promised Astrophil that his “famist,” or hungry, eyes
would be sated with the sight of Stella. Reference to his
eyes as the needy agents in this SONNET continues the
strong emphasis on the role of vision in love in Astro-
phil and Stella. The second quatrain reveals that Hope
has vanished, disgraced at its failure to procure Stella’s
return. Astrophil laments this loss, for without hope,
his isolation is total.
The SESTET introduces a dramatic turn from interior
contemplation to exterior experience, as Astrophil seeks
out other women to fi ll the void left by Stella. He imag-
ines that he might speak with these ladies and be
charmed by their conversation. This, he implies, could
supplant his love for Stella, invoking a new object of
affection. He says these ladies might “Make in my heavy
mould new thoughts to grow” (l. 11). Here the word
mould means “body,” which gives a decidedly physical,
as opposed to intellectual or spiritual, aspect to his
desire for these other ladies. Likewise, the verb grow
emphasizes the lustful aspect of Astrophil’s attempt to
meet other women. But with reference to the “store of
faire Ladies” he meets, Astrophil may not be totally sin-
cere. To suggest that he has a large supply of women
renders these ladies generic and makes it seem unlikely
that Astrophil, who has spent 117 sonnets and songs
focusing on one specifi c beloved, would so quickly
change his course for the company of many.
This insincerity is confi rmed later in the sestet as
Astrophil turns scornfully from these other women,
invoking a metaphor to explain his aversion to such an
enterprise. He likens himself to a recently wounded
man whose friend blithely encourages him to forget his
pain and be merry. Sidney’s use of a physical wound as
the metaphor for Astrophil’s sorrow again emphasizes
the prominence of the body and desire in the sequence.
Stella’s absence has affected him as profoundly as a
physical injury. And, like a physical injury, his recov-
ery will take time; his recovery, indeed, exceeds the
bounds of the SONNET SEQUENCE.
In Sonnet 106, Astrophil faces a choice between
looking to the outside world for solace or continuing
to focus his despair inward; the public and private are
at odds. In confronting Astrophil with the specter of
other lovers, the sonnet attempts a closure that the
sequence ultimately rejects: Astrophil will not end the
sequence by redirecting his affections to someone else.
Instead he turns inward, preferring to nurse his wounds
privately.
See also ASTROPHIL AND STELLA (OVERVIEW).
Margaret M. SimonAstrophil and Stella: Sonnet 107 (“Stella, since
thou so right a princesse art”) SIR PHILIP SIDNEY
(ca. 1582) Sonnet 107 marks a shift in tone and pur-
pose from the despair and sorrow in the poems that pre-
cede it. Here, Astrophil, using metaphors of public
service, proposes either to conquer his passion for Stella,
or at least to sublimate it by using it to fuel some other
endeavor. He addresses her fi rst as “Princesse” (l. 1),
then as “Queene” (l. 9), acknowledging her power over
him, but asks her to let him have a time of peace from
loving her and, more, to aid him in his “great cause” (l.
8). Unless this happens, he fears that others will be able
to condemn Stella for Astrophil’s weakness.
The opening of this ITALIAN (PETRARCHAN) SONNET
immediately establishes Stella’s right to rule Astrophil,
as do many of the poems in this sequence. Astrophil
unstintingly admits that “all the powers which life
bestowes in me” (l. 2) are under Stella’s aegis. Because
she is his ruler, Astrophil says, before he can undertake
any work (l. 3), he must have both Stella’s approval
and her support. The second half of the OCTAVE offers
the only release from the images of power and regime:
Astrophil addresses Stella, imploringly, as “Sweete” (l.
5). He begs her to let him stop loving her (“give respite
to my hart,” l. 5), admitting that he cannot control his
passion on his own: “... my hart, / Which pants as
though it still should leape to thee” (ll. 5–6). At this
point in the narrative of the love relationship, Astro-
phil has no expectation of success, but that does not
stop him from being sexually and emotionally involved
with Stella in his imagination. Astrophil’s excitement
and commitment to his new course of action can be
seen syntactically: There is no complete stop until line
11 (a colon was very “light” punctuation during the
16th century). Eagerly, Astrophil urges his monarch to
send him out to employ his experience, “use” and tal-
ents, “art” in the “great cause” of turning his personal
passion into some appropriate and legitimate serviceASTROPHIL AND STELLA: SONNET 107 67