But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st,
Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st
–"Sonnet 18,"
William Shakespeare
Which statement best expresses the central idea of the third quatrain?
Your beauty will never fade, because you will live forever in the lines of this poem.
Love provides safety, so you should never wander from your beloved.
Nature is more beautiful than a poem, but also more dangerous.
The beauty of summer fades when winter comes.
Your beauty will never fade, because you will live forever in the lines of this poem.
The central idea of the third quatrain in "Sonnet 18" is:
Your beauty will never fade, because you will live forever in the lines of this poem.
To determine the central idea of the third quatrain of "Sonnet 18" by William Shakespeare, we should analyze the specific lines mentioned in the question: "Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st."
The phrase "Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade" suggests that the speaker is reassuring the beloved that they will not be claimed by death and forgotten. Instead, they will be preserved in the "eternal lines" of the poem, which implies that their beauty and memory will live on forever.
Therefore, the statement that best expresses the central idea of the third quatrain is: "Your beauty will never fade, because you will live forever in the lines of this poem."