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The term procreation sonnets is a name given to Shakespearean sonnets numbers 1 until 17.

It is because they all argue  that the young man to whom they are addressed should marry and father children, hence procreate. Throughout the procreation sonnets, Shakespeare usually argues that the child will be a copy of the young man, who will therefore live through his child.

man to whom they were written is a mystery, but the most frequently suggested individuals are Henry Wriothesley (W.H. backwards), and William Herbert, 3rd Earl of Pembroke. If the latter, it has been suggested that the 17 sonnets correspond in number to Herbert's age at the time.

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Is it for fear to wet a widow's eye,
That thou consum'st thy self in single life?
Ah! if thou issueless shalt hap to die,
The world will wail thee like a makeless wife;
The world will be thy widow and still weep
That thou no form of thee hast left behind,
When every private widow well may keep
By children's eyes, her husband's shape in mind:
Look what an unthrift in the world doth spend
Shifts but his place, for still the world enjoys it;
But beauty's waste hath in the world an end,
And kept unused the user so destroys it.
No love toward others in that bosom sits
That on himself such murd'rous shame commits.

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Are you eating up your own life by remaining single because you’re afraid your widow will cry when you die?

Ah, if you happen to die childless, the entire world will mourn for you like a wife who’s lost her husband.

The world will be your widow and weep forever about the fact that you didn’t leave a copy of yourself.

But if you had left a wife behind, she’d have had her children to look at and remind her of her husband.

A person who wastes his money is just shifting money around—at least the money’s still in the world.

But if beauty is wasted, the world loses it forever: If a beautiful person doesn’t use his beauty, he destroys it.

The person who would commit such a murderous outrage on himself has no love in his heart for others.

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This is a video by a youtuber, read.my.lips

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Is it for fear to wet a widow's eye That thou consum'st thyself in single life? Ah, if thou issueless shalt hap to die, The world will wail thee like a makeless wife. The world will be thy widow, and still weep That thou no form of thee hast left behind, When every private widow well may keep By children's eyes her husband's shape in mind.

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The poet asks if it is fear of making someone a widow that causes the young man to refuse to marry. The argument is unsound, says the poet, for a beautiful youth must leave behind him a form or copy of himself, otherwise the world itself will endure widowhood, and yet have no consolation for its loss. For it will not be able to view the young man resurrected in the eyes of his children. If he persists in this single obduracy, it is an unforgivable shame, showing lack of love to others and equivalent to murdering himself and all his heirs.

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Sonnet 9 is one of the "procreation sonnets," Sonnets 1-17. In these sonnets, the speaker tries to convince the fair lord, to whom the first 126 sonnets are addressed, to have children. Sonnet 9 takes the approach of suggesting a reason the fair lord might be reluctant to have children in the first line: "for fear to wet a widow's eye," or to leave behind a mourning widow when the fair lord inevitably dies. But the speaker points out over the course of the sonnet that this is a silly idea, since if he does not marry and leave children to replace his beauty, he will be, in effect, widowing the whole world.

The fate of an ordinary, "private" widow is discussed in lines 7-8: "When every private widow well may keep / By children's eyes, her husband's shape in mind." The eyes here represent the entire person; the "children's eyes" are the children themselves. So by looking at her children, the widow is able to remember what her husband looked like when he was young and in his prime. In Sonnet 5, the fair lord's "gaze" was similarly used to describe his whole person.

In order to interpret lines 9-10, it must be noted that in the Elizabethan era, "its" was not used as a possessive pronoun. So in line 10, "his" refers to the money that is moving around from pocket to pocket. "Look what" means "whatever," or "everything," and an "unthrift" is a prodigal person, or someone who spends money unwisely. When a spendthrift spends money unwisely, it circulates among the people of the world even after his death.

In contrast, a spendthrift with "beauty" does not leave such a mark on the world after death. Lines 11-12 create a contrast between the spendthrift and the person who does not procreate, pointing out that "beauty's waste hath in the world an end." As in Sonnet 6, these lines contain a warning against masturbation, thought to be a waste of semen. In the seemingly contradictory line 12, the "user" is the fair lord, and the "unused" beauty is the semen that is not used to impregnate a woman.

The couplet that ends Sonnet 9 seems a bit intense as a scolding of the fair lord for not procreating, accusing him of committing "murd'rous shame" on himself. But this phrase can be seen as an extension of the masturbation innuendo; in wasting semen, it is as if he is murdering potential children. The speaker tells the young man that clearly he has "no love toward others" in his heart, if he acts so selfishly as to not bear children in his image for the world to enjoy. This accusation of selfishness is also apparent in Sonnets 1 and 3.

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Line 1 : Is it for fear to wet a widow's eye,

To wet a widow's eye = to cause your future wife to weep for you (if you should die after marrying her).

Line 2 : That thou consum'st thy self in single life?

That you waste away in bachelorhood. There is also a sexual meaning in consum'st.

Line 3 : Ah! if thou issueless shalt hap to die,

issueless = childless, without issue, without children.

shalt hap to = should happen to.

Line 4 : The world will wail thee like a makeless wife;

The world will wail thee = the world will mourn for you

like = as if it (the world) were; as if you, (the youth) were; the latter meaning is obviously not so relevant, but the youth, being unmarried, could be perceived as being in the same state as a widow.

a makeless wife = a wife without a mate, one who has been widowed.

make = companion or mate, spouse (obs.).  The argument therefore is that, if the man does not marry, although he will not leave a widow behind him in the conventional sense, should he die, yet the world will be his widow instead, an even greater tragedy than if he were in fact married and with children. The world will mourn him as a makeless wife mourns her husband. The idea is expanded in the following lines.

Line 5 : The world will be thy widow and still weep

still = always, continually.

Line 6 : That thou no form of thee hast left behind,

That = because;

form of thee = copy or image of yourself, in the form of a child. See Sonnet 11:

" She carved thee for her seal, and meant therebyThou shouldst print more, not let that copy die."

Line 7 : When every private widow well may keep

private - as opposed to the public widow, which is the world. There is also a suggestion of ordinary, as well as ignoble, derived from the Latin privatus.

Line 8 : By children's eyes, her husband's shape in mind:

By children's eyes = by looking at her children. The eyes represented the whole person, so the children's eyes are the children themselves.

Line 9 : Look what an unthrift in the world doth spend

Look what = whatever, anything that. Some editors emend to Look! what etc. but it does not improve the sense. See Sonnet 77:

"Look what thy memory can not contain"

an unthrift = a prodigal person, a wastrel, one of extravagant expenditure. The line therefore expands to 'Everything that a prodigal chooses to spend in the world'.

Line 10 : Shifts but his place, for still the world enjoys it;

Shifts but his place = Simply moves from one place to another.

his = its and refers to the money which the unthrift spends. its as possessive pronoun was not used by the Elizabethans. The money that the prodigal spends becomes available again through circulation. It merely shifts its place from one pocket to another.

for still the world enjoys it = the world continues to make use of it and to derive pleasure from it.

still = continually, always, as in line 5.

Line 11 : But beauty's waste hath in the world an end,

beauty's waste = the dissipation of beauty, beauty's squandering of itself (by existing and doing nothing and failing to procreate). In contrast to the prodigal's expenditure, beauty's waste does not recirculate. There is a sexual meaning, in which beauty's waste = semen. See the following line.

Line 12 : And kept unused the user so destroys it.

The contradiction in this line makes it difficult to interpret, because if something is unused there can be no user. One suggestion is that ;

user = prodigal OR

user = one who is entitled to use something. The more obvious meaning is the sexual one that the self-abuser (user) destroys his semen (beauty's waste) by not using it properly, and by not making some chaste maid fertile.

Line 13 : No love toward others in that bosom sits

There is no love in your heart towards others.

sits = exists, is present.

Line 14 : That on himself such murd'rous shame commits.

That picks up that bosom of the previous line, where it = that person, that heart. Hence the meaning becomes '...exists in that heart which, against itself etc.'

himself = itself.

such murd'rous shame = the shame of not begetting an heir. Rather excessive language for such a fault, one would think, but there is also the sexual innuendo where murderous shame means killing the seed by masturbation, and the exaggerated language thereby takes on a slightly humorous flavour.

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Shakespeare's sonnets are written predominantly in a meter called iambic pentameter, a rhyme scheme in which each sonnet line consists of ten syllables. The syllables are divided into five pairs called iambs or iambic feet. An iamb is a metrical unit made up of one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable.

A line of iambic pentameter flows like this;

taDA/taDA/taDA/taDA/taDA

For example;

{Is it} {for fear} {to wet} {a wi}{dow's eye,} (LINE 1)

In this sonnet, most of the lines have ten syllables EXCEPT for line 10, 12 and 13 which use 11 syllables.

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Extra - Further Explanation by Marissa Pinkney, English 405 !

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Extra - Further Explanation by Marissa Pinkney, English 405 !

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You want to know more? Well, you may read this article by Marissa Pinkney. Enjoy!

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Sonnet Project
There are many more sonnets that had been filmed by Sonnet Project NYC. Please check out their website.

The Brooklyn Bridge was the featured location for Sonnet 9, performed by Anton Rayn, directed by Sean Murray. The video was released on May 20, 2013.

#ShakespeareForEveryone

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Is it for fear to wet a widow's eye
That thou consumest thyself in single life?
Ah! if thou issueless shalt hap to die,
The world will wail thee, like a makeless wife;
The world will be thy widow and still weep
That thou no form of thee hast left behind,
When every private widow well may keep
By children's eyes her husband's shape in mind.
Look what an unthrift in the world doth spend
Shifts but his place, for still the world enjoys it;
But beauty's waste hath in the world an end,
And kept unused, the user so destroys it.
No love toward others in that bosom sits
That on himself such murderous shame commits.

Analysis
Sonnet 9 approaches the young man's resistance to marry and procreate as a fear of hurting his family after he dies.

Here, Bill Shakes tries a different tack. He reasons that if the young man must be remaining single so that he does not make a widow. The youth is wrong to do so, because if he dies the entire world will in effect be a widow, crying over the fact that he did not leave a child behind to remind them of how wonderful he was!. To Bill, a widow will always have the image of her lover in her children to console her after her loss.

Will's Wordplay
"makeless" is more likely mateless (or, widowed). The whole world will grieve for the young man!

Brooklyn Bridge
The most iconic bridge in New York City, Brooklyn Bridge is a bridge in New York City and is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Completed in 1883, it connects the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn by spanning the East River. With a main span of 1,595.5 feet, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world from its opening until 1903, and the first steel-wire suspension bridge. At the time it opened, and for several years, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world-50% longer than any previously built-and it has become a treasured landmark.The architectural style is neo-Gothic, with characteristic pointed arches above the passageways through the stone towers. The paint scheme of the bridge is "Brooklyn Bridge Tan" and "Silver", although it has been argued that the original paint was "Rawlins Red".[1]

Originally referred to as the New York and Brooklyn Bridge and as the East River Bridge, it was dubbed the Brooklyn Bridge, a name from a letter to the editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle,[2] and formally so named by the city government in 1915. Since its opening, it has become an icon of New York City, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964[3] and a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1972.

Construction
The Brooklyn Bridge was designed by German immigrant John Augustus Roebling, who had previously designed and constructed shorter suspension bridges.Roebling sustained a crush injury to his foot when a ferry pinned it against a piling. After amputation of his crushed toes he developed a tetanus infection which left him incapacitated and soon resulted in his death, not long after he had placed his son Washington Roebling in charge of the project.[4]

Washington Roebling also suffered a paralyzing injury as a result of decompression sickness shortly after the beginning of construction on January 3, 1870. This debilitating condition left him unable to physically supervise the construction firsthand; his wife Emily Warren Roebling stepped in and provided the critical written link between her husband and the engineers on site.[5] Under her husband's guidance, Emily studied higher mathematics, the calculations of catenary curves, the strengths of materials, bridge specifications, and the intricacies of cable construction. She spent the next 11 years assisting Washington Roebling helping to supervise the bridge's construction.

The Brooklyn Bridge was opened for use on May 24, 1883. A total of 1,800 vehicles and 150,300 people crossed what was then the only land passage between Manhattan and Brooklyn. Emily Warren Roebling was the first to cross the bridge. President Chester A. Arthur and New York Mayor Franklin Edson crossed the bridge to celebratory cannon fire and were greeted by Brooklyn Mayor Seth Low when they reached the Brooklyn-side tower. Washington Roebling was unable to attend the ceremony. Further festivity included the performance of a band, gunfire from ships, and a fireworks display.

On May 17, 1884, P. T. Barnum helped to squelch doubts about the bridge's stability-while publicizing his famous circus-when one of his most famous attractions, Jumbo, led a parade of 21 elephants over the Brooklyn Bridge.[6]

Contemporaries marveled at what technology was capable of and the bridge became a symbol of the optimism of the time. John Perry Barlow wrote in the late 20th century of the "literal and genuinely religious leap of faith" embodied in the Brooklyn Bridge ... "the Brooklyn Bridge required of its builders faith in their ability to control technology."

References to "selling the Brooklyn Bridge" abound in American culture, sometimes as examples of rural gullibility but more often in connection with an idea that strains credulity. For example, "If you believe that, I've got a bridge to sell you." George C. Parker and William McCloundy are two early 20th-century con-men who had (allegedly) successfully perpetrated this scam on unwitting tourists. [7] The 1949 Bugs Bunny cartoon Bowery Bugs is a joking reference to Bugs "selling" a story of the Brooklyn Bridge to a naïve tourist.

Sonnet Project
The Brooklyn Bridge was the featured location for Sonnet 9, performed by Anton Rayn, directed by Sean Murray. The video was released on May 20, 2013.

References
1. Gary Buiso, New York Post (May 25, 2010). "A True Cover Up. Brooklyn Bridge Paint Job Glosses over History". Retrieved October 23, 2010.
2. E.P.D. (January 25, 1867). "Bridging the East River - Another Project". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle: p. 2.
3. "Brooklyn Bridge". National Park Service.
4. "Brooklyn Bridge". ASCE Metropolitan Section.
5. Acott, Chris (1999). "A brief history of diving and decompression illness.". South Pacific Underwater Medicine Society journal 29 (2). ISSN 0813-1988. OCLC 16986801.
6. Bildner, Phil (2004). Twenty-One Elephants. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-689-87011-6.
7. Cohen, Gabriel (November 27, 2005). "For You, Half Price". The New York Times.

ANTON RAYN - Actor
Like most stories, this one starts with a monkey. A puppet monkey. Then a puppet bear. It was a slippery slope from then on into Puppetry and Acting training while growing up in Kiev, Ukraine. Further training at Brandeis University, American Globe Theater, and The Actors Center, solidified that this ex-child performer, continues to be actively involved in theater as an adult (with and without puppets). He still owns the monkey and the bear. Les Misérables (JCHS), Joe and Mary's Irish/Italian Wedding (NY Dinner Theater), Sleeping Beauty (Growing Stage), New York Renaissance Faire (REP), and The Comedy of Errors (Theater 2020).

CHARLIE "COOL G" GRANPA - Actor
Known for his propensity in dispensing high fives to amused children, Charlie began his career as The Sheriff at the The New York Renaissance Faire. Stints as Kermit's body double, hosting SNL, and becoming a meme, paved the way for this rising star. An avid daredevil, world traveler, and playboy, Charlie's personal life is what every puppet dreams of.

SEAN MACBRIDE MURRAY - Director
Sean was born in Heidelberg, West Germany to a career Army officer and his wife. Returning to the US when his sister was about to be born, Sean then spent his younger years traveling from state to state (and once back to Germany). This peripatetic lifestyle taught Sean to appreciate family and friends. Settling in Watertown, NY (his father's familial home) when he was twelve, Sean began to learn the importance of story telling. It was through creating stories, whether written (fiction or non) or photographic, Sean found he could help people understand the world and himself.

Setting out for the adventure of a college education, Sean chose to continue the family story of a life in the military. Enrolling in the Virginia Military Institute, Sean became the next generation of his family to see service to his nation as an important step in developing as a person. Unfortunately, the federal government's budget office (specifically the Department of the Navy's budget office) decided to decimate the officer ranks for the class of 1994 and Sean moved on to prepare for a service of another kind.

Sean next began to study philosophy in preparation for serving the people of Northern New York as a priest. After two years of philosophy and four years of theology, Sean began ministry in Ogdensburg, NY and then Massena (two old border towns protecting New York from Canadian incursions). However, Sean failed to realize that he wasn't indeed called to be a priest and chose to leave ministry in favor of the urban life and teaching.

In 2004 Sean moved to New York City to serve the City's youth as a teacher of students with disabilities. For the past nine years, he has enriched the lives of students in the Bronx by helping them uncover the wonders of history. Teaching students with mild to moderate learning disabilities has allowed Sean to continue his story telling. Opening teenagers' minds to the story of the rise of civilization, Sean helps them understand their place in the broader context of the global community. Additionally, Sean cracks open the story of America's place in the history of the world by teaching United States History and Government.

During all of these changes of career, Sean has continue his love of story-telling. After earning a Master Degree in Education, Sean began studying Improv Comedy and Acting. He worked with the Upright Citizen's Brigade Theatre on the former and the Matthew Corozine Studio on the later (where he also met his future bride.) As an actor, Sean has performed in a multitude of plays (particularly Shakespeare's works) with a number of theatre companies. He has worked with the New York Renaissance Faire, Queens Shakespeare, Inc, the Queens Players at the Secret Theatre, the Inwood Shakespeare festival and Random Access Theatre Company.

While performing in a production of Lysistrata, Sean realized that directing might be a way in which he could broaden his story-telling skills. Utilizing his many years as an amateur photographer as a base, Sean began making short videos. One, Nigel's Cookies, was selected to screen at the Big Apple Film Festival in 2010. He is currently in post-production on a web series conceived by his good friend and collaborator, Tyrus Cukavac, called Space Qats and has been asked to serve as Director of Photography on another web series (details are currently hushhush.) Sean is excited to blend his love of stroy-telling through photography, filmmaking and Shakespeare in New York Shakespeare Exchange's Sonnet Project.

Life is a story. Tell it however you can and let it enrich your life and the lives of others.

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Is it for fear to wet a widow's eye That thou consumest thyself in single life? Ah! if thou issueless shalt hap to die, The world will wail thee, like a makeless wife; The world will be thy widow and still weep That thou no form of thee hast left behind, When every private widow well may keep By children's eyes her husband's shape in mind.

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This sonnet refers to "impatient love". The narrator keep on pressuring the "man" to get married and have a child instead of wasting his semen by masturbating which was referred as a big sin.

The more I read this sonnet, the more it reminds me about how most of the parents from previous era (even until now) keep on pressuring their children to get married and have children. Some of them even to an extend, dare to "request" certain gender (male, of course).

Well, this sonnet might be a great sonnet to be read by those parents who longing for a grandchild.