Pity Me Not (Sonnet 29) Summary

"Pity me not" begins with a speaker asking her audience not to pity her. She explains that her situation—being rejected by a lover—is similar to a variety of normal and even beautiful situations that occur in nature. Just as the setting sun and ebbing tide aren't causes for pity, neither is her heartbreak. After all, a man's love is subject to change, just like these other forces in nature. She has always known that love isn't any stronger or more lasting than a flower buffeted by wind or ocean waves in a storm. However, she ends the poem asking for pity, not regarding her lover's rejection, but regarding her own feelings. She is pitiable, she claims, because her emotions are unable to catch up to her mind. While intellectually she can rationalize her heartbreak as an inevitable occurrence, she cannot escape her emotions.