wit, / Nor do aspire to Caesar’s bleeding fame; / Nor
aught do care though some above me sit” (ll. 9–11)—
before giving rein to his hurt feelings by petulantly
deeming Stella the possessor of a “cruel heart” (l. 13)
and stating that “Thou art my Wit, and thou my Virtue
art” (l. 14).
This poem is deceptively simple. Written in perfect
IAMBIC PENTAMETER and in the ENGLISH SONNET form,
Sonnet 64 is comprised of simple-rhyme, end-stopped
lines, and it makes liberal use of repetition, ALLITERA-
TION, and PERSONIFICATION. Because of this highly con-
ventional use of poetic techniques, the poem appears
to be a straightforward appeal from scorned lover to
his beloved. In actuality, this SONNET pushes the genre
to its limits in terms of structure and subject matter.
The organization of Astrophil’s argument—from the
calm, conventional literary request for mercy and
understanding, to the tempestuous outburst in lines
3–8, to the return to rational discourse, and fi nally to
the stingingly vindictive fi nal COUPLET with its under-
tones of blame—indicates at once supreme literary
control in terms of organization and punctuation, as
well as unsuppressed emotion. Within this structure,
Sidney employs a rich understanding of the nuances of
language; in the same fashion as a master painter, he
uses subtle literary brushstrokes to deepen the emo-
tional character of the overall work. The use of the
lowercase d in “my dear” (l. 1) underscores the uncer-
tainty with which Astrophil makes his plea: He is not
sure of this woman, and so he does not call her “my
Dear” in confi dence, but rather “my dear” in uncer-
tainty. The choice of the phrase give my passions leave to
run their race (l. 2) indicates that he sees a “fi nish line”
to their relationship and gives voice to his emotional
state; he has no more control over his passions than he
would the entries in a horse race. The mention of Aris-
totle and Caesar at once heralds a return to rational,
ordered thinking.
Further examination of this poem shows that it is a
repository for “all things English,” encompassing many
subjects and cultural aspects that were popular at the
time. The idea of Fortune, personifi ed as it is in line 2,
was prevalent in 16th-century England, when the
world seemed to be changing so quickly with the rise
of the merchant class and the ability of individuals to
create a fortune through the new commercial atmo-
sphere brought about by trade and industry. The men-
tion of “folk o’ercharged with brain” in line 4 speaks to
the power of the educated upper class and the court-
infl uenced admiration of intellect, while Aristotle and
Caesar recall the CLASSICAL TRADITION. Further, the use
of sports terminology such as run its race and course
sprinkled throughout this sonnet gives voice to the
popularity of pleasure riding in the upper classes, and
the recurrent use of the term wit speaks to the rising
interest in writing and writers during this time.
Sonnet 64 admirably demonstrates the possibilities
of the genre. Through masterful control of language
and skillful manipulation of form, Sidney is able to
indicate not only the feelings of Astrophil but also the
world in which he exists. Astrophil is making his fi nal
efforts and calls on everything he has experienced and
everything he knows in order to salvage this relation-
ship. Through his openly vulnerable plea, he becomes
mortal and sympathetic.
See also ASTROPHIL AND STELLA (OVERVIEW).
Melissa A. ElmesAstrophil and Stella: Sonnet 69 (“O joy, too
high for my low style to show”) SIR PHILIP SID-
NEY (ca. 1582) In Sonnet 69, Astrophil basks in
Stella’s promise of love, singing a triumphant PAEAN. In
his delight at Stella’s capitulation, he almost ignores
her constraint—that she gives her heart only as long as
he remains on a virtuous course—dismissing it with
the comment that all kings have to make some conces-
sions (“covenants,” l. 14) in order to take power.
This poem is deliberately simpler than most of the
Astrophil and Stella SONNETs; the reader’s attention is
called immediately to the “low stile” (l. 1), which Astro-
phil complains is all he is capable of producing. Only
the association of virtue with power raises Sonnet 69
above what is otherwise a fairly conventional accumu-
lation of images and tone. Astrophil is being called to
responsible living; the love he desires has been prom-
ised only contingently upon his course of action. In
this poem, it remains unsure whether he sees the “cov-
enant” (l. 14) as something he will need to live up to or
renegotiate—or if he will simply try to ignore its
restrictions. The confl ict between desire and virtue is58 ASTROPHIL AND STELLA: SONNET 69