Return to Shakespeare's Sonnet 121 |
1.
vile esteem'd: (to be) thought vile.
2.
When . . . being: When not to be vile receives the reproach of vileness.
3.
just: legitimate. so: i.e., vile.
4.
by others' seeing: in the view of others.
5-6.
For . . . blood?: Why should others, who are really wicked, greet me as though I am one of them, even though I am only mirthful?
6.
give salutation: greet familiarly, as an equal. sportive: licentious.
7.
why are: i.e., why should there be.
9.
that I am: what I am. level: aim.
10.
abuses: misdeeds.
11.
bevel: slanting, deviating from uprightness.
12.
rank: foul. be shown: interpreted.
13.
Unless this general evil they maintain: unless this general principle of evil they uphold.