William Shakespeare25th sonnet

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Born to John Shakespeare, a glove maker and tradesman, and Mary

Arden, the daughter of an affluent farmer, William Shakespeare was

baptized on April 26, 1564, in Stratford-upon-Avon. At that time,

infants were baptized three days after their birth, thus scholars believe that Shakespeare was born on April 23,

the same day on which he died at age 52. As the third of eight children,

young William grew up in this small town 100 miles northwest of London,

far from the cultural and courtly center of England.

The Life of William Shakespeare (1564–1616)

Shakespeare attended the local grammar school, King's New School, where the curriculum would have stressed a classical education of Greek mythology, Roman comedy, ancient history, rhetoric, grammar, Latin, and possibly Greek. Throughout his childhood, Shakespeare's father

struggled with serious financial debt. Therefore, unlike his fellow playwright Christopher Marlowe, he did not attend university. Rather, in 1582 at age 18, he married Anne Hathaway, a woman eight years his senior and three

months pregnant. Their first child, Susanna, was born in 1583, and twins, Hamnet and Judith, came in 1585. In the

seven years following their birth, the historical record concerning Shakespeare is incomplete, contradictory, and unreliable; scholars refer to this period as his “lost years.”

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When the theaters were closed in 1593 because of the plague, the playwright wrote two narrative poems, Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece, and probably began writing his richly textured sonnets. One

hundred and fifty four of his sonnets have survived, ensuring his reputation as a gifted

poet. By 1594, he had also written, The Taming of the Shrew, The Two Gentlemen of Verona

and Love's Labor's Lost.

Let those who are in favour with their stars, Of public honour and proud titles boast,

Whilst I whom fortune of such triumph bars Unlooked for joy in that I honour most;

Great princes' favourites their fair leaves spread, But as the marigold at the sun's eye,

And in themselves their pride lies buried, For at a frown they in their glory die.

The painful warrior famoused for fight, After a thousand victories once foiled, Is from the book of honour razed quite,

And all the rest forgot for which he toiled: Then happy I that love and am beloved

Where I may not remove nor be removed.

Sonnet № 25

1. Let those who are in favour with their stars

To be in favour with one's stars = to enjoy success and good fortune. There was a widespread belief in the influence of the stars on human fortunes. Nevertheless

others preferred a more humanist and rational approach.

2. Of public honour and proud titles boast, proud titles = titles which engender pride in the holders;

aristocratic titles; high government posts. boast = exult in, derive glory from.

3. Whilst I, whom fortune of such triumph bars triumph is equivalent to glory, and has a military connotation, derived from

Roman triumphal processions led by

successful generals in the Republican era of Rome.

There is presumably also a suggestion that humble birth bars the poet from

taking on high public office. 

4. Unlooked for joy in that I honour most.

Unlooked for = unseen, unnoticed; In contrast to

those in the public eye; perhaps also

unexpectedly; joy in = take delight in,

enjoy; that I honour most = that

to which I attach most value and respect, with my

love for you.

5. Great princes' favourites their fair leaves spread Great princes - the

reference is to potentates in general, ancient and modern, male and female.

The fate of the favourites of such was proverbial - they were all subject to the wheel of fortune. Here Shakespeare describes them

as flowers enjoying a few brief days of sunshine. A few years later he wrote of

Wolsey's downfall under Henry VIII. (See the full text below). There are a number of verbal

parallels between it and this sonnet.

6. But as the marigold at the sun's eye, As if they were

marigolds in the sunlight. The sun's eye is the sun itself, but of course with a glance at kingly authority.

7. And in themselves their pride lies buried, pride = glory, vanity. The marigold, which was thought of as an ephemeral flower, lives only for itself, just as prince's favourites do. Hence their pride is buried within them.

8. For at a frown they in their glory die. A frown from a prince could mean the end of all honour and preferment.

The painful warrior famoused for fight, painful = subject to pain, bruised, wounded. famoused = famous, renowned; made famous. 

10. After a thousand victories once foiled, A thousand victories seems unlikely in modern warfare.

Ajax and other Greek and Trojan warriors might have boasted of as many. It probably just stands here for a large number.

11. Is from the book of honour razed quite, razed quite = completely erased, obliterated. With a suggestion of total destruction, as in razing a city to the ground. The book of honour is a metaphor which encompasses all those who throughout history have earned fame for brave deeds and accomplishments in war, their names therefore being recorded in the halls of fame.

12. And all the rest forgot for which he toiled: forgot = forgotten.

13.Then happy I, that love and am beloved, The contrast is between the fortunate poet, who

loves and is beloved (the mutual status of their love is here stated in an unadorned manner for the first time), and the prince's favourite whose life depends on fortune's wheel.

14.Where I may not remove nor be removed.

From where I may not absent myself, or be removed by others.

Пусть те, к кому благосклонны их звезды,хвастают почестями и гордыми титулами,

тогда как я, кому фортуна закрыла путь к такому торжеству,безвестный, нахожу радость в том, что почитаю больше всего.

Любимцы великих государей распускают свои прекрасныелепестки,

совсем как ноготки под взглядом солнца,и в них же сокрыта их гордыня,

так как от первого хмурого взгляда их слава умирает.Утомленный ратными трудами воин, прославленный в битвах,

после тысячи побед однажды потерпевший неудачу,вычеркивается совсем из книги чести,

и забывается все остальное, ради чего он трудился.Но счастлив я, любящий и любимый;

от этого я не могу отказаться, и меня нельзя этого лишить.

Translation by me

Кто под звездой счастливою рожден – Гордится славой, титулом и властью.

А я судьбой скромнее награжден, И для меня любовь - источник счастья. Под солнцем пышно листья распростер

Наперсник принца, ставленник вельможи. Но гаснет солнца благосклонный взор,

И золотой подсолнух гаснет тоже. Военачальник, баловень побед,

В бою последнем терпит пораженье, И всех его заслуг потерян след.

Его удел - опала и забвенье. Но нет угрозы титулам моим

Пожизненным: любил, люблю, любим.

Translation by Samuil Marshak

The poet reflects on the vagaries of fortune, and how those who enjoy high estate and

public favour are at the mercy of the power of princes. Even the most famous warriors

and leaders can suddenly fall into disfavour, especially if fortune turns against them, for then all their former victories are forgotten, and spiteful oblivion erases their name from

the roll of honour.

In Sonnet 25, which has as its theme mortality versus immortality, the poet contrasts himself with those "who are in favor with their stars,"

implying that, though he is not numbered among those famous, fortunate people, their fame will

not last, while his love will. Therefore, he is happy in his love. Most important, the poet is comforted in the knowledge that his love for the young man grants him permanence: "Then happy I, that love and am beloved / Where I may not remove nor be

removed." Requited love between him and the youth replaces his need for fame.

Summary

Thanks for attention!