The subject of this sonnet is obsessive love. In his bewilderment at this tremendous need for his beloved, the poet finds that his urge transcends food and money. The lover's need is so intense that he preserves it as if someone is terrified he would lose it. He feels frustrated and unsure how to deal with his emotions. Shakespeare here alludes to the story of Pygmalion, a sculptor in ancient Cyprus who fell in love with a statue he had created. He begged the goddess Aphrodite to give life to his love but was denied. However, she did grant him eternal love in return. This sonnet by Shakespeare's friend Christopher Marlowe may help explain the obsession many people feel for celebrities. It's been suggested that Marlowe wrote the poem when Shakespeare failed to get Tony Award for Best Actor for his performance in Edward III. Alternatively, it could be related to Jane Lane, who played Cynthia Savoy in Shakespeare's Henry VI series of plays. She died in 1558 after being hit by a carriage carrying King Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I. Sonnets are poems of 14 lines whose first line ends in quatrain (four syllables) and whose last line ends in couplet (two syllables). They were often used by poets to show their admiration for another person. Many great poems have been written in sonnet form including Sonnet 18 by Shakespeare which we will discuss later in the lesson.