1. That time of year thou mayst in me behold,
2. When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
3. Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,
4. Bare ruin'd choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.
5. In me thou seest the twilight of such day,
6. As after sunset fadeth in the West,
7. Which by and by black night doth take away,
8. Death's second self that seals up all in rest.
9. In me thou see'st the glowing of such fire
10. That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,
11. As the death-bed whereon it must expire
12. Consumed with that which it was nourish'd by.
13. This thou perceivest, which makes thy love more strong,
14. To love that well, which thou must leave ere long.
Ashes of His Youth
Dedication: To Elizabeth
Expressing his own advanced age, he speaks of his late autumn. And that is what Elizabeth sees in him as well. But also telling her that he is a reminder of the young fire that exists in Henry and that this fire burns so intensely it will burn to mere ashes in “his youth”. And that her love despite her wantonness with regard to Henry actually demonstrates her love for him all the more.
1st Quatrain: (1-4)
Telling Elizabeth of his own advancing age by comparing himself to late autumn.
2nd Quatrain: (5-8)
Again explaining of his own age through the analogy of a day.
3rd Quatrain: (9-12)
Telling Elizabeth that in his expiration he believes she sees the last threat of Henry as no one else will be around to proclaim his identity.
couplet (13-14),
Finally telling likely in a facetious way, that her love is strong for being able to leave Henry in his state despite her love for him.
Commentary:
This another sonnet with the theme of renewal and an overt request to Elizabeth not to take Henry to the grave. This is to become a common message of these remaining sonnets. Infirmity and lameness as we already saw in sonnet 89 (likely in the 1580s) and probably a legacy of ailments brought from his jousting have reduced his physical health. Much of the imagery of this sonnet probably as much due to depression as age. Though Oxford is clearly past his prime by now and feeling rather poorly both physically and mentally. Mostly likely due to having now suffered through this tragedy for two decades.
Also the thought of line 12 reveals that again Elizabeth is both consuming Henry and had previously nourished him. Possibly a reference to nourishing both in the womb and by breast feeding. The thought of consuming him is very related to the gluttony of the previous sonnet and others to come particularly Sonnet 1 as mentioned. Oxford has clearly aged considerably as seen in line 5, which is one of the most reliable and easily ascertainable measures of the progression of time. Back in sonnet 138 he was to be considered by Elizabeth to be an “untutored youth”. Also line 5 and line 9 contrast the wear on Oxford along with his passion for Henry’s future.
This sonnet while correctly often thought of as expressing love for the youth, mistakes that the sonnet is written to the youth. However it is the youth who is the one being referenced and referred to in the third person. It he who will be consumed by the one with whom he was nourished by (his mother). And it is he who the poet loves so great but is being left by the subject “ere long”or shortly as in left without disposition.
It is often not understood that there is an implied third person discussed in this Sonnet and many others. However I would suggest that this fails to explain the rather obvious and virtually incessant third person male singular pronouns that pervade the text. There is a rather extraordinary count of 189 counting his, he and him). And with respect to Sonnet 73 one can not in my view either randomly read this or any other sonnet in isolation. And there is no indication whatsoever that it is an older person to a younger one as seems to often be the case. This is clearly reading into the poem a message that does not exist. It should be clear that that poem is written by someone older but there is absolutely nothing to suggest it is not to someone older still. In fact the poem's subject matter of death should indicate such.
But more importantly it only has real meaning in my view with respect to this reading. A reminder that the subject is both fading in life and consuming that which the poet cherishes. This is "Death's second self". As to suggest that there is categorically not an implied meaning or third person is really to not understand it and further diminishes the work. And thus is why the Sonnets are so poorly appreciated except for a very few. Clearly "his" in the sonnet can be seen referring strictly to Death. But it makes no real sense for death to have a youth. Or for Death to be consumed. And it seems to me that it is your reading that completely lacks any context or real meaning.
Vendler mentions that the self-nourished self-consuming fire is a reappearance of the self-substantial fuel of sonnet 1. But goes on to say that “the question of breeding is now a dead issue’ and self-nourishment and self-consumption “can be regarded as the very description of life itself.” She fits the poet to Q3 and believes that it expresses that “one dies simply of having lived”. Lastly she argues that leave (in couplet) is a pun on “leafless” and this is her argument for its justification over the frequently heard criticism that “lose” would make better sense. I must at least say to that leave is appropriate because it refers to Henry who is “left”.