William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 10 Recited by James Louis Steed

William Shakespeare’s Sonnet Ten (For Shame Deny That Thou Bear’st Love To Any) is the 10th of his 154 sonnets published in 1609. This is also the Tenth of the “Fair Youth” sonnets, in which an unnamed man is being addressed by the speaker. In addition to that, it’s the Tenth of the “procreation sonnets” where he feels compelled to convince the fair youth he’s addressing to get out there and get busy with procreation. This is the most accusatory of the “fair youth” sonnets thus far. Shakespeare’s criticism of the youth becomes almost violent and really personal. He chastises the youth and claims that he, in fact, only has and is only (perhaps) capable of affection for himself. It doesn’t stop there, though, he claims that the self-love of the young man is really just “murderous hate” because the selfishness of it is actually self-destructive. These criticisms, though, appear to be only be an exaggeration to prove a point, because the poet pleads with the young man to move past his selfishness and have a child, if only for the poet’s sake. Suggesting that he really didn’t see the young man as beyond being generous and, therefore, affectionate towards others.

Sonnet Ten – For Shame Deny That Thou Bear’st Love To Any