My Mistress' Eyes

I liked My Misstress' Eyes by William Shakespeare because it is the first work I have read so far in this unit that has a happy ending.  The beginning of the story is very critical of women, as has been a common theme throughout this gender unit.  The speaker of the poem says, "My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips' red..." Essentially, the speaker continues in this way, pin pointing a number of his mistress' flaws. He says her eyes aren't that pretty, even coral is more red than her lips, her hair is like wire, her breath smells bad, etc.  All of these criticisms gave me the impression that this poem was about, once again, a man displeased with the imperfections of a woman, a woman who yet again cannot fill all of the demands placed on her by stereotypes and society. However, the poem ends quite nicely.  The speaker says, " And yet, by heave, I think my love as rare as any she belied with false compare." The speaker is saying that despite all of these imperfection he can find about his mistress, he loves her.  His love for this woman is rare because he loves her for all of the negatives that he can see along with the good. This is a happy ending.