This new edition focuses on the Sonnets as poetry--often subtly interlinked in thematic, imagistic and other groupings. The volume also addresses the many questions that have puzzled readers: are the Sonnets autobiographical? What is the nature of the "love" between the "poet," the "youth" and the "Dark Lady?" Can they be identified? When were the Sonnets written and in what order? The volume is introduced by the poet and scholar, Anthony Hecht. The text has been edited and extensively annotated by Gwynne Blakemore Evans. The volume as a whole will appeal to a new generation of students and poetry lovers.