Madisson Ruff
English 11
2 May 2019
Mr. Barazzuol
When I consider how my light is spent
In the poem “When I consider how my light is spent”, written by John Milton, is about his experience when he lost his ability to see. At the beginning of the poem, the theme is very depressing, as he feels useless and having no worth without the ability to see and serve god. Towards the end of the poem, there is a sense of relief for him as he comes to accept his loss and being able to serve god in a different way. The main theme for this poem is one should not worry about things outside their control. The significance within this poem is about overcoming obstacles you must face within life that is out of your control. The writer is lost, feels out of place with where he is, how his vision was taken too early from him. Overcoming obstacles that make you feel unworthy of life but that god has a plan, that he had a different purpose for serving him, other than his vision. Within the poem, the poetic device, personification, appears in the beginning, “death to hide/my Soul more bent” (3-4). Personification is giving human like qualities to objects and non-human things. The poetic device, consonance, is also used throughout the poem, “in the dark world and wide, /But patience, to prevent” (2,8). Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in a poem. The first line of this poem gives the reader a metaphor, “When I consider how my light is spent,” (1). This is about how the light is spent is referring to his vision. A metaphor is comparison without using like or as. This poem is very deep and still saddening with the loss of one’s vision but displays growth over time.
