Shakespeare Translation Poem by Douglas Scotney

Douglas Scotney

Douglas Scotney

Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia. Resides in Adelaide

Shakespeare Translation



From Shakespeare's
'for that riches where is my deserving? '*
in Sonnet 87
you might suppose
that 'that' once went for 'those';
for that,
that 'that' went for 'your';
or went for neither -
'riches' went for 'richness'.

From that three supposes
you might suppose
that one time too,
'choosed' was used
for 'chose'.

* see below

Shakespeare Translation
Saturday, May 23, 2020
Topic(s) of this poem: language,translation,william shakespeare
POET'S NOTES ABOUT THE POEM
Farewell, thou art too dear for my possessing,
And like enough thou know'st thy estimate.
The charter of thy worth gives thee releasing;
My bonds in thee are all determinate.
For how do I hold thee but by thy granting,
And for that riches where is my deserving?
The cause of this fair gift in me is wanting,
And so my patent back again is swerving.
Thyself thou gav'st, thy own worth then not knowing,
Or me, to whom thou gav'st it, else mistaking;
So thy great gift, upon misprision growing,
Comes home again, on better judgment making.
  Thus have I had thee as a dream doth flatter:
  In sleep a king, but waking no such matter.
COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Michael Walker 25 May 2020

Thanks for sharing one of Shakespeare's best sonnets. The last two lines are so true. 'In sleep a king, but waking no such matter'. You provide shrewd linguistic analysis here.

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Douglas Scotney

Douglas Scotney

Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia. Resides in Adelaide
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