Internet Shakespeare Editions

About this text

  • Title: Venus and Adonis (Quarto 1, 1593)
  • Editor: Hardy M. Cook
  • ISBN: 978-1-55058-411-0

    Copyright Internet Shakespeare Editions. This text may be freely used for educational, non-proift purposes; for all other uses contact the Coordinating Editor.
    Author: William Shakespeare
    Editor: Hardy M. Cook
    Peer Reviewed

    Venus and Adonis (Quarto 1, 1593)

    VENVS AND ADONIS.

    Torches are made to light, iewels to weare,
    Dainties to tast, fresh beautie for the vse,
    165Herbes for their smell, and sappie plants to beare.
    Things growing to them selues, are growths abuse,
    Seeds spring frō seeds, & beauty breedeth beauty,
    Thou wast begot, to get it is thy duty.

    Vpon the earths increase why shouldst thou feed,
    170Vnlesse the earth with thy increase be fed?
    By law of nature thou art bound to breed,
    That thine may liue, when thou thy selfe art dead:
    And so in spite of death thou doestsuruiue,
    In that thy likenesse still is left aliue.

    175By this the loue-sicke Queene began to sweate,
    For where they lay the shadow had forsooke them,
    And Titan tired in the midday heate,
    With burning eye did hotly ouer-looke them,
    Wishing Adonis had his teame to guide,
    180 So he were like him, and by Venus side.

    And now Adonis with a lazie sprite,
    And with a heauie, darke, disliking eye,
    His lowring browes ore-whelming his faire sight,
    Like mistie vapors when they blot the skie,
    185 So wring his cheekes, cries, fie, no more of loue,
    The sunne doth burne my face I must remoue.
    Ay, me,