This is a portion taken out of an old post I made, wanted to get rid of any other clutter in the original post and refresh it!
This is an observation of the different Shakespeare sonnet references that appear in Sherlock, along with some painting and quote analyzation. “The wheel turns, nothing is new under the sun”
“Being your slave, what should I do but tend
Upon the hours and times of your desire?
I have no precious time at all to spend,
Nor services to do, till you require.
Nor dare I chide the world-without-end hour
Whilst I, my sovereign, watch the clock for you,
Nor think the bitterness of absence sour
When you have bid your servant once adieu;
Nor dare I question with my jealous thought
Where you may be, or your affairs suppose,
But, like a sad slave, stay and think of nought
Save, where you are how happy you make those.
So true a fool is love that in your will,
Though you do any thing, he thinks no ill.”
“Since I’m your slave, what else should I do but wait on the hours, and for the times when you’ll want me?
I don’t have any valuable time to spend, or any services to do, until you need me.
Nor do I dare complain about how agonizingly long the hours are while I watch the clock for you, my king, or how bitter your absence is after you’ve said goodbye to your servant.
Nor do I dare ask jealous questions about where you might be, or speculate about your affairs, but like a sad slave I sit still and think about nothing except how happy you’re making whomever you’re with.
Love makes a person such a faithful fool that no matter what you do to satisfy your desires, he doesn’t think you’ve done anything wrong.”
“That god forbid, that made me first your slave, I should in thought control your times of pleasure, Or at your hand th’ account of hours to crave, Being your vassal bound to stay your leisure.
O let me suffer, being at your beck, Th’ imprisoned absence of your liberty; And patience tame to sufferance bide each check, Without accusing you of injury.
Be where you list, your charter is so strong That you yourself may privilege your time To what you will; to you it doth belong Yourself to pardon of self-doing crime.
I am to wait, though waiting so be hell, Not blame your pleasure, be it ill or well.”
“Sonnet 57 is one of 154 sonnets written by the English playwright and poet William Shakespeare. It is a member of the Fair Youth sequence, in which the poet expresses his love towards a young man. Sonnet 57 is connected with Sonnet 58 which pursues the theme of the poet as a slave of the beloved.” - Wikipedia
”Whatever god decided to make me your slave, may he never allow me to so much as think about having any control over when you see me, or asking you to account for how you’ve been passing the hours.
I’m your slave, after all, and forced to wait until you have time for me. Oh, while I wait for your summons, let me suffer patiently the prison of this lengthy absence from you as you do whatever you want.
And let me control my impatience and quietly endure each disappointment without accusing you of hurting me.
Go wherever you want—you’re so privileged that you may decide to do whatever you like. You have the right to pardon yourself for any crime you commit.
And I have to wait, even if it feels like hell, and not blame you for following your desire, whether it’s for good or bad.“
Mary has called John 59 times in The Six Thatchers because she’s going into labor.
John says this number, ‘59.‘
If there be nothing new, but that which is
Hath been before, how are our brains beguil’d,
Which, labouring for invention, bear amiss
The second burthen of a former child!
O, that record could with a backward look,
Even of five hundred courses of the sun,
Show me your image in some antique book,
Since mind at first in character was done!
That I might see what the old world could say
To this composed wonder of your frame;
Whether we are mended, or whe'r better they,
Or whether revolution be the same.
O! sure I am, the wits of former days
To subjects worse have given admiring praise.
Modernized version: “If it’s true that there’s nothing new and everything that now exists existed in the past,
then we are really fooling ourselves when we struggle to write something new, winding up, after much exhausting, painful labor, with a tired imitation of an imitation!
If only I could look back into the records, even as far as five hundred years ago, and find a description of you in some old book,
written when people were just beginning to put their thoughts in writing, so I could see what the old world would say about your amazingly beautiful body.
Then I could see whether we’ve gotten better at writing or worse, or whether things have stayed the same as the world revolves.
Oh, I’m sure the witty writers of the past have devoted praise and admiration to worse subjects than you.“
Sherlock in The Six Thatchers, explains to Mary that he knows 58 possible ways of diminishing variables and calculating the steps she would take. (despite the fact that he did not truly use this tactic to find her location after she fled to lure Ajay away. Used a tracking device.) This mention of 58 comes after the mention of 59, which is mentioned in The Six Thatchers episode. Mary calls 59 times when going into labor, John doesn’t notice until later.
Sonnet 59 is also connected to a picture seen in The Abominable Bride. The skull painting, of the modern Sherlock world, is blue.
In Sherlock’s mind palace, the painting is more warm in color. It also becomes a Victorian painting called All is Vanity. (The fabulous @cyntrix-gm helped me find this painting’s name)
Both the painting, and sonnet 59 refer to verses in the bible from the same book of Ecclesiastes.
The painting also resembles this official Sherlock Holmes illustration:
(The chemical bottles/science being Sherlock’s version of vanity. Retreating into his mind, rather than the mirror. This parallels with the [presumed] perfume bottles and mirror, which in turn creates a skull of death. Sherlock’s skull is a continuously looming symbol.)
(Sonnet 59) If there be nothing new: Ecclesiastes 1.9: “The thing that hath been is that which shall be; and that which hath been done is that which shall be done; and there is no new thing under the sun.”
In Scandal in Belgravia, Sherlock says, “The wheel turns, nothing is ever new.“ and Mycroft in The Sign of Three in Sherlock’s mind palace reminds, “What do we say about coincidence?” Sherlock responds “The universe is rarely so lazy.”
All is Vanity: Ecclesiastes 1:2 “Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.“
John’s Chinese fortune cookie, as stated on his blog says “There is nothing new under the sun. It has all been done before.” (credited post for noticing fortune cookie, by @teaandforeshadowing)
