SONNET 6

Then let not winter's ragged hand deface
In thee thy summer, ere thou be distill'd:
Make sweet some vial; treasure thou some place
With beauty's treasure, ere it be self-kill'd.
That use is not forbidden usury,
Which happies those that pay the willing loan;
That's for thyself to breed another thee,
Or ten times happier, be it ten for one;
Ten times thyself were happier than thou art,
If ten of thine ten times refigured thee:
Then what could death do, if thou shouldst depart,
Leaving thee living in posterity?
    Be not self-will'd, for thou art much too fair,
    To be death's conquest and make worms thine heir.

Notes

ragged (1): rugged or rough.

treasure (3): enrich.

use (5): interest.

happies (6): makes happy - an unusual verb and the only time Shakespeare makes use of it.

How to cite this article:

Shakespeare, William. Sonnet 6. Ed. Amanda Mabillard. Shakespeare Online. 20 Aug. 2000. (date when you accessed the information) < http://www.shakespeare-online.com/sonnets/6.html >.

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