Love and time—two of the most explored and profound themes in literature. Time, an ever-flowing force, often portrayed as a relentless march toward an inevitable end, seems to stand in contrast with love, a feeling that transcends temporal boundaries. The exploration of how love endures in the face of time, or how time influences love, has captivated poets throughout history. In this article, we will examine 11 poems about time and love, each highlighting a different aspect of this eternal interplay.
11 Poems About Time and Love
1. “Sonnet 18” by William Shakespeare
Shakespeare’s iconic sonnet explores the timeless nature of love and beauty in the face of time’s destructive power. While time may erode beauty and life, the poem’s enduring nature is a testament to the power of love’s memory.
Excerpt:
“But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wanderest in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest.”
Source: Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare
In “Sonnet 18,” Shakespeare addresses the theme of time through the metaphor of a summer’s day. While the day will inevitably end, the speaker asserts that the love and beauty of the person addressed will live on forever through the lines of the poem. Time’s eventual decay is contrasted with the immortal nature of love, preserved eternally in verse. Shakespeare elevates the power of poetry itself to defy time.
2. “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S. Eliot
T.S. Eliot’s modernist masterpiece, while focusing on the fleeting nature of time, also reveals the hesitation and self-doubt that can accompany love. The poem speaks to the limitations of human experience, and yet, through time, it remains a poignant reflection on the passage of life.
Excerpt:
“Do I dare
Disturb the universe?
In a minute there is time
For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse.”
Source: The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot
In this poem, time plays a critical role in the narrator’s procrastination and indecision. The passage of time creates an oppressive force, stalling action and preventing love from flourishing. Eliot explores how time, as both a measure and a constraint, impacts one’s ability to act on love and desire, suggesting that the moments we hesitate are fleeting but ultimately irreversible.
3. “A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning” by John Donne
John Donne, in this metaphysical poem, emphasizes the idea that true love transcends physical distance and the passage of time. The speaker argues that love can remain unshaken despite time’s inevitable forces.
Excerpt:
“If they be two, they are two so
As stiff twin compasses are two;
Thy soul, the fixed foot, makes no show
To move, but doth, if the other do.”
Source: A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning by John Donne
In this poem, Donne speaks of a love that is unshaken even by separation or death. The comparison of the lovers to the two feet of a compass suggests that, although time and distance may separate them physically, their love remains unbroken, and they are connected spiritually. Donne’s metaphysical argument that love can endure without being diminished by time is a profound assertion about the eternal nature of affection.
4. “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson’s famous poem personifies death as a suitor, blending the concepts of time, love, and mortality. In this poem, Dickinson examines the inevitability of time’s passage and how love, or at least an acceptance of love, plays into this journey toward the unknown.
Excerpt:
“Because I could not stop for Death –
He kindly stopped for me –
The Carriage held but just Ourselves –
And Immortality.”
Source: Because I Could Not Stop for Death by Emily Dickinson
Dickinson’s poem merges love and time through the metaphor of a carriage ride with Death, who arrives at an inescapable moment in time. The slow journey toward the afterlife, paired with the idea of immortality, demonstrates how time shapes our relationship with love and death. The acceptance of death and the possibility of an eternal connection reveal how time and love converge.
5. “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe
Poe’s poem is a melancholic reflection on time, memory, and lost love. The speaker, mourning the loss of his beloved Lenore, is visited by a mysterious raven, whose refrain “Nevermore” reminds him of the permanence of death and the impossibility of recapturing lost love.
Excerpt:
“And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon’s that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o’er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted—nevermore!”
Source: The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe
Through the haunting refrain “Nevermore,” Poe reflects on the inescapability of time’s passage and the finality of loss. The raven symbolizes the permanence of death, which both erases the possibility of future love and reinforces the enduring grief of time’s actions. In this way, time and love are intertwined in a dark and tragic exploration of the impermanence of life.
6. “i carry your heart with me(i carry it in)” by E.E. Cummings
E.E. Cummings, known for his unconventional use of language and form, presents a radical view of love in this poem. Time, for Cummings, does not limit love; rather, love becomes timeless, carried within the speaker forever.
Excerpt:
“i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)”
Source: i carry your heart with me(i carry it in) by E.E. Cummings
Cummings presents a love that transcends time and space, a love that is carried in the heart and does not diminish with time. The speaker’s devotion is presented as so intimate and profound that time becomes irrelevant; love is eternal and omnipresent. This poem challenges the notion that time can erode love, instead suggesting that love can persist beyond temporal limits.
7. “Ozymandias” by Percy Bysshe Shelley
While this poem is often considered a reflection on the vanity of human power, it also speaks to the fleeting nature of time and the enduring power of love. Shelley’s portrayal of the ruined statue of Ozymandias is a stark reminder that all things, even love, are subject to time’s decay.
Excerpt:
“And on the pedestal, these words appear:
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.”
Source: Ozymandias by Percy Bysshe Shelley
In “Ozymandias,” Shelley presents a decayed monument to a once-great king, whose power and accomplishments have been reduced to nothingness by time. While the poem does not explicitly deal with love, it serves as a powerful meditation on time’s ability to destroy all things, even those that seem eternal. The irony of the king’s boast and the inevitable erosion of time mirror the transitory nature of love and life itself.
8. “To His Coy Mistress” by Andrew Marvell
Andrew Marvell’s “To His Coy Mistress” offers a passionate reflection on the urgency of love in the face of time’s passage. The speaker urges his lover to act on their desire before time runs out, as mortality looms over them both.
Excerpt:
“Love you ten years before the Flood,
And you should, if you please, refuse
Till the conversion of the Jews.”
Source: To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell
Marvell’s poem is a persuasive argument in favor of living fully in the present, as time is fleeting and youth is temporary. The speaker argues that if they had all the time in the world, they would love their mistress endlessly, but given the brevity of life, they must act now. Time is both a motivator and a constraint in this poem about love’s urgency.
9. “When You Are Old” by W.B. Yeats
Yeats meditates on the passage of time and the enduring nature of true love. The speaker contrasts the fleeting nature of youthful beauty with the lasting love that transcends time.
Excerpt:
“But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face;
And bending down beside the glowing bars,
Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.”
Source: When You Are Old by W.B. Yeats
Yeats’s poem speaks to the longevity of true love, which persists even as the body changes with age. The speaker reflects on the enduring nature of love that transcends time, urging the lover to remember the one who loved not the outward beauty, but the inner soul. In this sense, Yeats presents love as eternal, able to withstand the ravages of time.
10. “The Sun Rising” by John Donne
In this metaphysical poem, Donne challenges the authority of time and the sun, asserting that love is a more powerful force than time or nature itself. The poem asserts that love exists beyond temporal constraints.
Excerpt:
“Love, all alike, no season knows nor clime,
Nor hours, days, months, which are the rags of time.”
Source: The Sun Rising by John Donne
In “The Sun Rising,” Donne dismisses the influence of time and seasons, suggesting that love is a force independent of the constraints of time. The poem elevates love above the temporal realm, asserting that true love exists outside the flow of time.
11. “Love After Love” by Derek Walcott
Derek Walcott’s “Love After Love” focuses on self-love and the passage of time. The poem suggests that, after a long journey through life, one can rediscover love for oneself—a kind of love that transcends time and circumstance.
Excerpt:
“Give back your heart
To itself, to the stranger who has loved you
All your life, whom you ignored
For another, who knows you by heart.”
Source: Love After Love by Derek Walcott
Walcott’s poem focuses on the idea that time brings about a journey of self-discovery, in which one can return to an unshakeable love for oneself. This self-love, once forgotten, becomes a kind of timeless love that survives the trials of life.
Conclusion
Throughout these 11 poems, time and love are explored from various angles—whether it’s the power of eternal love that defies time’s constraints, or the pain and loss caused by the passage of time. These poets offer us different insights into how love and time interact, often suggesting that while time may be inevitable and uncontrollable, love possesses an enduring power. Whether it’s the beauty of Shakespeare’s sonnet or the haunting melancholy of Poe’s “The Raven,” each poem speaks to the universal human experience of love in the face of time’s inevitable march forward. Through their words, we are reminded that although time may change everything else, love can remain eternal.
