English poem
Sonnet 2: When forty winters shall besiege thy brow
When forty winters shall besiege thy brow, And dig deep trenches in thy beauty's field, Thy youth's proud livery so gazed on now, Will be a tatter'd weed of small worth held: Then being asked, where all thy beauty lies, Where all the treasure of thy lusty days; To say, within thine own deep sunken eyes, Were an all-eating shame, and thriftless praise. How much more praise deserv'd thy beauty's use, If thou couldst answer 'This fair child of mine Shall sum my count, and make my old excuse,' Proving his beauty by succession thine! This were to be new made when thou art old, And see thy blood warm when thou feel'st it cold.
More by William Shakespeare
- Sonnet 26: Lord of my love, to whom in vassalage
- Sonnet 27: Weary with toil, I haste me to my bed
- Sonnet 28: How can I then return in happy plight
- Sonnet 29: When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes
- Sonnet 30: When to the sessions of sweet silent thought
- Sonnet 31: Thy bosom is endeared with all hearts
- Sonnet 32: If thou survive my well-contented day
- Sonnet 33: Full many a glorious morning have I seen