Acknowledging the multiple narrative paths in this
sonnet, critics have praised Spenser’s mastery in simul-
taneously referring to his other work; alluding to the fact
that his Lady and his Queene are both named Elizabeth;
and noting that, at least in the sense of her minor nobil-
ity, his Elizabeth is a handmaid to Queen Elizabeth just
as this Amoretti is a sort of handmaid to The Faerie
Queene, a minor work in which he hones his poetic
skills. He simultaneously elevates his Lady by intimating
that association with her will help him to “gather to
myself new breath awhile” in order to complete his
other, more momentous poetic work. She thus becomes
the minor muse and inspiration of this piece, which
allows him to later do justice to Queen Elizabeth.
Others have extended this interpretation to claims
of a metapoetic intent for the entire sequence to be a
demonstration on the part of the poet, Spenser, of his
versatility and accomplishment. Sonnet 80 reveals the
whole to be part of a career path to the status of poet
laureate that he charts for himself, a way of claiming
aesthetic ground that will grant him a measure of
nobility he can never attain on the basis of birth or
social station. This minor work advertises the major
one, in anticipation of its completion and its success.
Regardless of the autobiographical, aesthetic, or social
frame given its intertextual references, this sonnet proj-
ects a meaning that breaks the love-story narrative of
the whole sequence, making it stand as both triumph
and symptom of the poet’s work.
See also AMORETTI (OVERVIEW).
Janice M. Bogstad
AMPLIFICATION Amplifi cation is the deliber-
ate repetition of words or phrases in a poem in order to
create a mood, indicate emphasis, or heighten tension.
Unlike ANAPHORA, amplifi cation may be accomplished
through the use of synonyms. An excellent example
can be found in Surrey’s “SET ME WHEREAS THE SONNE
DOTH PERCHE THE GRENE.”
See also SURREY, HENRY HOWARD, EARL OF.
ANAGOGY This is a poetic technique wherein
scriptural EXEGESIS or other mystical interpretive tools
are used to demonstrate allusions to or connections
with heaven or the afterlife.
ANAPHORA Anaphora is a poetic device in which
successive lines begin with the same word or phrase.
Though similar to AMPLIFICATION, anaphora insists on the
exact same phrasing, not simply synonyms.ANDREAS CAPELLANUS (ANDRÉ THE
CHAPLAIN) (late 12th century) Andreas Capel-
lanus is the author of one of the most infl uential medi-
eval works, The ART OF COURTLY LOVE. Little is known
about Andreas’s life. He resided at the court of Count
Henry of Champagne, in Troyes (northwestern France),
during the second half of the 12th century. He was
most likely chaplain to Henry’s wife, Countess Marie,
daughter of Eleanor of Aquitaine.
See also COURTLY^ LOVE, LOVESICKNESS.
FURTHER READING
Cherchi, Paolo. Andreas and the Ambiguity of Courtly Love.
Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1994.“AND WILT THOU LEAVE ME THUS”
SIR THOMAS WYATT (ca. 1535) Never published in
SIR THOMAS WYATT’s lifetime, this poem is preserved in
one manuscript, a poetic miscellany of the coterie
around Anne Boleyn, which dates it to around the
mid-1530s. This manuscript’s verse shows a group of
authors not only interested in writing pleasing COURTLY
LOVE poetry but also commenting on the poetic form.
Wyatt’s poem is critical of the subject position of the
speaking, courtly lover, as he places himself abjectly
before the object of his desire.
The traditional servant-mistress relationship is
established in the initial line, with the object of desire
as the active party and the speaker appearing passive,
offering only a weak protest: [.. .] “Blame / Of all my
greffe and grame” (ll. 3–4). When the opening ques-
tion is repeated at the end of the STANZA, the speaker
offers a response on the part of the silent and occluded
mistress: “Say nay, Say nay!” (l. 6). This question and
suggested response is repeated throughout the other
stanzas with the effect of the speaker appearing more
and more abject each time it is repeated.
The second and third stanzas focus the attention of
the poem on the speaker’s actions and emotional state.
In the second stanza, the speaker emphatically declares
that his love has been faithful “In welthe and woo” (l.“AND WILT THOU LEAVE ME THUS” 23