st-lit-7
Read the following poem carefully before you choose your answers.
Passage
Against that time (if ever that time come)
When I shall see thee frown on my defects,
When as thy love hath cast his utmost sum,
Called to that audit by advised respects—
Against that time when thou shalt strangely pass,
And scarcely greet me with that sun, thine eye,
When love, converted from the thing it was,
Shall reasons find of settled gravity—
Against that time do I ensconce me here
Within the knowledge of mine own desert,
And this my hand against myself uprear,
To guard the lawful reasons on thy part.
To leave poor me thou has the strength of laws,
Select an Answer
The "reasons" mentioned in line 8 are best characterized as:
scientific explanations for a natural force
arguments against rationality itself
arguments for the importance of loving
logical explanations for the absence of love
counterarguments to the speaker's propositions
View Correct Answer
Choice D is correct. Lines 7-8 indicate that love personified (the lover's feelings) has found "reasons" that justify rejecting the speaker's love.