Hallo!! Please Help!!

[wluv]

Hi There! I'd love to thank you all for your contributions!
Four lines from Shakespeare's sonnet X1 say:
As fast as thou shalt want, so fast thou grow’st
In one of thine, from that, which thou depart’st
And that fresh blood which youngly thou bestow’st
Thou must call thine, which thou from youth covert’st
Could anyone of you explain what does Shakespeare mean by these 4 lines in a plain English of today's please!!???

[Raymott]

Originally Posted by wluv

Hi There! I'd love to thank you all for your contributions!
Four lines from Shakespeare's sonnet X1 say:
As fast as thou shalt want, so fast thou grow’st
In one of thine, from that, which thou depart’st
And that fresh blood which youngly thou bestow’st
Thou must call thine, which thou from youth covert’st
Could anyone of you explain what does Shakespeare mean by these 4 lines in a plain English of today's please!!???

Yes, but why not tell us what you've come up with first? Then we can see if we agree.

[David L.]

As fast as thou shalt wane, so fast thou grow’st
In one of thine, from that which thou depart’st
And that fresh blood which youngly thou bestow’st
Thou must call thine, which thou from youth covert’st

[David L.]

I don't think a non-native speaker has much chance of making sense of these lines...and even a lot of native speakers.

As fast as thou shalt wane, : as rapidly as one grows old, weak, and one's beauty fades

so fast thou grow’st In one of thine
from that which thou depart’st

'in one of thine' = a child of yours, your child.)
from that which thou departest: 'that' = one's own youth, vigour and beauty;
which is 'waning' = departing, leaving you, is being lost - it 'depart'st'
So -
just as rapidly, your vigour and beauty would show and grow (develop) in your child.

And that fresh blood which youngly thou bestow’st : and
Thou must call thine, which thou from youth covert’st

fresh blood : the new, fresh vigour that you passed on in having a child while you were still 'fresh' and young

which youngly thou bestow'st : (this new life) which you granted (by having a child/children) when you were young yourself.

Thou must call thine, which thou from youth covert’st

which thou from youth covert’st: This freshness, beauty that you now envy in young people

Thou must call thine : you can regard as your own.

So - having children in one's youthful years is like granting them/imbuing them with some of your own youth, vigour and beauty. And as your own fades, and you look enviously at their youthfulness, remember, in a way, that is your youth, your beauty you are seeing, passed on from you and now preserved in your children.

[Soup]

Originally Posted by David L.

I don't think a non-native speaker has much chance of making sense of these lines...and even a lot of native speakers.

Agreed; however, I'm with Raymott here. Next time, you may want to consider asking the poster whether the question is assignment related and work from there. Otherwise, we could be doing homework for them, and as teachers, well, in the profession that's just not done, now is it?

[thedaffodils]

Originally Posted by Soup

Agreed; however, I'm with Raymott here. Next time, you may want to consider asking the poster whether the question is assignment related and work from there. Otherwise, we could be doing homework for them, and as teachers, well, in the profession that's just not done, now is it?

Hi Soup,

I agree with you that students must do their assignments by their own selves.

But this would be really too difficult for a non-native speaker, such as me. Even if I had looked up my dictionary for each new word, I would have been still in the dark when the words were put together. The lines would be all Greek to me if I racked my brains.

And analyses or reviews from Internet sources about classic literatures are usually skimpy.

Could you please advise on how to solve the problem and avoid being a freeloader?

Thank you!

[Soup]

Originally Posted by thedaffodils

... this would be really too difficult for a non-native speaker, such as me. Even if I had looked up my dictionary for each new word, I would have been still in the dark when the words were put together. The lines would be all Greek to me if I racked my brains.

We don't know if the poster's question is related to an assignment or not. It could be a test question or even part of an exam. We need to ask that, first, before assuming otherwise. I trust you understand.

As to your second question, "Could you please advise on how to solve the problem and avoid being a freeloader?", Raymott's post is an example. He asked the poster to participate in his/her own learning; however, the poster did not respond to Raymott's question, which could possibly mean that the poster wasn't looking to discuss the question, but rather was in want for a quick and easy answer. Where there is a student, there is a teacher. Ask yourself, why didn't the poster ask his/her teacher first? Moreover, why those 4 lines, and nothing more? There are more questions I could ask, but having answered questions online about English grammar, going on 6 years now, I have learned that when in doubt to ask first and provide help second. (Note, people generally tell the truth when you ask if it's assigment related; those who don't tell the truth, well, I can't do anything about that. I trust their word.)

[thedaffodils]

Soup: thank you for your opinion.

[Soup]

Originally Posted by thedaffodils

Soup: thank you for your opinion.

You're most welcome (I think). The rolling eyes mean ... ?

[thedaffodils]

Originally Posted by Soup

You're most welcome (I think). The rolling eyes mean ... ?

rolling eyes = I'm still thinking over your opinion, and probably I would like to review it later. Sometimes I can't really understand, (I don't especially refer to this thread), and I don't know how to pose my questions further. I'd like to sleep on it.

Have a good one!