Sonnet 101
Oh truant Muse what shal be thy amends,
For thy neglect of truth in beauty dyed?
Both truth and beauty on my love depends:
So dost thou too, and herein dignifi'd:
Make answere Muse wilt thou not haply saie,
Truth needs no collour with his collour fixt,
Beautie no pensell, beauties truth to lay:
But best is best, if never intermixt.
Because he needs no praise, wilt thou be dumb?
Excuse not silence so, for't lies in thee,
To make him much out-live a gilded tombe:
And to be prais'd of ages yet to be.
Then do thy office Muse, I teach thee how
To make him seeme long hence, as he showes now.
Commentary
Address to his beloved
Changes to the original text: line 2, 'di'd' changed to 'dyed'; end of line 13, comma deleted.
In the first quatrain, the poet questions his muse as to what amends she can make for neglecting his beloved (truth in beauty dyed). He (the poet) tells her that both truth and beauty depend on his beloved (my love), and that so does she (the Muse), and, further, that she is lucky to be so 'dignified'.
In the second quatrain, the poet continues to badger his muse, suggesting that plain truth needs no colour (painting, cosmetics) nor beauty no pencil, for true beauty is best left as it is.
In the third quatrain, the poet continues to apostrophise his Muse, suggesting that the fact that his beloved does not need to be praised is no reason for not praising him, because it lies in her power to make his beloved known to succeeding ages.
In the final couplet, the poet encourages his Muse to do her job, and make the young man appear (seeme) to those in the future (long hence) as he appears (shows) now.