earlier quatrains. All that status and fortune he once wanted? It feels worthless now. He wouldn't trade his situation for that of a king. It's a total reversal of the opening, accomplished with just one thought.

§04Tone & mood

How this poem feels

The poem navigates two contrasting emotional landscapes. The first eight lines are intense and self-critical — the tone is bitter, restless, and drained, where every detail feels like a reminder of personal failure. Then the volta shifts everything. The last six lines are warm, uplifting, and subtly triumphant. What makes this poem resonate is that Shakespeare takes his time with the transition, allowing the joy to feel earned by fully immersing us in the earlier misery.

§05Symbols & metaphors

Symbols & metaphors

Deaf heaven
Heaven's silence captures the speaker's feeling of complete abandonment—not only by people but also by the divine. This intensifies the later image of "heaven's gate," as love triumphs where prayer fell short.
The lark
The lark symbolizes dawn, joy, and ascendance during the Elizabethan era. It makes its nest on the ground yet sings at the peak of its flight, embodying the idea of a soul lifting itself from earthly struggles toward something greater. Shakespeare references it in other works, especially in *Romeo and Juliet*, to signify morning and fresh starts.
Wealth / kings
Money and royal power frame the poem's depiction of worldly success. The speaker yearns for them at the beginning but dismisses them by the end. Love reshapes the idea of "wealth" — revealing that it's something no king's treasury can possess.
Sullen earth
The earth feels "sullen" — dull, heavy, and resentful — mirroring the speaker's inner turmoil. It's the tangible embodiment of despair that the lark (and the speaker's spirit) breaks free from as soon as love fills his mind.
Bootless cries
"Bootless" refers to being without profit or result. The image of futile crying to a deaf sky conveys the speaker's sense of total disconnection and helplessness — a feeling that love can quickly erase.

§06Form & structure

Form & structure

Form
sonnet
Meter
iambic pentameter
Rhyme
ABAB CDCD EFEF GG

§07Historical context

Historical context

Shakespeare wrote his 154 sonnets mainly in the 1590s, but they didn't get published until 1609. Sonnet 29 is part of the first sequence (sonnets 1–126), which is directed at a young man often referred to as the "Fair Youth" — we still don't know who he is. In Elizabethan England, a man's status relied heavily on patronage, reputation, and public favor, so the "disgrace with fortune and men's eyes" that the speaker talks about was more than just a feeling — it had real-world consequences. Shakespeare himself faced professional uncertainty: theaters frequently closed due to the plague, and writers relied on wealthy patrons for support. It's hard to say if the sonnet reflects Shakespeare's own life or if it's purely fictional, but the social anxiety it portrays was very real for someone in his situation.

§08FAQ

Questions readers ask

The poem speaks to the "Fair Youth," a mysterious young man who is the focus of Shakespeare's first sonnet sequence (sonnets 1–126). His identity remains unknown; throughout history, people have speculated that he might be Henry Wriothesley (Earl of Southampton) or William Herbert (Earl of Pembroke), but there's no definitive answer.

Key quotes

Key quotes

“When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes I all alone beweep my outcast state,”
The poem's opening establishes the speaker's total social and emotional isolation — note how "all alone" and "outcast" compound the loneliness, while "beweep" (a vivid, almost ugly verb) immediately immerses the reader in raw self-pity rather than dignified sorrow.
“And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,”
"Deaf heaven" is one of the poem's boldest images: God himself is indifferent to the speaker's prayers. "Bootless" (useless, profitless) underscores the futility, making this the bleakest moment of spiritual despair in the octave.
“Haply I think on thee,-- and then my state, Like to the lark at break of day arising From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven's gate;”
This is the poem's dramatic volta — the single thought of the beloved instantly transforms the speaker's "state" (a word Shakespeare plays on throughout). The lark simile is crucial: the very heaven that was "deaf" moments ago is now being sung to joyfully, showing how completely love reverses despair.
“For thy sweet love remember'd such wealth brings That then I scorn to change my state with kings.”
The couplet delivers the poem's central argument: remembered love is a greater treasure than any worldly fortune or royal power. It resolves the envy expressed in the octave (where the speaker coveted other men's wealth and status) by replacing material desire with something immaterial yet more valuable.

Citation

Cite this poem

MLA

Shakespeare, William. "Sonnet 29: When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes." 1609. Storgy, https://storgy.com/poems/sonnet-29-when-in-disgrace-with-fortune-and-mens-eyes-william-shakespeare/.

APA

Shakespeare, W. (1609). Sonnet 29: when, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes. Storgy. https://storgy.com/poems/sonnet-29-when-in-disgrace-with-fortune-and-mens-eyes-william-shakespeare/

TeacherAP Lit Q1 scaffold — preview

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In 'Sonnet 29,' Shakespeare uses the volta's abrupt shift from self-pity to remembered love to argue that human connection is not merely a comfort but a transformative force, powerful enough to convert worthlessness into wealth and make a …

  • Row B — Evidence + Commentary4 pts
  • Row C — Sophistication1 pt
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