When I do count the clock that tells the time,

And see the brave day sunk in hideous night；

When I behold the violet past prime,

And sable curls all silver'd o'er with white:

When lofty trees I see barren of leaves,

Which erst from heat did canopy the herd,

And summer's green, all girded up in sheaves,

Born on the bier with white and bristly beard；

Then of thy beauty do I question make,

That thou among the wastes of time must go,

Since sweets and beauties do themselves forsake,

And die as fast as they see others grow；

And though thy beauty be more fair than all,

And time be ever-changing, never-staying,

Thou art more lovely and more temperate,

Than any summer's day, or summer's night.

这首诗以夏日的景象为背景，通过对比时间的流逝和自然的更迭，表达了诗人对永恒之美的赞美和对爱情持久的颂扬。