Not marble nor the gilded monument by Shakespeare

1. Not Marble Nor The Gilded Monument William Shakespeare

2. Explanation of poem -

3. 1.Not marble, nor the gilded monuments Marble was widely used in statuary and in monuments for tombs of the powerful and wealthy. The more extravagant ones were large enough to house the coffins of generations of the same family. Royal tombs would be richly ornate, as those for example in Westminster Abbey. gilded monuments - Memorials in churches would often be decorated with gold leaf.

4. 2. Of princes, shall outlive this powerful rhyme Of princes (the monuments), will be outlived by the power of poetry; princes - a word which was used to refer to all royalty and rulers, male and female. powerful - in the sense of being able to withstand time's destruction, and perhaps to confer immortality.

5. 3 . But you shall shine more bright in these contents You shall shine more brightly in these verses But = in contrast to the things listed, you etc. in these contents - in the content of this verse.

6. 4. Than unswept stone, besmear'd with sluttish time. Than in a neglected monument ravaged by time. unswept stone - a stone monument left uncared for. older monuments in churchyards gradually would be forgotten and fall to ruin, as the living memory of its builders and inhabitants died out. sluttish = of unclean habits and behavior ; lewd and whorish. The adjective was applied to both males and females. It is descriptive of time's indifference to keeping the world orderly.

7. 5. When wasteful war shall statues overturn, wasteful war When destructive/devastating war will destroy/uproot statues, war devastates city and country, hence the term to lay waste, from the Latin vastare .

8. 6. And broils root out the work of masonry, And conflicts destroy the masonry (stonework), broils = tumult, fighting, disturbances, esp. in war. The destruction caused by war was often made evident when conquered towns were razed to the ground by the soldiery. All buildings (masonry) would be flattened.

9. 7. Nor Mars his sword, nor war's quick fire shall burn Neither Mars (cause of war) nor the resulting fire (effects of war) can or will destroy Neither the sword of Mars (the God of war), nor the searching fire of war. quick = lively, fast moving, searching out.

10. 8. The living record of your memory. The living record of your memory (in the poetry). living record = the memory of you among those currently alive; the memory of you which continues after you are dead; the written record of your life.

11. 9. ' Gainst death, and all oblivious enmity ' Gainst = against Against death and hate that destroys the memories/recollections of other people all oblivious enmity = enmity which seeks to destroy everything, or is forgetful of everything time, the enemy; causes forgetfulness of everything; that brings everything to oblivion, causes everything to be forgotten.  

12. 10. Shall you pace forth; your praise shall still find room your praises (of you) will still find a place Shall you pace forth = you shall stride forwards. The image is perhaps that of leading a procession, or of striding on to a stage. your praise = praise of you, praise which is due to you. still = constantly; for ever, despite all. find room = be given time and space (whereas most things disappear or are lost with the passage of time).

13. 11. Even in the eyes of all posterity Even in the eyes of the people to come Even in the eyes of = in the very presence or sight of, in the opinion of. all posterity = all future generations.

14. 12. That wear this world out to the ending doom. That will live on/exist until the end of humanity. The most obvious meaning is 'to destroy gradually by attrition', a meaning which does not sit entirely happily with posterity , but is more suggestive of time, or death, or war. On the other hand posterity could be taken to embrace the idea of the tedious progress of the generations bringing the world to the brink of exhaustion, the ending doom = the last judgment. When the world comes to an end, according to Christian mythology, the fate (doom) of all humans who have ever lived is finally decided. Those who are to be saved sit on the right hand of God the Father. Those who are damned go to the left and are condemned to everlasting flames, the bottomless pit which was prepared for the devil and his angels.

15. 13. So, till the judgment that yourself arise, So until Judgement Day when you will rise from the dead (to be judged; Biblical reference) On the final day, the day of the last judgment, (see above), even those who died some time ago will arise from the dead and be judged. After that date there is no point in celebrating anyone in poetry.

16. 14. You live in this, and dwell in lovers' eyes. You live in this poem, are loved by those who "know" you, and are remembered as something greater than you really were and untarnished by other peoples' recollections . in this - in this verse. live, dwell - the repetition of words connected with 'to live' (outlive, living, oblivious, arise, dwell) counteracts the effect of death, war and destruction. in lover's eyes - a reminder that this is also a love poem, and a reminder of the power of love to transcend mortality.