Carefully read the poem below, Mary Wroth’s ‘Sonnet 21’ from Pamphilia to Amphilanthus.
In your essay you should summarize, in your own words, the argument and structure of the poem, as well as briefly drawing attention to any formal or stylistic elements of the text that you think are important. Here are some questions that you should think about when planning and writing your essay:
What is the poem’s argument? How does the poem’s form help to construct its argument? What poetic strategies or devices are used in the poem? Some information about Wroth and other texts by her are available in your Norton Anthology (pp. 1110-1121), but you do not have to make use of these.
21. When last I saw thee, I did not thee see:
It was thine Image, which in my thoughts lay
So lively figured, as no times delay
Could suffer me in heart to parted be;
And sleep so favourable is to me,
5 As not to let thy loved remembrance stray,
Lest that I waking might have cause to say
There was one minute found to forget thee.
Then since my faith is such, so kind my sleep,
That gladly thee presents into my thought,
10 And still true lover-like thy face doth keep
So as some pleasure shadow-like is wrought,
Pity my loving, nay, of conscience give
Reward to me in whom thy self doth live.
Assignment-Specific Criteria: Evidence of comprehension of the poem in a coherent paraphrase. Clarity of expression and writing style. Awareness of the poem’s formal and stylistic qualities. The ability to follow a complex poetic argument and trace its stages and development. The ability to analyse the poem’s use of language, syntax, tone, prosody, imagery and rhetoric with confidence, accuracy, and creativity.
