in repression. This distancing is made apparent in the
sestet, where the speaker can only employ rhetorical
questions to reveal his inner self. However, his turmoil
and frustration are clearly conveyed even through these
queries.
In terms of Sigmund Freud’s tripartite structure of the
human psyche, the woman, who has continued to fend
off her would-be lover’s physical attentions, serves in
the capacity of the superego, keeping the male id (libido)
in check. In the Freudian scheme, every human’s mind
consists of three parts: the id, the ego, and the superego.
The id is comprised of the base, instinctual desires; the
superego refl ects the rules of society and functions as a
restraint for the id, which continually attempts to take
over. These psychic battles take place within the ego,
which is the middle realm. Although the woman/super-
ego can sometimes prevail, and the speaker/id will hum-
bly withdraw, in Sonnet 31 the speaker/id seems to be
winning the struggle, and his bitter reproach is an
attempt to assail her remote calm. Which will prevail?
The sonnet does not provide an answer.
See also ASTROPHIL AND STELLA (OVERVIEW); SIDNEY, SIR
PHILIP; SONNET SEQUENCE.
FURTHER READING
Daalder, Joost. “Sidney’s Astrophil and Stella 31.” Explicator
49, no. 3 (1991): 135–136.
Stull, William. “Antanaclasis in Astrophil and Stella 31.” ANQ
20, nos. 1–2 (1981): 3–6.
Astrophil and Stella: Sonnet 33 (“I might—
unhappy word—O me, I might”) SIR PHILIP SID-
NEY (ca. 1582) In Sonnet 33, SIR PHILIP SIDNEY
employs images of heaven and hell, abduction and
romance, theft and fortune, and day and night to convey
the contradictory nature of Astrophil’s feelings for Stella.
Although the rhyme scheme generally follows the ENG-
LISH SONNET form, Sidney creates a series of unrhymed
pairs of lines within this greater scheme to contain his
paradoxical images. He begins this pattern immediately:
“I might—unhappy word!—oh me, I might / And then
would not, or could not, see my bliss” (ll. 1–2), juxta-
posing the words unhappy and bliss. The next two lines
compare “infernal night” (l. 3) to “heav’nly day” (l. 4),
and a few lines later, images of robbery and FORTUNE are
intertwined: “No force, no fraud, robbed thee of thy
delight, / Nor fortune of thy fortune author is” (ll. 7–8).
The pattern culminates in the fi nal line, where Astrophil
paradoxically laments, “That I had been more foolish—
or more wise!” (l. 14). The series of oppositional images
demonstrate Astrophil’s confused state of mind as he
attempts to explain his feelings for Stella.
Astrophil speaks to his heart concerning his current
state, resulting in uncertainty about his previous con-
viction that his love for Stella is good. The personifi ed
heart is told to “rent thyself, thou dost thyself but right”
(l. 5). Astrophil then declares, “No lovely Paris made
thy Helen his” (l. 6). The love affair between Paris and
Helen—created by the gods—is juxtaposed with Astro-
phil’s own state, and he soon concludes that “to myself
myself did give the blow” (l. 9). He has willfully chosen
to love Stella; he has created his situation, not fate. Now,
however, he feels he has done himself (and his heart) a
disservice; indeed, it seems almost as though he mourns
the passing of his carefree days before this love began,
and he curses the wittiness that has led him to this
point: “While too much wit, forsooth, so troubled me /
That I respects for both our sakes must show” (ll. 10–
11). Astrophil feels himself ensnared by his behavior
and apologetic toward his unsuspecting heart, which
now suffers as a result of his choice.
Still, despite his misgivings, Astrophil maintains that
his love for Stella brings a fairness and beauty to life
that he had not expected upon entering into the situa-
tion; he “... Could not by rising morn foresee / How
fair a day was near” (ll. 12–13), even as he wrestles
with his confl icting feelings. Astrophil does not himself
know what to make of his love for Stella, and remains
in a state of emotional turmoil. Astrophil lived in dark-
ness until Stella brought him daylight, but living igno-
rant of love also allowed him to live without confusion.
Would it, perhaps, have been better to have remained
in darkness? Astrophil wonders.
See also ASTROPHIL AND STELLA (OVERVIEW); SIDNEY, SIR
PHILIP; SONNET,
Melissa A. ElmesAstrophil and Stella: Sonnet 34 (“Come, let me
write. ‘And to what end?’ To ease”) SIR PHILIP
SIDNEY (ca. 1582) This SONNET deals with the moti-
vations of poets and the ability of literature to both48 ASTROPHIL AND STELLA: SONNET 33