Sonnet 12: When I do count the clock that tells the time
William Shakespeare 1564 (Stratford-upon-Avon) – 1616 (Stratford-upon-Avon)
When I do count the clock that tells the time,
And see the brave day sunk in hideous night;
When I behold the violet past prime,
And sable curls all silvered o'er with white;
When lofty trees I see barren of leaves
Which erst from heat did canopy the herd,
And summer's green all girded up in sheaves
Borne on the bier with white and bristly beard,
Then of thy beauty do I question make
That thou among the wastes of time must go,
Since sweets and beauties do themselves forsake
And die as fast as they see others grow;
And nothing 'gainst Time's scythe can make defence
Save breed, to brave him when he takes thee hence.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 19, 2023
- 36 sec read
- 246 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABABCDCEFGFGHH |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 624 |
Words | 120 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 14 |
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"Sonnet 12: When I do count the clock that tells the time" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 10 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/41418/sonnet-12:-when-i-do-count-the-clock-that-tells-the-time>.
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