Astrophil and Stella 1

1. Astrophil and Stella was written by SIr Philip Sidney (b. 11554, d. 1586), a man born into affluence. He was named after his godfather, King Philip II of Spain. After schooling and travel, he settled as a courtier in England. He spent time as an ambassador to the German Emporer and the King of Orange. When he returned to England he served on Queen Elizabeth I's court. He was banished from the Queen's court for some time after making his disapproval of her marriage to a Catholic known. Astrophil and Stella was written around 1576, when SIdney was involved in or had just come out of a relationship with Penelope Devereux. Penelope married another man, Lord Rich, in 1781, and Sidney later married another woman, Frances Walsingham. Sidney died at the young age of 32 from a bullet wound, his death causing much sorrow throughout England.

2. Astrophil and Stella has been compared heavily to Petrarch's Canzoniere. Written in the Elizabethan era but the sonnets are generally in Petrarchan structure. The sonnets are said to be about a man deeply in love with a married woman. He struggles both with himself and her coldness throughout the work. It is rumored that the poem is based on Sidney and Penelope Devereux's relationship; supposed to be married, Penelope instead married Lord Rich, much to the dismay of Sir Philip (Phil) Sidney. Some critics believe that Sidney intended to demonstrate the mortality of men and the tendency many have to let their emotions get the better of them. Others believe it is an analysis of human desire. Paradoxes play a large role in the sonnets, particularly with Sidney's internal struggle of lust vs. Protestant upbringing, and Stella's unavailability even if he were to make a move. Another theory is that the 108 sonnets of Astrophil and Stella represent the 108 suitors in The Odyssey. The suitors each agreed to attempt to hit a stone in order to win the hand of Penelope, each knowing that he would fail. This is applicable to Astrophil, who knows that Stella is unattainable yet cannot stop his longing.
Sidney uses a wide variety of rhyme schemes, although all 108 of the sonnets are in Petrarchan format. The couplet, interestingly, quite often contains a paradox that highlights Astrophil's yearning for Stella. The sonnets are accompanied by 11 songs, varying in composition style.