- description
- # Sonnet 51
## Overview
"Sonnet 51" is a poem extracted from a larger text file as part of a digital workflow. It is identified by its title "Sonnet 51" and consists of 14 lines of text, beginning with "Thus can my love excuse the flow offence," and ending with "Towards thee ile run, and giue him leave to goe."
## Context
This sonnet is part of the [Venus and Adonis, Lucrece, Sonnets, and Pericles (Facsimile Editions)](arke:01KG6S3KNZT62WVVW4VT384KPF) collection, which compiles facsimile editions of William Shakespeare's works. The text of "Sonnet 51" was extracted from the file [pdf-01KG6Q7Q25RHMFT3SJXPV18VFF.txt](arke:01KG6S2X2EBB305ENM00G16GWA) and is included in the [PDF Workflow Main Test 2026-01-30T00:26:53](arke:01KG6NWQ2H2K4PGG7H4ZHYCZ3Y) collection. It follows [Sonnet 50](arke:01KG6S4C66JRQQKX4BTW9XZX6V) and precedes [Sonnet 52](arke:01KG6S4C664CA8B3AMESYMMJDX) within the sequence of sonnets in the collection.
## Contents
"Sonnet 51" explores the theme of love's power to transcend physical limitations and the speaker's desire to hasten towards the beloved. The poem uses the metaphor of a "dull bearer" or "poore beaft" (horse) to represent the physical self, which is slow when moving away from the beloved but would be impossibly swift when returning. The speaker asserts that "desire (of perfects love being made)" will outpace any horse in its "fiery race," ultimately concluding that love itself will excuse any slowness when departing, as the return journey will be driven by an unstoppable eagerness.
- description_generated_at
- 2026-01-30T06:26:22.688Z
- description_model
- gemini-2.5-flash-lite
- description_title
- Sonnet 51
- end_line
- 11149
- extracted_at
- 2026-01-30T06:23:29.732Z
- extracted_by
- structure-extraction-lambda
- start_line
- 11135
- text
- Thus can my love excuse the flow offence,
Of my dull bearer, when from thee I speed,
From where thou art, why should I halt me thence,
Till I returne of posting is not need.
O what excuse will my poore beaft then find,
When swift extremity can seeme but flow,
Then should I spurre though mounted on the wind,
In winged speed no motion shall I know,
Then can no horse with my desire keepe pace,
Therefore desire (of perfects love being made)
Shall naigh noe dull flesh in his fiery race,
But love, for love, thus shall excuse my iade,
Since from thee going, he went wilfull flow,
Towards thee ile run, and giue him leave to goe.
- title
- Sonnet 51