William Shakespeare, Sonnet xxxv
No more be greiv'd at that which thou hast done:
Roses have thorns, and silver fountains mud;
Clouds and eclipses stain both moon and sun,
4
And loathsome canker lives in sweetest bud.
All men make faults, and even I in this,
Authorising thy trespass with compare,
Myself corrupting, salving thy amiss, [*]
8
Excusing thy sins more than thy sins are:
For to the sensual fault I bring in sense,
(Thy adverse party is thy advocate,)
And 'gainst myself a lawful plea commence:
12
Such civil war is in my love and hate,
That I an accessory needs must be
To that sweet thief which sourly robs from me.
Notes
line 7: Amiss -- fault. [ Back to text ]
Most notes to Shakespeare's sonnets are from Charles Knight's edition, but those in square brackets are mine.