Sonnet 131
Thou art as tyrannous, so as thou art,As those whose beauties proudly make them cruel;For well thou know'st to my dear doting heartThou art the fairest and most precious jewel.Yet, in good faith, some say that thee beholdThy face hath not the power to make love groan:To say they err I dare not be so bold,Although I swear it to myself alone.And, to be sure that is not false I swear,A thousand groans, but thinking on thy face,One on another's neck, do witness bearThy black is fairest in my judgment's place. In nothing art thou black save in thy deeds, And thence this slander, as I think, proceeds.
To those who might call you unfairunfairly, I say "don't you dare!"She can make a man groaneven when he's aloneby recalling her face, dark and rare.