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If thy soul check thee that I come so near,
Swear to thy blind soul that I was thy 'Will',
And will, thy soul knows, is admitted there;
Thus far for love, my love-suit, sweet, fulfil.
'Will', will fulfil the treasure of thy love,
Ay, fill it full with wills, and my will one.
In things of great receipt with ease we prove
Among a number one is reckon'd none:
Then in the number let me pass untold,
Though in thy store's account I one must be;
For nothing hold me, so it please thee hold
That nothing me, a something sweet to thee:
Make but my name thy love, and love that still,
And then thou lov'st me for my name is 'Will.'
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), no title, appears in Sonnets, no. 136 [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 Erika Budai (b. 1966), "If thy soul check thee" [ chorus and recorders ], from The Dark Lady, no. 5 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Richard Simpson (1820 - 1876), "Sonnet CXXXVI", 1865-6 [ medium voice or high voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in Finnish (Suomi), a translation by Aale Maria Tynni-Haavio (1913 - 1997) , no title, copyright © ; composed by Henrik Otto Donner.
- Go to the text. [Note: the text is not in the database yet.]
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Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (François-Victor Hugo) , no title, appears in Sonnets de Shakespeare, no. 136, 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: 2010-08-13
Line count: 14
Word count: 124
Se la tua anima ti segnala il mio contegno indiscreto, giura che io ero un tuo “Voglio” alla tua anima cieca e che questo nome, la tua anima lo sa, è bene accetto; perciò, per amor mio, appaga la mia amorosa richiesta. Questo “Voglio” arricchirà il tuo forziere d’amore, pieno di tanti “Voglio” fra i quali anche il mio conserva. Fra gli oggetti in gran numero uno potrebbe essere ignorato e, fra i tanti, finirebbe così per non contare niente. Fra i tuoi tanti voleri accoglimi tuttavia, quasi inosservato, così anche se sarò uno, sarò comunque presente. Stimami pure un niente, purché questo pensiero basti a ricordarti di me come qualcosa di caro. Ama soltanto il mio nome e, in eterno amando, amerai allora anche me il nome “Voglio” usando.
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. 136
This text was added to the website: 2025-07-16
Line count: 14
Word count: 130