Sonnet 116: Let me not to

the marriage of true minds

By: William Shakespeare
1st quatrain
Let me not to the marriage of true minds

Admit impediments. Love is not love

Which alters when it alteration finds,

Or bends with the remover to remove.

The first and second line “Let me not to the marriage of true
minds/ Admit impediments” it includes the word marriage
and to the word marriage, it also contains the word
impediment means a hindrance or obstruction also, the
word impediment is lifted straight from the official Church
of England wedding service (you might recognize its
modern equivalent, the whole "speak now or forever hold
your peace" section of weddings) but it is not really talking
about the actual marriage. “Marriage of true minds” is
actually a metaphor of true love. It is about the commitment
of two people of their love and the willingness to be
together until their last breath.
The line where it states that “Love is not love/ Which alters
where alteration finds, or bends with the remover to
2nd Quatrain
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark

That looks on tempests and is never shaken;

It is the star to every wand'ring bark,

Whose worth's unknown, although his height be

taken.
The line “O no! it is an ever-fixed mark /That
looks on tempests and is never shaken” in
these two lines the poet is asserting that love
can never be ruined even though there are
many circumstances that may occur in the
life of the lovers, their love will never
change. While the seventh and eighth line is
talking about “star”. the ever fixed mark is
also referring to the “North star” a star that
never changes its position in the night sky.
Back then there are no GPS or even compass
3rd Quatrain
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and
cheeks

Within his bending sickle's compass come;

Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,

But bears it out even to the edge of doom.

The ninth and tenth line “Love's not Time's
fool, though rosy lips and cheeks /Within his
bending sickle's compass come” utters that
even if time passes by and they will grow old
or their faces will never be the same when
they first met, the same love they felt when
they will forever be the same as long as they
love each other. The “bending sickle” is the
one that grim reapers are holding as we see
it in pictures. What the poet is trying to say
is that if you love someone you will always
Couplet

If this be error and upon me prov'd,

I never writ, nor no man ever lov'd.

The last two lines of the sonnet
provides dramatic and quite bold
ending. Line 13 uses rather legalistic
language to basically say, "If these
ideas are wrong and anyone can
prove that I’m incorrect…“ it is like a
challenge to the readers but the
continuation says that “I never writ,
nor no man ever lov'd” it is like he’s