How can I then return in happy plight,
That am debarre‘d the benefit of rest?
When day‘s oppression is not eas‘d by night,
But day by night and night by day oppress‘d,

And each, though enemies to either‘s reign,
Do in consent shake hands to torture me,
The one by toil, the other to complain
How far I toil, still farther off from thee.

I tell the day, to please him thou art bright,
And dost him grace when clouds do blot the heaven:
So flatter I the swart-complexion‘d night,
When sparkling stars twire not thou gild‘st the even.

  But day doth daily draw my sorrows longer,
    And night doth nightly make grief‘s length seem stronger.

Sonnet 28 explained:

The sonnet reflects a sense of longing and lamentation, as the speaker expresses their frustration with the relentless passage of time and the absence of rest. The contrasts between day and night, light and darkness, and the speaker’s yearning for a connection with their beloved create a poignant portrayal of inner turmoil and despair.

The opening lines capture the speaker’s anguish at being deprived of the solace that rest should bring, highlighting the suffocating nature of their suffering. The relentless cycle of day and night becomes a source of oppression, with both periods contributing to the speaker’s torment. The personification of day and night as conspiring forces, united in their determination to exacerbate the speaker’s distress, serves to underscore the profound sense of isolation and hopelessness that pervades the poem.

The speaker’s attempt to find solace in the presence of their beloved is evident in the imagery of light and darkness. They beseech the day to take pleasure in the brightness of their beloved’s presence, and similarly, they strive to alleviate the dreariness of night by adorning it with the radiance of their beloved’s essence. However, the relentless passage of time only serves to magnify the speaker’s sorrow, as the days seem to prolong their anguish and the nights deepen their grief.

In conclusion, the sonnet poignantly captures the emotional turmoil of the speaker, painting a vivid portrait of yearning, despair, and the relentless passage of time. The juxtaposition of light and darkness, day and night, serves as a poignant backdrop to the speaker’s profound sense of isolation and longing for respite.