ABSTRACT
Lovesickness in William Shakespeare is always a part as well as a plague. In Sonnet 147, Shakespeare memorably describes the subjective experience of lovesickness. The opening quatrain focuses on self-consuming nature of the disease. Love perverts the appetites and creates a condition where the body can no longer judge what is and is not healthy. In the popular culture of twenty-first century, it is a commonplace view that there is a self-evident connection between love and happiness. The mark of happiness is that you are sensitive to the world around you, that you acknowledge your dependence upon your surroundings and that you are filled with loving-kindness. In this brief passage the 'love of life' is not exactly the same as 'loving-kindness'. Although neither term is especially specific, 'love of life' seems to imply a heightened appreciation of pleasurable external stimuli, whereas 'loving-kindness' seems to suggest a generous affection towards others.
