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Say that thou didst forsake me for some fault,
And I will comment upon that offence:
Speak of my lameness, and I straight will halt,
Against thy reasons making no defence.
Thou canst not love disgrace me half so ill,
To set a form upon desired change,
As I'll myself disgrace; knowing thy will,
I will acquaintance strangle, and look strange;
Be absent from thy walks; and in my tongue
Thy sweet beloved name no more shall dwell,
Lest I, too much profane, should do it wrong,
And haply of our old acquaintance tell.
For thee, against my self I'll vow debate,
For I must ne'er love him whom thou dost hate.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), no title, appears in Sonnets, no. 89 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Richard Simpson (1820 - 1876), "Sonnet LXXXIX", 1866 [ medium voice and piano ], first setting [sung text not yet checked]
- by Richard Simpson (1820 - 1876), "Sonnet LXXXIX", 1866 [ high voice and piano ], setting setting [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (François-Victor Hugo) , no title, appears in Sonnets de Shakespeare, no. 89, first published 1857
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-08-12
Line count: 14
Word count: 112
Di' che mi hai abbandonato per qualche mio torto, e io di ciò che dici io ti darò conferma: Se dirai che son debole, tale mi fingerò tosto , assecondando te e non opponendo difesa. Tu non potrai, amore, screditarmi peggio, per addurre ragioni alla tua voglia di cambiare, di quanto io stesso farò; so cosa vuoi ottenere, quindi soffocherò l’amicizia e mi farò straniero; lontano dai tuoi passi, e nella lingua muto dove non troverà più dimora il tuo nome amato, per timore che possa profanarlo se ancora lo invoco o possa raccontare del nostro affetto antico. Per te, io giurerò battaglia proprio contro me stesso perché non devo più amare colui che ormai detesti.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- Translation from English to Italian (Italiano) copyright © 2025 by Ferdinando Albeggiani, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
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Based on:
- a text in English by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), no title, appears in Sonnets, no. 89
This text was added to the website: 2025-07-16
Line count: 14
Word count: 116