Music to hear, why hear'st thou music sadly?
Sweets with sweets war not, joy delights in joy.
Why lov'st thou that which thou receiv'st not gladly,
Or else receiv'st with pleasure thine annoy?
If the true concord of well-tuned sounds,
By unions married, do offend thine ear,
They do but sweetly chide thee, who confounds
In singleness the parts that thou shouldst bear.
Mark how one string, sweet husband to another,
Strikes each in each by mutual ordering,
Resembling sire and child and happy mother
Who all in one, one pleasing note do sing:
Whose speechless song, being many, seeming one,
Sings this to thee: 'Thou single wilt prove none.'
Why lov'st thou that which thou receiv'st not gladly,
Or else receiv'st with pleasure thine annoy?
If the true concord of well-tuned sounds,
By unions married, do offend thine ear,
They do but sweetly chide thee, who confounds
In singleness the parts that thou shouldst bear.
Mark how one string, sweet husband to another,
Strikes each in each by mutual ordering,
Resembling sire and child and happy mother
Who all in one, one pleasing note do sing:
Whose speechless song, being many, seeming one,
Sings this to thee: 'Thou single wilt prove none.'
Music to hear (1): An address to his
dear friend: O you, whom it is music to hear.
Sweets with sweets war not (2): you
are sweet, thus you should delight in things that are also sweet (i.e. music).
Why lovest thou...annoy (3-4): why
do you not gladly love the music you hear; or do you receive some gratification
from your boredom ('annoy')?
concord (5): harmony.
unions (6): harmonious chords.
chide (7): scold. The notes rebuke
the young friend for not participating in life's harmony by remaining
single.
confounds (7): destroys.
In singleness...bear (8): by
remaining a childless bachelor, the friend is failing to play his part in the
harmony of life, which is family.
thou single wilt prove none (14): you
will amount to nothing by remaining single. Most editors reference Dowden's
annotation noting that the line is an allusion to the common saying "one
is no number" (see also Sonnet
CXXXVI)
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