Sonnet 31 of Sir Philip Sidney

November 29, 2016Simon Pettet

[A Cornfield By Moonlight With The Evening Star c.1830.  Samuel Palmer (1805-1881)]

AG: So, there’s another interesting.. there’s a line in Sonnet 31. [of Sir Philip Sidney]  The whole thing is great and it’s a very sad sweet sonnet. It was also one of (Jack) Kerouac’s favorites of all sonnets – “With how sad steps, O Moon..” (that’s a great line!) – “With how sad steps, O Moon, thou climb’st..” page 177, Sonnet 31) –

With how sad steps, O Moon, thou climb’st the skies!

How silently, and with how wan a face!

What, may it be … Read More

A Brief Detour on Metrics -1

November 23, 2016Simon Pettet

astrophel

Allen continuing his class on Sir Philip Sidney‘s poem  [Astrophil and Stella – Sonnet 1 – “Loving in truth, and fain in verse my love to show”]

Student; So after that?

AG: Well, I don’t know. What happened to the “of”? – [”That She, dear She might take some pleasure/Of my pain”] – “of my pain”, “pleasure of my pain” – That’s one of the problems of the transcription. So we’ll substitute the “That” for the “Of”, we’ve still got six

“Pleasure might cause her read,/ reading might make her know”, no, “Pleasure/ might cause her/ read,/ … Read More

Philip Sidney – “Fool” said my Muse..”

November 22, 2016Simon Pettet

 

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Sir Philip Sidney (1554-1586)

AG: (Sir Philip) Sidney’s Sonnets are pretty funny. Number one, particularly – 176 – a couple of pages later – Remember Anne (Waldman) the other day read, in her reading, she read a sonnet that was.. “My love is like my love and she’s like me, and her heart heart like mine, and mine…” [Editorial note – “Two Hearts – After Sir Philip Sidney”‘  –  (“She’s got my heart and I’ve got hers..”‘)] …(which) was an imitation of Astrophel and Stella, and probably the first..

The last line in … Read More

Six Silver Poets

October 17, 2016admin

 

   [Fulke Greville]                           
[Sir Philip Sidney]
screenshot-2016-11-12-18-59-59[George Peele]
[Robert Southwell]
[ Samuel Daniel]
[Michael Drayton]

AG: For the next session can you read Fulke Greville. Student: What page is that? AG: Fulke Greville.  (And)..Well, page 171, some of (Sir Philip) Sidney‘s Sonnets, Sidney’s Sonnets (176, 77) Song by George Peele on page 183, Robert Southwell, “The Burning Babe” on page 186, Samuel Daniel, “Care Charmer Sleep”, Sonnet, (page 187), “Are There Shadows?” (page 190) and Michael Drayton‘s Sonnet (on page 195), Number 61  (“Since there’s no help, come, let us kiss and part”) – … Read More

Spontaneous Poetics (Ballads) – 29

January 23, 2013admin

[Sir Philip Sidney (1554-1586) via the National Portrait Gallery, London]

AG: So, anyway, the reason I got off into quantity was.. [back to Sir Walter Ralegh’s “The Lie” – Allen sings, to harmonium accompaniment, the first two stanzas of the poem – “Go Soul, the body’s guest,/ Upon a thankless errand/ Fear not to touch the best;/ The truth shall be thy warrant..”] – I guess you could do it that way, easy enough. It was something relevant to another conversation several days ago (about a poet) of this era, Sir Philip Sidney. Some students were asking if … Read More