Remembering the Bard
Shakespeare's precise birthdate is not known; he was baptized on 26 April 1564, and over time 23 April has become the accepted date of birth, in part because he also died on 23 April in 1616.
celebrations?
http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/heartofengland/birthday.htm
One of his most famous sonnets:
XII
1. When I do count the clock that tells the time,
2. And see the brave day sunk in hideous night;
3. When I behold the violet past prime,
4. And sable curls, all silvered o'er with white;
5. When lofty trees I see barren of leaves,
6. Which erst from heat did canopy the herd,
7. And summer's green all girded up in sheaves,
8. Borne on the bier with white and bristly beard,
9. Then of thy beauty do I question make,
10. That thou among the wastes of time must go,
11. Since sweets and beauties do themselves forsake
12. And die as fast as they see others grow;
13. And nothing 'gainst Time's scythe can make defence
14. Save breed, to brave him when he takes thee hence.
A good commentary, analysis and original version of the sonnet's given on this website:
http://www.shakespeares-sonnets.com/index.htm
A delightful site for the uninitiated. (Mind the colour setting though. You may want to change your IE settings to "ignore colour and font settings of the website" , for a while.)
Though Shakespeare is supposed to have written these sonnets as an 'advice' to his indulgent friend Henry for bringing him towards the noble path of honest matrimony, and the last line refers to the biological progeny of a human being, I guess we can give a symbolic connotation to this line. (That's the fun in being a critic. One can tell the creator to shut his/her mouth and go on and on with one's own viewpoint about the creation, though far different from the creator's own imagination.)
We may say that 'breed' here means the output of your life's work. Who saved Shakespeare himself from time's scythe? Not his offsprings, but his plays and his poetry. The Curies aren't remembered because of Mrs. Joliot 'nee Irene Curie, but because of their discovery of radium.
Would 'beauty' then be physical appearance, wealth and earthly possessions? ..Well maybe - but Then I remember Emily Dickinson's "I died for beauty.." where she claims that beauty is the same as truth, and now I'm digressed again ;)
Some other time maybe, eh?
76 Comments:
Hi Gayatri, I guess you had written a comment on one of the posts on my blog... Tracing that link, reached this blog. Since I could not locate your email id, writing a comment here.
If you want, you can link to my blog ! That will be an honour for me..
Replying back so late, as I got to read your comment today, due to some severe problem with blogspot..
Thanks for the link,Gayatri. I liked the contents. But the site designer could certainly do with a refresher course in web-page design. The appearance(including colours) is garish and unattractive and the navigation somewhat (I'm being polite here)unintuitive.
Yes exactly, anon! That's why I suggested the "ignore colour and font settings of the website" in 'tools' option of IE.
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A lot of people mistake a short memory for a clear conscience.
A flashlight is a case for holding dead batteries.
Suicidal twin kills sister by mistake!
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Energizer Bunny Arrested! Charged with battery.
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C++ should have been called B
Friends help you move. Real friends help you move bodies.
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Ever notice how fast Windows runs? Neither did I.
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What is a free gift ? Aren't all gifts free?
What is a free gift ? Aren't all gifts free?
Suicidal twin kills sister by mistake!
Lottery: A tax on people who are bad at math.
Energizer Bunny Arrested! Charged with battery.
Thanks to author.
All generalizations are false, including this one.
All generalizations are false, including this one.
Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.
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Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.
Build a watch in 179 easy steps - by C. Forsberg.
Thanks to author.
Suicidal twin kills sister by mistake!
Energizer Bunny Arrested! Charged with battery.
I don't suffer from insanity. I enjoy every minute of it.
Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.
Build a watch in 179 easy steps - by C. Forsberg.
Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.
actually, that's brilliant. Thank you. I'm going to pass that on to a couple of people.
I don't suffer from insanity. I enjoy every minute of it.
The gene pool could use a little chlorine.
Thanks to author.
I don't suffer from insanity. I enjoy every minute of it.
Give me ambiguity or give me something else.
Calvin, we will not have an anatomically correct snowman!
Calvin, we will not have an anatomically correct snowman!
A lot of people mistake a short memory for a clear conscience.
The gene pool could use a little chlorine.
Give me ambiguity or give me something else.
The gene pool could use a little chlorine.
A flashlight is a case for holding dead batteries.
Beam me aboard, Scotty..... Sure. Will a 2x10 do?
Lottery: A tax on people who are bad at math.
When there's a will, I want to be in it.
What is a free gift ? Aren't all gifts free?
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