Shakespeare's Sonnets Navigator | Summary of Sonnet 70 in the Table of Contents | Notes for Sonnet 70 |
1 That thou art blam'd shall not be thy defect, 2 For slander's mark was ever yet the fair; 3 The ornament of beauty is suspect, 4 A crow that flies in heaven's sweetest air. 5 So thou be good, slander doth but approve 6 Thy worth the greater, being woo'd of time; 7 For canker vice the sweetest buds doth love, 8 And thou present'st a pure unstained prime. 9 Thou hast pass'd by the ambush of young days, 10 Either not assail'd or victor being charg'd; 11 Yet this thy praise cannot be so thy praise, 12 To tie up envy evermore enlarg'd: 13 If some suspect of ill mask'd not thy show, 14 Then thou alone kingdoms of hearts shouldst owe. |
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