Shakespeare’s Sonnet #13: “O, that you were your self! But, love, you are”

 

Sonnet 13

O, that you were yourself! but, love, you are
No longer yours than you yourself here live:
Against this coming end you should prepare,
And your sweet semblance to some other give.
So should that beauty which you hold in lease
Find no determination; then you were
Yourself again after yourself’s decease
When your sweet issue your sweet form should bear.
Who lets so fair a house fall to decay,
Which husbandry in honor might uphold
Against the stormy gusts of winter’s day
And barren rage of death’s eternal cold?
O none but unthrifts, dear my love, you know.
You had a father; let your son say so.

Simplified Modern English Translation

O, that you were yourself! but, love, you are
If only you truly owned your beautiful self!  But, my love, 

No longer yours than you yourself here live:
you only own your body as long as you are alive on this earth.

Against this coming end you should prepare,
You should be making preparations for the time when you will die

And your sweet semblance to some other give.
and concentrate on giving your sweet likeness to your child.

So should that beauty which you hold in lease
Then your beauty, which is really just on loan to you,

Find no determination; then you were
 will never be irrevocably terminated.  In this way you will

Yourself again after yourself’s decease
live again after you present body is dead,

When your sweet issue your sweet form should bear.
when your sweet child will bear your likeness.

Who lets so fair a house fall to decay,
Who would let so great a house fall to decay,

Which husbandry in honor might uphold
which careful management would allow to thrive

Against the stormy gusts of winter’s day
against the stormy gusts of winter

And barren rage of death’s eternal cold?
and barrenness of death’s eternal cold?

O none but unthrifts, dear my love, you know.
O none but unthrifts, dear my love, you know.

You had a father; let your son say so.
 You had a father; let your son say the same.

Reading of Sonnet 13

The images in the YouTube video are from an original 1609 edition of Shake-speares Sonnets held by the British Library.  It is one of only thirteen copies in existence.  Images courtesy of the Octavo Corporation.  

Text from Original 1609 Quarto

Transcription courtesy of University of Virginia Library:

O that you were your selfe, but loue you are
No longer yours, then you your selfe here liue,
Against this cumming end you should prepare,
And your sweet semblance to some other giue.
So should that beauty which you hold in lease
Find no determination, then you were
Your selfe again after your selfes decease,
When your sweet issue your sweet forme should beare.
Who lets so faire a house fall to decay,
Which husbandry in honour might vphold,
Against the stormy gusts of winters day
And barren rage of deaths eternall cold?
O none but vnthrifts, deare my loue you know,
You had a Father, let your Son say so.