Wedding reading
Sonnet 130
William Shakespeare
“Sonnet 130” by William Shakespeare is a poem read at a wedding ceremony. It takes about a minute and a half read aloud, usually by a guest reader. It is in the public domain, so the full text is printed on this page and goes straight into a ceremony script.
The full text
My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips' red: If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. I have seen roses damasked, red and white, But no such roses see I in her cheeks; And in some perfumes is there more delight Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks. I love to hear her speak, yet well I know That music hath a far more pleasing sound: I grant I never saw a goddess go; My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground: And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare As any she belied with false compare.
Public domain, so these words can be printed in a ceremony script or an order of service.
Where it comes from
The first printing, Shake-speares Sonnets, Never before Imprinted, spells the opening line “My Mistres eyes are nothing like the Sunne”. Thomas Thorpe published that quarto in 1609, and the Folger’s overview of the Sonnets calls it the edition modern editors usually follow.
What it says
For twelve lines the poet refuses every compliment a love poem is supposed to pay. Her eyes are nothing like the sun. Coral is redder than her lips. Her skin is not snow-white, her hair is like black wire, there are no roses in her cheeks, and perfume smells better than her breath. He loves to hear her talk, though music sounds better. He has never seen a goddess walk, but he knows his mistress walks on the ground. Then the final couplet turns: and yet, by heaven, his love is as rare as any woman ever flattered with false comparisons. It is a joke on the love poems of its day, and a sincere compliment underneath: he loves her as she really is.
Thirteen lines of insults, then a last couplet that beats every compliment in the book. It teases the sonnets sitting next to it. Read at a wedding ceremony. Themes: my mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun · the anti-love poem · teasing rather than flattering · a couple who make fun of each other · undercuts the flowery readings · funny for thirteen lines and then sincere · short.
Who it suits
Couples who tease each other, couples who dislike sentimental readings, and anyone who wants a laugh in the ceremony without losing sincerity. It suits a relaxed civil ceremony or a reception reading. Grandparents may need to hear it to the end before they smile, and the line about breath reeking can startle a formal room.
Where it goes in the ceremony
It works best as the second of two readings, after something more traditional such as Sonnet 116, so that it teases the poem the room has just heard. A friend with good comic timing usually reads it. It can also be read just before the vows to lighten the mood.
Reading it aloud
The text on this page is 123 words. At a ceremony pace of about 130 words a minute, which is slower than conversation, that comes to about 55 seconds of reading.
- Read the insults straight, without winking. The deadpan is what makes the room laugh.
- Let a beat follow “reeks”. That is usually where the room laughs, and the reader should wait for it to pass.
- The couplet is sincere. Drop the comic tone completely at “And yet, by heaven”, slow down, and look at the couple.
Questions about reading it aloud
How long does “Sonnet 130” take to read aloud?
“Sonnet 130” takes about a minute and a half read aloud at a ceremony pace, which is slower than conversation — roughly 130 words a minute. That is the figure the run-sheet uses when it works out the timing for the whole service.
Who usually reads “Sonnet 130”?
Usually a guest reader rather than the officiant. “Sonnet 130” runs about a minute and a half, which is a manageable amount to hand to a friend or family member. Give them a printed copy of their own, in a size they can read without their glasses, and tell them where to stand and how you will introduce them.
Can “Sonnet 130” be printed in a ceremony script?
Yes. It is in the public domain, so the full text is on this page and can be printed in a script or an order of service.
Where this text was checked
Checked word for word against a full-text edition that is itself the authority — a Project Gutenberg or Wikisource transcription, a publisher’s own edition, or the issuing body’s page.
Checked
A reading is two minutes of the hour.
The rest is the welcome, the vows, the ring exchange, the pronouncement — and the timing that holds them together. Answer some questions about the couple and get the whole ceremony, written out, with this reading in its place.
Other readings that suit the same service
- Sonnet 116a minute and a halfThe sincere Shakespeare sonnet to read just before it
- Sonnet 1855 secondsThe flattering summer’s-day sonnet this one parodies
- from Extracts from Adam's Diary — selected entriesa minute and a halfAnother funny reading that turns sincere at the end
- A Red, Red Rose45 secondsRobert Burns
- To My Dear and Loving Husband50 secondsAnne Bradstreet
- from Song of the Open Road25 secondsWalt Whitman