* An extensive overview of Shakespeare’s life, world, and sonnets by the general editor of the Signet Classics Shakespeare series, Sylvan Barnet, Tufts University
* Special introduction to The Sonnets, by W. H. Auden
* Literary criticism by William Empson, Hallett Smith, Winifred M. T. Nowottny, and Helen Vendler
* Detailed footnotes at the bottom of each page of the sonnets
* List of recommended reading
*All text printed in the clearest, most readable type 
 
*透過塔夫斯大學教授 Sylvan Barnet 編撰的經典莎士比亞系列的十四行詩，可以一窺莎士比亞的世界與其傳奇一生。　
*由英國詩人奧登 (W.H.Auden) 撰寫的專文介紹
* 由評論家 William Empson、Hallett Smith、Winifred M. T. Nowottny 和 Helen Vendler 撰寫的文學評論
*本書每頁底部都附有詳細的註解
*推薦閱讀清單
*所有的文章都以最清晰、易於閱讀的方式印刷