Edmund Spenser Sonnet 34

Amoretti, Sonnet 34
by Edmund Spenser
Prof. Dr. Ahmed T. Hussein

Edmund Spencer
• was born in 1552 and died in 1599 he was an

English Poet who grew up in London.
• published his first volume of pomes in 1579 wrote

Amoretti to his future wife Elizabeth during their
courtship.
• Amoretti is about 89 to 100 sonnets.

Like as a ship, that through the ocean wide,
By conduct of some star, doth make her way,
Whenas a storm hath dimmed her trusty guide,
Out of her course doth wander far astray:
So I, whose star, that wont with her bright ray
Me to direct, with clouds is overcast,
Do wander now, in darkness and dismay,
Through hidden perils round about me placed;
Yet hope I well that, when this storm is past,
My Helice, the loadstar of my life,
Will shine again, and look on me at last,
With lovely light to clear my cloudy grief.
Till then I wander careful, comfortless,
In secret sorrow, and sad pensiveness.
Lyke as a ship, that through the ocean wyde,
Like wide
By conduct of some star, doth make her way,

Guided by does
Whenas a storme hath dimd her trusty guyde,

When storm dimmed guide
Out of her course doth wander far astray:

direction or route away from the
followed by a ship right direction
Spenser is telling his beloved that until
she forgives him, he will wander aimlessly
all alone, thinking sorrowful thoughts.
A ship traveling through a large ocean

with no land in sight, uses the stars to
guide its way, but when stormy clouds
block the star's light the ship will stray far
from its course.
Like as a ship that through the Ocean wide,
By conduct of some star doth make her way,
Whenas a storm hath dimmed her trusty guide,
Out of her course doth wander far astray: (lines 1-4)
A ship traveling through a large ocean with no land in sight uses the stars to guide
its way, but when stormy clouds block the star's light the ship will stray far from
its course.
The "her" mentioned in this stanza is referring to the ship; in the English language
most (if not all) modes of transportation are described with feminine pronouns. In
this analogy, Spenser would be the ship that has gone off course, because his
beloved's light is no longer shining on him. A storm is a clever way to describe an
argument, because arguments can be described as being dark, angry, heated, wet
(meaning crying), and other such adjectives. Astrology plays a big part in this
poem and in navigation. Before, all you had to guide your way were compasses
and the constellations. The brightest star is the North Star; however, he is not
referring to that star in this poem. Instead, he is referring to Ursa Major (a.k.a.
Great Bear), which contains the Big Dipper.
So I whose star, that wont* with her bright ray
Me to direct, with clouds is overcast,
Do wander now in darkness and dismay,
Through hidden perils round about me placed. (5-8)
Now he wanders around in the darkness, because his guiding

light has been concealed by the dark clouds of the storm.
Without her light he is left vulnerable to the hidden dangers
surrounding him.
The storm has left him without his beloved to guide him. He
misses her bright ray, which can be interpreted as he misses
her beautiful soul, wit, personality, or any other such
personality trait. He is consumed with sadness that he has
lost his way and is left defenseless.
Yet hope I well, that when this storm is past
My Helice the lodestar* of my life
Will shine again, and look on me at last,
With lovely light to clear my cloudy grief. (9-12)
*a star that leads or guides; usually refers to the North Star
He hopes that when this storm passes his beloved's light

will shine upon him again and guide him back to port (or
her), so that they can be together once again.
Helice, also known as Callisto, is a wood-nymph turned

into Ursa Major.
Till then I wander careful, comfortless,
In secret sorrow and sad pensiveness. (13-14)
The last two lines are known as the rhyming couplet, which functions as
a way to sum up the entire poem in as few words as possible.
The persona is telling his beloved that until she forgives him, he will
wander aimlessly all alone, thinking sorrowful thoughts. He wanders,
full of worries, comfortless in secret sorrow and pensiveness
Theme
The main purpose behind writing this poem
is to reach the land and to reach the correct
way with his beloved.
Figures of Speech:
Metaphor:
• Star: is compared with the poet’s beloved.
• The ocean: is compared with life itself.
• Clouds, storms and perils are compared to life and love
problems.
• Landing: is love again.
Simile: we have two words “like” and “as”.
Personification: the ship and the star are personified to have

human qualities.

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Amoretti, Sonnet 34

Prof. Dr. Ahmed T. Hussein

• was born in 1552 and died in 1599 he was an

• published his first volume of pomes in 1579 wrote

• Amoretti is about 89 to 100 sonnets.

By conduct of some star, doth make her way,

Whenas a storme hath dimd her trusty guyde,

Out of her course doth wander far astray:

A ship traveling through a large ocean

Now he wanders around in the darkness, because his guiding

*a star that leads or guides; usually refers to the North Star

He hopes that when this storm passes his beloved's light

Helice, also known as Callisto, is a wood-nymph turned

Simile: we have two words “like” and “as”.

Personification: the ship and the star are personified to have

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