ROMEO
06-07-2002, 02:01 AM
Not from the stars
Not from the stars do I my judgment pluck;
And yet methinks I have astronomy,
But not to tell of good or evil luck,
Of plagues, of dearths, or seasons' quality;
Nor can I fortune to brief minutes tell,
Pointing to each his thunder, rain and wind,
Or say with princes if it shall go well,
By oft predict that I in heaven find:
But from thine eyes my knowledge I derive,
And, constant stars, in them I read such art
As truth and beauty shall together thrive,
If from thyself to store thou wouldst convert;
Or else of thee this I prognosticate:
Thy end is truth's and beauty's doom and date.
http://www.angeleyes2.com/platinum/images/lov/aelo7.jpg
PARAPHRASE
I do not receive my knowledge or make my decisions by the stars
Though I have enough training in astronomy to do so
I cannot predict good luck or bad
Or plagues, or dearths, or the weather
Nor can I say what will happen at any given moment in our daily lives,
Alloting to each man his thunder, rain, and wind (ie. He cannot fortell our personal troubles],
Or even tell princes if things will go well for them
By frequent omens that I see in the heavens
But from your eyes alone do I derive my knowledge,
And they are my constant stars, in which I read such art [gain such knowledge]
That I see truth and beauty will live together in harmony
If you would only turn your focus from yourself to creating a child;
Or else this is my prophecy
That truth and beauty will all end when you die
http://www.angeleyes2.com/graphics/mbw-bar.gif
ANALYSIS
the poet first reveals that it is not through science (astronomy), or his own judgement, or personal experience that he obtains his knowledge about life and love -- all that he knows comes simply and only from his lover. ("But from thine eyes my knowledge I derive"). And the primary lesson the poet learns from his lover's eyes is that, if his lover refuses to focus on creating a child to carry on his (or her) lineage, all the ideals embodied by his lover will cease to exist. This is yet another variation on Shakespeare's theme of the necessity of procreation that dominates the early sonnets.
http://www.angeleyes2.com/graphics/mbw-bar.gif
with all My LOVE
http://www.tmbfree.com/music/dancer.mid
Not from the stars do I my judgment pluck;
And yet methinks I have astronomy,
But not to tell of good or evil luck,
Of plagues, of dearths, or seasons' quality;
Nor can I fortune to brief minutes tell,
Pointing to each his thunder, rain and wind,
Or say with princes if it shall go well,
By oft predict that I in heaven find:
But from thine eyes my knowledge I derive,
And, constant stars, in them I read such art
As truth and beauty shall together thrive,
If from thyself to store thou wouldst convert;
Or else of thee this I prognosticate:
Thy end is truth's and beauty's doom and date.
http://www.angeleyes2.com/platinum/images/lov/aelo7.jpg
PARAPHRASE
I do not receive my knowledge or make my decisions by the stars
Though I have enough training in astronomy to do so
I cannot predict good luck or bad
Or plagues, or dearths, or the weather
Nor can I say what will happen at any given moment in our daily lives,
Alloting to each man his thunder, rain, and wind (ie. He cannot fortell our personal troubles],
Or even tell princes if things will go well for them
By frequent omens that I see in the heavens
But from your eyes alone do I derive my knowledge,
And they are my constant stars, in which I read such art [gain such knowledge]
That I see truth and beauty will live together in harmony
If you would only turn your focus from yourself to creating a child;
Or else this is my prophecy
That truth and beauty will all end when you die
http://www.angeleyes2.com/graphics/mbw-bar.gif
ANALYSIS
the poet first reveals that it is not through science (astronomy), or his own judgement, or personal experience that he obtains his knowledge about life and love -- all that he knows comes simply and only from his lover. ("But from thine eyes my knowledge I derive"). And the primary lesson the poet learns from his lover's eyes is that, if his lover refuses to focus on creating a child to carry on his (or her) lineage, all the ideals embodied by his lover will cease to exist. This is yet another variation on Shakespeare's theme of the necessity of procreation that dominates the early sonnets.
http://www.angeleyes2.com/graphics/mbw-bar.gif
with all My LOVE
http://www.tmbfree.com/music/dancer.mid