1. Devouring time blunt thou the lion's paws,
2. And make the earth devour her own sweet brood,
3. Pluck the keen teeth from the fierce Tiger's jaws,
4. And burn the long-lived Phoenix in her blood,
5. Make glad and sorry seasons as thou fleets,
6. And do whate'er thou wilt, swift-footed time,
7. To the wide world and all her fading sweets:
8. But I forbid thee one most heinous crime,
9. O, carve not with thy hours my love's fair brow,
10. Nor draw no lines there with thine antique pen,
11. Him in thy course untainted do allow,
12. For beauty's pattern to succeeding men.
13. Yet, do thy worst, old Time: despite thy wrong,
14. My love shall in my verse ever live young.
Beauty's Pattern
Dedication: To Elizabeth
Telling Time first not to do age his love but reminding us of “beauty’s pattern of succeeding men” a reference to Henry to which he then permits Time to his work for his love with have her youth through his verse.
1st Quatrain: (1-4)
Telling of Father Time's cruel and merciless approach in lines 1 – 3 who doesn’t kill quickly but is capable of devouring none the less. Further telling of Elizabeth's own inevitable and impending demise in line 4.
2nd Quatrain: (5-8)
Mentioning Father Time that he may take Elizabeth but that he pleads him not but one thing.
3rd Quatrain: (9-12)
That he should not age Elizabeth by virtue of allowing Henry to succeed
couplet (13-14),
Offering Father Time to go ahead and age Elizabeth for she will ever live young
Commentary:
Oxford now finally expressing the desperation and need to act as Elizabeth has clearly entered old age. Using the metaphor of eating again this time Oxford makes clear that though Time does not kill quickly as the teeth of a lion would, it does kill slowly and unmercifully as she is experiencing as well as making the earth devour the children of it which is the Oxford’s apt description of what will happen to Henry via Elizabeth’s neglect. This sonnet is part of a series of three sonnets very strongly speaking of the purpose of the poetry to record Henry’s purpose.
This sonnet is important because Oxford is telling Elizabeth that she will forever be young in his poetry, implicitly implying Henry’s existence. This I believe was meant as an incentive to actually recognize Henry because thus the secret would be revealed anyway.
One of the more important sonnets because the sonnet discusses both the devouring of her “own sweet brood” which I argue implies an already existing child being consumed in some way.
This should I think be regarded as rather a strange message addressed to a young man for whom by orthodox standards was given messages of the need to procreate with great urgency very recently as we shall see.
It also discusses the “long lived phoenix” which is well known to probably refer to Elizabeth. Elizabeth was frequently associated with the symbol of the phoenix and was a symbol that she embraced having portraits and jewels depicting the phoenix. That she was long lived should be no doubt since she lived to age 69.
But more importantly that point clearly dates this sonnet toward the latter stages of her reign and supports the chronology depicted here. In addition I must state my belief along with that of so many Oxfordians that the poem “The Pheonix and the Turtle” was essentially a eulogy to Elizabeth published early in 1601. Even more important a point is that the turtle represents Henry and the point of the poem is too express the horrible thought of expressing to Elizabeth the thought of her dying without recognizing Henry and thus “Leaving no posterity” as it says near the very end of the poem. It should be noted that who ever was Shakespeare he never wrote a eulogy to Elizabeth or anything to celebrate the coronation of King James I.
Vendler speculates on “whether or not the poem is fundamentally incoherent …”