Go to the Sonnets INTRO page
|
|
|
Go to the LIST of Sonnets page
Go to the Sonnets INTRO page |
|
. Sonnet 73 . (original language, but moderately updated) 01. That time of year thou mayst in me behold, 02. When yellow leaves, or none, or few do hang 03. Upon those boughs which shake against the cold, 04. Bare mewed choirs, where late the sweet birds sang. 05. In me thou seest the twilight of such day, 06. As after Sunset fadeth in the West, 07. Which by and by black night doth take away, 08. Death's second self that seals up all in rest. 09. In me thou see'st the glowing of such fire, 10. That on the ashes of his youth doth lie, 11. As the death bed, whereon it must expire, 12. Consum'd with that which it was nourished by. 13. This thou perceiv'st, which makes thy love more strong, 14. To love that well, which thou must leave ere long. |
. Sonnet 73 . (paraphrased) 01. My time of life, as you may see, is like the time of year, 02. When yellow leaves, or no leaves, or few still hang 03. Upon the branches that shake in the cold winter wind, 04. And the branches are like bare, "molted" choir lofts, where the birds sang sweetly, not long ago; 05. (Or one might say) In me, you see the twilight of a winter day 06. When, after sunset, the light is fading in the west, 07. And soon, the light is completely gone, taken away by the blackness of night, 08. Night being like a "twin" to death, when everybody is enclosed by darkness, and resting; 09. (Or one might say,) I'm like the glowing embers left over from a fire, 10. (That burned in me in my youth,) and I'm lying on that bed of ashes, of my youth, 11. Like on a death bed, where the last glow of the embers will expire, 12. As they're ultimately consumed by the heat which fed the fire and kept it going; 13. I know you perceive this, and it tells me your love is even stronger than I thought, 14. That you love so well, somebody you'll have to be separated from, before long. |
|
Sonnet 73 Gloss
L1: time of year = winter. Old age is being compared to wintertime. L4: bare - Literal; can also be understood as 'empty.' L4: mewed = molted; shed. (Note, to the right.) It describes the tree branches having shed their leaves. L4: choirs = choir lofts. Analogy is drawn between tree branches and the elevated choir areas of churches. L8: second self - An analogy is made between night and death. Sleep is like a "twin" of death, in a way. L8: seals up = closes; encloses. An analogy is made between houses at night being sealed up, or enclosed, by darkness, and tombs being sealed. L8: all = everybody. L9: glowing - A glow of embers, with no flames anymore. L12: nourished = fed. L14: leave = be separated from. |
Sonnet 73 Notes
Sonnet 73 is by Edward de Vere, to William Shakespeare. ------- L4: mewed = molted; shed. It describes the tree branches having shed their leaves. Also, poetically, since the birds have left the branches, the tree branches have "molted their feathers," in a manner of speaking. This word is printed "m'wd" in the 1609 publication: the first 'e' is apostrophized explicitly, and the second 'e', implicitly, which makes it very hard to read. Also, in the original, the 'm' looks rather like 'rn.' The word has been changed to "ruined" in modern reprints, apparently simply from the reading difficulty, which caused the editor to guess. However, the correct word is "mewed." It is important to restore the correct word, mewed, to Sonnet 73, because of the superb poetry in the concept of tree branches "molting their feathers" when the birds leave. In the Fall, tree branches shed their leaves, and they also "molt" their feathers, so to speak, when the birds migrate elsewhere. For another usage example of "mewed," from c. 1620, see the Beaumont and Fletcher play, 'Little French Lawyer' Act 3 scene 2. ~=~ La Writ: ... 'tis true I was a Lawyer, But I have mew'd that coat ... =~=~= It means he has shed the coat. (Although 'Little French Lawyer' was published in the Beaumont and Fletcher folio of 1647, it is apparently by Fletcher and Massinger. Consensus attributes Act 3 scene 2 to Fletcher, who, according to current understanding, worked with Shakespeare on a few things, late in Shakespeare's career.) |
| Go to: the LIST of Sonnets page -|- or -|- the Sonnets INTRO page | Back to: Sonnet 72 -|- or -|- Ahead to: Sonnet 74 |
|
Go to the |
The Shakespeare Sonnets, courtesy of:
|
See ALL the Sonnets on one long page. |