William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 49 is part of his renowned sequence of 154 sonnets, which explore themes of love, time, mortality, and artistic legacy. This particular sonnet stands out for its introspective and almost legalistic tone, as the speaker anticipates a future moment when his beloved may reject him. The poem is structured as a logical argument, where the speaker methodically prepares his defense against inevitable abandonment. Through its careful syntax, legal metaphors, and melancholic resignation, Sonnet 49 reveals the fragility of love in the face of time and human fickleness.
Shakespeare’s Sonnet 49
Against that time, if ever that time come,
When I shall see thee frown on my defects,
When as thy love hath cast his utmost sum,
Called to that audit by advised respects;
Against that time when thou shalt strangely pass,
And scarcely greet me with that sun, thine eye,
When love, converted from the thing it was,
Shall reasons find of settled gravity;
Against that time do I ensconce me here,
Within the knowledge of mine own desert,
And this my hand against myself uprear,
To guard the lawful reasons on thy part.
To leave poor me thou hast the strength of laws,
Since why to love I can allege no cause.
Structure and Tone of Sonnet 49
Shakespeare’s Sonnet 49 follows the traditional English (Shakespearean) sonnet structure: three quatrains and a concluding couplet, written in iambic pentameter with an ABABCDCDEFEFGG rhyme scheme. The poem’s tone is defensive yet resigned, as the speaker anticipates his beloved’s future rejection and prepares a self-justifying argument. The legal and financial metaphors (“audit,” “laws,” “reasons”) lend a formal, almost judicial quality to the sonnet, reinforcing the speaker’s logical but sorrowful acceptance of love’s impermanence.
Poetry Analysis: Line-by-Line Breakdown
Lines 1–4: Anticipating Future Rejection
Against that time, if ever that time come,
When I shall see thee frown on my defects,
When as thy love hath cast his utmost sum,
Called to that audit by advised respects;
The sonnet opens with a hypothetical scenario—the speaker imagines a future moment when his beloved will “frown on [his] defects” and withdraw affection. The phrase “Against that time” suggests preparation, as if the speaker is bracing himself for inevitable abandonment. The financial metaphor of love as an “audit” implies that the beloved will coldly assess the speaker’s worth and find him lacking. The tone is apprehensive yet resigned, as the speaker acknowledges that love is conditional and subject to rational scrutiny.
Lines 5–8: The Beloved’s Cold Indifference
Against that time when thou shalt strangely pass,
And scarcely greet me with that sun, thine eye,
When love, converted from the thing it was,
Shall reasons find of settled gravity;
Here, the speaker elaborates on the beloved’s future coldness. The phrase “strangely pass” suggests emotional distance, while the sun imagery (“thine eye”) contrasts warmth with the beloved’s anticipated indifference. The transformation of love into something rational (“settled gravity”) implies that affection will be replaced by detached judgment. The speaker’s melancholy is palpable as he envisions love dissolving into mere logic.
Lines 9–12: The Speaker’s Self-Defense
Against that time do I ensconce me here,
Within the knowledge of mine own desert,
And this my hand against myself uprear,
To guard the lawful reasons on thy part.
The speaker now shifts to self-defense, retreating into self-awareness (“knowledge of mine own desert”)—meaning he acknowledges his own limitations. The striking image of raising his hand “against myself” suggests self-condemnation, as if he is preemptively agreeing with his beloved’s future rejection. The legal language (“lawful reasons”) reinforces the idea that love is governed by rational judgment rather than passion.
Lines 13–14: Resignation to Inevitable Loss
To leave poor me thou hast the strength of laws,
Since why to love I can allege no cause.
The couplet delivers the poem’s bleak conclusion: the beloved has every right to leave because the speaker cannot justify why he deserves love. The phrase “strength of laws” underscores the inevitability of rejection, while the final line—”I can allege no cause”—reveals the speaker’s helplessness. Unlike other sonnets where love defies reason, here the speaker admits that love, when scrutinized, may lack justification.
Conclusion
Sonnet 49 is a poignant meditation on love’s fragility, framed through legal and financial metaphors. Unlike Shakespeare’s more celebratory sonnets, this one dwells on the fear of abandonment and the rational dissolution of affection. The speaker’s defensive yet resigned tone, combined with the structured argumentation, makes this sonnet a striking exploration of love’s impermanence. Ultimately, the poem suggests that even the deepest bonds may falter under scrutiny, leaving the lover with nothing but self-awareness and sorrow.
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Shakespeare’s Sonnet 48: An In-Depth Analysis