Sonnet 22: My glass shall not persuade me I am old

William Shakespeare 1564 (Stratford-upon-Avon) – 1616 (Stratford-upon-Avon)



My glass shall not persuade me I am old
So long as youth and thou are of one date;
But when in thee Time's furrows I behold,
Then look I death my days should expiate.
For all that beauty that doth cover thee
Is but the seemly raiment of my heart,
Which in thy breast doth live, as thine in me.
How can I then be elder than thou art?
O, therefore, love, be of thyself so wary
As I not for myself, but for thee will,
Bearing thy heart, which I will keep so chary
As tender nurse her babe from faring ill.
    Presume not on thy heart when mine is slain;
    Thou gav'st me thine, not to give back again.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on May 01, 2023

37 sec read
184

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABABCDCDCECEFG
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 596
Words 124
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet, and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's greatest dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon". more…

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    "Sonnet 22: My glass shall not persuade me I am old" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/41468/sonnet-22:-my-glass-shall-not-persuade-me-i-am-old>.

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