forth a plan to win Stella’s pity. He begins by seeking
“fi t words to paint the blackest face of woe” (l. 5). In
Sonnet 45, it is clear that Astrophil has succeeded in
painting this woeful picture when he says that Stella
has seen “the verie face of wo / Painted in [his]
beclowded stormie face” (ll. 1–2). Seeing his sadness
does not, however, have the effect on Stella that Astro-
phil intends. She “cannot skill to pitie [his] disgrace” (l.
3). Sidney’s use of the word skill suggests that perhaps
Stella is to blame for her lack of sensitivity to Astro-
phil’s plight. She is somehow defi cient in emotional
skill, and her knowledge of his sadness does not “pity
win” (l. 4) as he hopes it will in Sonnet 1. As noted,
Astrophil describes the fi ctional lovers who win Stella’s
pity as “Fancy drawne by imag’d things” and “false” (l.
9). Though he subtly indicts Stella for preferring the
fi ctional to the real, Astrophil’s love for her is so strong
that he cannot help but attempt to win her by making
himself into the fi ction he condemns.
Thus, the power the fi ctional lovers have over Stel-
la’s emotions challenges the type of inspiration that
Astrophil says he will rely on to win her in Sonnet 1.
At the start of the sequence, Astrophil disavows out-
side inspiration for his poetry. He intends to “looke in
[his] heart and write” (l. 14). In Sonnet 45, however,
while Astrophil looks into his own heart for words to
inspire Stella’s pity, Stella is instead moved by stories
about other lovers. This means that in order to win
Stella’s pity, Astrophil must try a new approach. Astro-
phil entreats Stella: “Then thinke my deare, that you
in me do reed / Of Lovers ruine some sad Tragedie”
(ll. 12–13). In asking that she see him as a fi ctional
character, however, he creates a paradox. In order to
have Stella’s pity, he must give up all hope of having
her, since in pitying “the tale of him” she will not see
him as a real lover. This standard ITALIAN (PETRARCHAN)
SONNET ends with the line “I am not I, pitie the tale of
me” (l. 14), a paradoxical statement that suggests
Astrophil’s very status as a unifi ed subject is at risk in
this poem. Such compromised subjectivity is typical
of speakers in Petrarchan verse, in which the lover is
often metamorphosed, or changed, by his interactions
with the beloved. In this poem, however, Sidney sug-
gests that Astrophil himself, not Stella, is in control of
his transformation.
The language Sidney uses in this sonnet augments
the complicated view of poetry’s power Sidney devel-
ops both in Astrophil and Stella and DEFENSE OF POESY.
Initially Stella “sees” in Astrophil “the verie face of wo”
(l. 1). By the end of the sonnet, however, Astrophil
asks her to “reed” (l. 12) him. Written description
seems privileged over visual representation. The “wo”
which Stella sees “Painted in [Astrophil’s] beclowded
stormie face” does not move her as the written tale of
other lovers. Yet the source of Astrophil’s frustration
with Stella may not just be that she is swayed by fi c-
tion, but that she is swayed by someone else’s fi ction,
not Astrophil’s. He suddenly realizes that, as a reader
of poetry Stella may choose what she wants to read and
she has not chosen his poems. He hopes that by creat-
ing distance between the “real” Astrophil and the fi c-
tional one, Stella will come to prefer his verse. This is
ironic since many critics argue that Sidney has done
the same thing: He has made himself into the fi ctional
Astrophil in order to convey his love to Penelope
Devereux (Stella) through the sonnet sequence.
See also ASTROPHIL AND STELLA (OVERVIEW).
Margaret R. SimonAstrophil and Stella: Sonnet 47 (“What, have I
thus betrayed my liberty?”) SIR PHILIP SIDNEY
(ca. 1582) This SONNET details Astrophil’s sufferings
at the hands of his beloved Stella who treats him like a
slave (“In my free side, or am I borne a slaue,” l. 3). He
ponders what has become of his liberty, and feels as if
his “free side” has been branded by Stella’s glance.
Confused, he ponders the meaning of Stella’s “yoke of
tyranny” (l. 4) over his heart. In the ensuing lines,
Astrophil bemoans his lack of reward despite his “long
faith” (l. 7) in Stella, which has reduced him to “the
scorn of beggary” (emotional poverty; l. 8). Astrophil
spends the concluding SESTET seeking to break free of
Stella’s emotional slavery. However, when he sees her
approach, his resolve melts away, and, despite his
emotional torment, he allows himself to continue in
bondage. The poem vividly displays Astrophil’s emo-
tional struggle, indecision, and ultimate helplessness.
See also ASTROPHIL AND STELLA (OVERVIEW), LOVE-
SICKNESS.
Joseph BeckerASTROPHIL AND STELLA: SONNET 47 51