“As the waves move to the shingle shore” by William Shakespeare is an English sonnet on the nature of time, in which Shakespeare follows and departs from the traditional sonnet form. Reading the poem with this in mind gives the poem an added dimension, leading the reader to consider why this was done and how this affects the meaning of the poem. Shakespeare fashioned the poem's external structure to coincide with this message that time is a destructive force whose wrath is inevitable, and this is evident by examining his use of a consistent rhyme scheme, his employment of trochees and occasional spondees, and his adherence to the structure of three quatrains and a couplet. This poem follows the traditional rhyme scheme of an English sonnet, which achieves the effect of the continuous passage of time. Shakespeare rhymes the last word of the first and third lines, as well as the last words of the second and fourth lines, using different rhymes in each quatrain and in the final couplet. A main idea of ​​this poem is that time is a linear force, constantly moving forward, and Shakespeare's use of an "ABAB CDCD EFEF GG" rhyme scheme reflects this concept flawlessly. The rhyme scheme helps the poem maintain a continuous progression, with each rhyming word “changing places with what precedes,” exactly as Shakespeare describes the behavior of minutes (3). Just as Shakespeare believes that nothing can escape the wrath of time, nothing can escape this rhyme scheme; Shakespeare strictly follows this, helping to prove his point. While Shakespeare's use of trochees and spondees is not as rigorous, it also helps illustrate Shakespeare's message by mirroring the crashing attack......in the center of the card......just like Shakespeare he followed the traditional English sonnet form and departed from it, at the same time he remained faithful and timely departed from his original opinion. Therefore, the external structure of the poem supports its perspective both in specific cases, as illustrated above, and in the big picture. Most of all, the reader leaves with the message that sometimes there are things in life that cannot be changed, such as certain aspects of the external form of this poem, but other times, seemingly invincible things can be conquered, whether it be time , or the structure of a traditional English sonnet. Bibliography Shakespeare, William. “How the waves head towards the pebbly shore.” Norton Introduction to Literature. Ed. Alison Booth and Kelly J. Mays. Portable 10th ed. New York: W. W. Norton, 2006. 604. Print.