Sonnet 121:Tis better to be vile than vile esteemed

William Shakespeare 1564 (Stratford-upon-Avon) – 1616 (Stratford-upon-Avon)



'Tis better to be vile than vile esteemed,
When not to be receives reproach of being;
And the just pleasure lost, which is so deemed
Not by our feeling, but by others' seeing:
For why should others' false adulterate eyes
Give salutation to my sportive blood?
Or on my frailties why are frailer spies,
Which in their wills count bad what I think good?
No, I am that I am, and they that level
At my abuses reckon up their own:
I may be straight though they themselves be bevel;
By their rank thoughts, my deeds must not be shown;
Unless this general evil they maintain,
All men are bad and in their badness reign.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 19, 2023

35 sec read
162

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABABCDCEFGFGHH
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 606
Words 117
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet, and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's greatest dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon". more…

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    "Sonnet 121:Tis better to be vile than vile esteemed" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 31 Oct. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/41420/sonnet-121:tis-better-to-be-vile-than-vile-esteemed>.

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