Sonnet 51 DULL BEARER - Thus can my love excuse the slow offense

Thus can my love excuse the slow offense
Of my dull bearer when from thee I speed:
From where thou art why should I haste me thence?
Till I return, of posting is no need.
O, what excuse will my poor beast then find,
When swift extremity can seem but slow?
Then should I spur, though mounted on the wind;
In winged speed no motion shall I know:
Then can no horse with my desire keep pace;
Therefore desire of perfect'st love being made,
Shall neigh--no dull flesh--in his fiery race;
But love, for love, thus shall excuse my jade;
Since from thee going he went wilful-slow,
Towards thee I'll run, and give him leave to go.



Obviously paired with S50.
That groan from the froward beast,
the reminds the Poet that his destination
he is ever traveling towards grief and away from joy.

S50 is an internal monologue
while S51 is the outward explanation to the YM

Lest, perhaps, the YM believes the Poet's delay
is calculated? What is the slow offense?

Speed used ironically.

Note the movement from dull bearer to poor beast

The beautiful passage:

Then should I spur, though mounted on the wind;
In winged speed no motion shall I know:

Seems modern: no motion shall I know
the effect of being on an airplane

And the loaded line the marks Q3:

no horse can keep up with my desire

priapic boasting. the poet has been away too long
his prick shall spur the horse beyond the limits of the dull flesh
and he shall like a cartoon comet
arc fiery across the sky back to the YM

Interesting in the couplet
no spurring is necessary
the horse desires to get back to the YM
as quickly as possible


Q1: slow offense of the dull beast in leaving

Q2: the promised return will be faster than the wind

Q3: because the poet's desire is stronger than any horse and will speed him back like fire

C: I will let loose the reins on the horse and give him leave to exercise his full powers of speed (and desire?)