Question

The lines "I love to hear her speak, yet well I know / That music hath a far more pleasing sound; / I grant I never saw a goddess go; / My mistress when she walks treads on the ground" employ a humor device. Identify the device used and discuss its effect on the meaning and tone of the poem.

Answer 1

The author is making fun of her voice and says he hears music that sounded better but that he loves her even of that small flaw of hers. does that make sense?

Answer 2

Answer: I don't know if this is a multiple-choice question or not, but the humor device that these lines are using is sarcasm.  

Explanation: Just to elaborate a little on the answer, it can be added that these lines are featured in Shakespeare's Sonnet 130. In this satirical and sarcastic sonnet, the speaker is describing what her mistress is not, and what she does not have, by comparing her "lacking" physiognomy to beautiful things—the sun, coral, gold wires, roses, perfume, a pleasant sound, and so on. In these lines, he is specifically saying that even though he loves to hear her speak, he knows, and he knows it very well, that music has a far more pleasant sound, and he is also saying that he has never seen a goddess walk, making the reader believe that he considers her a goddess, just to conclude by saying that she is obviously not one, since when she walks she literally crushes the ground!