The Sonnets of William Shakespeare
Sonnet 116
Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments*. Love is not love
Which alters when alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove.4 O no, it is an ever fixed* mark
That looks on tempests* and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark*,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken*.8 Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle compass* come.
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.12 If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ*, nor no man ever loved.
VOCABULARY
impediments--that which gets in the way or obstructs (obstacles)
tempests-- violent storms
fixed-- made firm in position; securely placed or fastened; not movable--like a star in the sky (the stress of "fixed" is on the last part of the word)
bark--ship
Whose worth's unknown-- it's value, its size can never be known
although his height be taken--with the aid of a sextant, an instrument of navigation, ship captains can determine their latitude, their position in the world, by measuring the altitude of a star
compass--scope, range
writ-- have written
QUESTIONS
- How does Shakespeare define true love?
- Shakespeare gives us an extended metaphor in lines 4-8. What astronomical image does the speaker compare love to? Why does Shakespeare use this image to describe this idea of love?
- How is "Time" characterized in the poem? How does Time affect beauty and youth?
- Can "Time" kill or damage "Love?" Why not?
- How does Shakespeare insist that his idea about love cannot be proven wrong?
- YOUR OPINION: Do YOU agree with Shakespeare's definition of true love? Why or why not? What is YOUR definition? Explain.
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