
This sonnet is an influential poem about the destructive power of Time. The speaker mourns time’s relentless power to destroy all things, from the strongest materials like brass and stone to the most fragile, such as beauty and love. Nothing escapes decay, as even the vast sea and impenetrable rocks eventually succumb to time. Fragile phenomena like love and beauty seem especially doomed, compared to fleeting images like summer’s breath or a spring flower.
However, the speaker finds hope in the enduring power of poetry. While all else fades, poetry can defy time, preserving love and beauty within its “black ink”; for future generations. Through this, the speaker suggests that while human life is temporary, poetry is immortal, carrying love’s essence forward.
The text is deconstructed by the chorus, which sings over an actor reciting the poem.
Clyne: Pocket Book LXV
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Songs in Surround
Tracklist
- Anna Clyne (b. 1980):
Pocket Book LXV