Sonnet 47

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Shakespeare. Sonnet 1

«Betwixt mine eye and heart a league is took,
And each doth good turns now unto the other». 

In Sonnet 46, conflict between the eyes and heart is the theme. In Sonnet 47, these organs complement one another.

Sonnet 47
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Betwixt mine eye and heart a league is took,
And each doth good turns now unto the other:
When that mine eye is famish’d for a look,
Or heart in love with sighs himself doth smother,
With my love’s picture then my eye doth feast
And to the painted banquet bids my heart;
Another time mine eye is my heart’s guest
And in his thoughts of love doth share a part:
So, either by thy picture or my love,
Thyself away art resent still with me;
For thou not farther than my thoughts canst move,
And I am still with them and they with thee;
Or, if they sleep, thy picture in my sight
Awakes my heart to heart’s and eye’s delight.

»»» Sonnets introduction
»»» Sonnets complete list

The sonnet, rather uninspired compared to many of Shakespeare’s sonnets, contrasts the actual and imaginary youth: “So, either by thy picture or my love, / Thyself away are present still with me.” When the poet grows melancholy for the young man, he simply looks at the youth’s image, and his love for his friend is rejuvenated.

««« Sonnet 46
»»» Sonnet 48

Credits

English audio from YouTube Channel Socratica

Summary from Cliffsnotes.com

»»» Sonnets introduction
»»» Sonnets complete list

Shakespeare’s sonnets are among the most beloved and well-known poems in the English language. Composed of 14 lines, they are divided into three quatrains and a final, concluding couplet, rhyming abab cdcd efef gg. This sonnet form and rhyme scheme is known as the ‘English’ sonnet.

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