Sonnet 10

You claim to love, but your refusal to procreate proves you hate yourself and the world.

Original

Modern

1 For shame deny that thou bear’st love to any

For shame deny that you love anyone

2 Who for thyself art so unprovident.

Who for yourself are so careless and wasteful.

3 Grant if thou wilt, thou art beloved of many,

Grant if you will, you are beloved by many,

4 But that thou none lov’st is most evident:

But that you love none is most clear evidence:

5 For thou art so possessed with murd’rous hate,

For you are so filled with murderous hate,

6 That ’gainst thyself thou stick’st not to conspire,

That against yourself you won't stop scheming,

7 Seeking that beauteous roof to ruinate

Seeking to destroy that beautiful home

8 Which to repair should be thy chief desire:

Which to repair should be your main goal:

Volta Shifts from accusation of selfish hate to a plea for the youth to change his mind and 'make thee another self for love of me.'

9 O change thy thought, that I may change my mind,

Change your mind, so that I may change mine,

10 Shall hate be fairer lodged than gentle love?

Should hate be more comfortable than gentle love?

11 Be as thy presence is gracious and kind,

Be as kind and gracious as you appear,

12 Or to thyself at least kind-hearted prove,

Or at least be kind-hearted toward yourself,

13 Make thee another self for love of me,

Make yourself another self for love of me,

14 That beauty still may live in thine or thee.

That beauty still may live in you or your child.

Love Redefined as Generation

Sonnet 10's argument is philosophical: love must extend itself or it isn't love. By refusing to procreate, you're not just wasting beauty—you're proving you don't love at all. Love, in Shakespearean terms, must create, reproduce, and multiply. Selfishness and hate are identical to refusing procreation. This redefines love itself: it's not sentiment but a creative generative force.

Self-Destruction and Betrayal

The sonnet accuses the youth of conspiracy against himself—he is simultaneously villain and victim. This psychological insight is modern: by refusing to procreate, he destroys his own legacy and his own capacity for love. The final couplet's plea—'Make thee another self for love of me'—offers redemption: procreation becomes a way of loving both yourself and the persona simultaneously.

If this happened today

Telling someone, 'If you loved yourself, you'd have kids.' Conflating procreation with self-respect and capacity to love.

← Sonnet 9 All Sonnets Sonnet 11 →