Shakespeare doth maketh me mad

[mike thomas]

This text, taken from the first page of Shakespeare's Sonnets (1609) is giving me grief, and I wondered if anyone might care to comment? The dedication in full reads:

TO.THE.ONLY.BEGETTER.OF.
THESE.ENSUING.SONNETS.
Mr.W.H. ALL.HAPPINESS.
AND.THAT.ETERNITY.
PROMISED.
BY.
OUR.EVER-LIVING.POET.
WISHETH.
THE.WELL-WISHING.
ADVENTURER.IN.
SETTING.
FORTH.
T. T.


Ignoring the old-fashioned style and peculiar punctuation, what I am having difficulty with is that the grammar seems strange: all's well up to BY (in the sixth line), but then it kind of goes weird. What you think?

Thanks in advance for any assistance

[Charles Darnay]

This dedication is indeed difficult to puzzle out due to the way it is laid out. I admit I had to turn to a higher power (Stephen Greenblatt) when I first came across this in school. The key details to know.

1. Mr W.H is most likely Shakespeare (a misprint of W.S or W.SH) but of course there are those who argue he is someone else.

2. The Ever-living poet is God.

3. T.T (Thomas Thorpe - the printer) is the well-wishing adventurer in this case.

So the lines

WISHETH.
THE.WELL-WISHING.
ADVENTURER.IN.
SETTING.
FORTH.

are basically the sign-off by Thorpe - equivalent to:

Wishing you all the best.
-Thomas

Hope this clears things up a bit.

[mike thomas]

Thanks for that Charles.

I was more concerned with the way the text seems to change after the single BY, and I wonder what you make of this:

To the only begetter of these ensuing sonnets Mr. W. H, all happiness, and that eternity promised".

The ever-living poet wisheth the well-wishing adventurer is setting forth."


When the BY comes into play it throws everything out of kilter
Am I reading the thing wrong?

regards

[Charles Darnay]

The "by" is not the end of a thought. Break it up this way:

TO.THE.ONLY.BEGETTER.OF. 0THESE.ENSUING.SONNETS. Mr.W.H.


ALL.HAPPINESS.AND.THAT.ETERNITY.PROMISED.BY.OUR.EV ER-LIVING.POET.


WISHETH.THE.WELL-WISHING.ADVENTURER.IN.SETTING.FORTH.


T. T.


Consider this and the three points I made earlier and you should be able to puzzle it out.

[mike thomas]

Thanks again Charles. It does make more sense now, except that the sentence beginning with 'wisheth' seems a bit odd.

Who wisheth?

The first line is reasonable: it can be written as 'To Mr WH, all happiness and that eternity promised by our ever-living poet'.

But to begin a sentence with 'wisheth' ? I could get it if it were T.T. wisheth...
but surely not 'wisheth' on its own?

And who is 'The well-wishing adventurer'? Where is he setting forth to?

You got to admit it, someone was half asleep when they wrote that text!

Thanks again and regards.

[Charles Darnay]

It's no stranger than starting a phrase with "best wishes" or "sincerely" as many letter writers will do at the end of their letters.

[mike thomas]

thanks Charles

and my best wisheth to you