Tuesday Poem: “Shall I Compare Thee To A Summer’s Day?” by William Shakespeare
Shall I compare thee to a Summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And Summer’s lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm’d;
And every fair from fair some-time declines,
By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm’d;
But thy eternal Summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st;
Nor shall Death brag thou wandr’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest:
……So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
……So long lives this and this gives life to thee.
by William Shakespeare, 1564 – 1616
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This week I’m continuing my Tuesday Poem theme of poems on a theme of summer, or Kiwi-ness, or a Kiwi summer. In this case, there is no Kiwi-ness, but there is definitely summer in one of the Bard of Avon’s more well-known sonnets.
Something that struck me as I was considering various summer poems for this week’s Tuesday slot, was how straightforward the language in this sonnet is, compared to many far more ornate offerings from poets of the intervening centuries.
With a few of the more archaic spellings smoothed out, it remains a very accessible, as well as poetically accomplished, poem today And then, dear readers, there’s the richness, fluidity, wit, and beauty of the language; altogether — genius.
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Very well said. I’ve always felt the most important word in this poem is “temperate.” It’s like the ballast that steadies the sailboat of immortal beauty (“untrimmed” referring to both sailing and pollarding). A sort of Buddhist “middle path,” you might say. The “mayblossom,” by the way, is the Common Hawthorne (Crataegus monogyna). Such an enchanting work of art. The idea that beauty is only leased — or loaned — to the person who possesses it is one of the most insightful metaphors in Shakespeare and in life.
Hi Zireaux — I re-read with your comments in mind and agree about ‘temperate”; it is a key to the poem. And I knew about ‘mayblossom’ & ‘hawthorne’: if you ever read “Thornspell” you will see there is quite an inner mythology to the story around may and the various forms of hawthorne.:)
This was one of a series of sonnets I recall memorising when at school.. simply because I thought it was so wonderful (and because we had an inspirational English teacher who taught a whole unit on love poetry!!.. in a Boys’ school what’s more!!!!) … can still remember some of them even now.
Thanks Helen.
Robin
I can’t help feeling that teachers who are passionate and enthusiastic about their subject are almost de facto inspirational — and great to hear that people still memorize writing they love, whether Shakespeare’s sonnets or several young surveyors I met once who were “word perfect” on the various Monty Python films, particularly Life of Brian and The Holy Grail.
Ah now… I can also do the Monty Python scripts (and a few of the Goons Shows.. am I allowed to admit that?).. Much of my student life was spent at the old student ‘steins’, bottle of bear in hand, reciting everything form the cheese shop to … yes, well …
But you are right about ‘inspirational’ teachers… teaching is as much a ‘calling’ as it is a profession, I believe!!!
R
And isn’t it funny how easy it is to remember stuff we love, whether shows, poems, or novels?
No surprise at all there re teaching: tis not only one of the original 3 professions (teaching, divinity, and law) but also one where participants traditionally had a ‘vocation.’ How word’ meanings change over time!