What is Elizabethan Poetry

Elizabethan poetry is poetry written during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558-1603). Many people think it was the golden age of English literature.

Elizabethan poetry is known for its complex forms, rich imagery, and wide range of topics, from love and beauty to politics and nature.

Some of the most famous Elizabethan poets include William Shakespeare, Sir Philip Sidney, and Edmund Spenser. These poets were influenced by classical literature and the Renaissance spirit. They combined classical themes with English traditions.

Elizabethan Poetry Examples

“The Passionate Shepherd to His Love”

This pastoral poem by Christopher Marlowe is one of the most acclaimed works of the era. In it, the shepherd invites his beloved to live with him and enjoy the beauties of the countryside. It celebrates the romantic ideals of rural life, love, and simplicity.

“The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd”

Sir Walter Raleigh wrote the poem as a response to Marlowe’s poem, Raleigh’s piece offers a more realistic and skeptical view. The nymph in the poem questions the shepherd’s promises, highlighting the transient nature of youth and beauty and suggesting that love based on such fleeting things may not last.

“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”

“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate.

Rough winds shake the darling buds of May,

And summer’s lease hath all too short a date.”

In this sonnet, the speaker poses the question of whether his beloved is better compared to a summer’s day. He concludes that his love is more perfect and enduring than the fleeting beauty of an English summer. He notes how the winds can disturb the loveliness of spring, just as all seasons change too quickly. In the end, the speaker declares his love will be immortalized through this poetic praise.

Characteristics of the Elizabethan Poetry

Sonnets

The sonnet was a major poetic form during the Elizabethan era.  The sonnet form, which was originated in Italy and notably practiced by Petrarch, made its way into English poetry.

A sonnet is a 14-line poem that follows a specific rhyme scheme and addresses a single thought or emotion. The traditional Italian sonnet has 14 lines of poem which has two parts; octave and a sestet. It is often revolved around themes of courtly love, which became a common thread in English sonnets.

The English or Shakespearean sonnet form consists of three quatrains followed by a couplet with a rhyme scheme of abab cdcd efef gg.

Philip Sidney’s Sonnet 31 from Astrophil and Stella which explores conflicted feelings of desire and inner turmoil.Astrophel and Stella” by Sir Philip Sidney is a series detailing the poet’s love for Stella. It navigates through the highs and lows of love, passion, and societal expectations.

Why Sonnets?

I think, the sonnet form was possibly popular during the Elizabethan era due to its structured format, which might have provided a framework for expressing profound thoughts concisely, particularly emotional and philosophical themes like love and time, resonating deeply during the Renaissance.

Religious Lyrics

Beyond sonnets, Elizabethan poets experimented with a range of forms including religious poetry, narrative poetry, epic poetry, metaphysical poetry and more.

The religious undertones in the works of Donne and Drummond reflect the era’s spiritual fervor. Donne combined intellectualism with lyricism, introducing unconventional imagery to express conventional Christian sentiments.

John Donne and Drummond brought a distinct freshness to the sonnet form. Donne introduced an unparalleled blend of the sublime and the ordinary in his “Holy Sonnets,” intertwining religious zeal and mysticism in a manner quite divergent for his time, while avoiding standard Petrarchan paths.

Drummond, also sidestepping typical Petrarchan conventions, combined religious themes with the traditionally secular sonnet form.

Both poets, through their inventive thematic and stylistic choices, solidified the place of religious sonnets within the wider English sonnet tradition, bringing a new thematic depth and diversity to the form.

Narrative Poetry

Elizabethan poets also delved into narrative forms, telling stories through their poems.

“The Mirror for Magistrates” is a collection of verse-narratives by different poets. Poets included Thomas Sackville, Baldwin, Churchyard and others. The poems tell the stories of famous people from English history who met with tragic ends. The poems are meant to teach people to avoid bad behavior, and they show how even powerful people can be punished for their sins.

Starting as a continuation of Lydgate’s Falls of Princes, it was inspired by Boccaccio. Beginning with seven tales, later editions expanded, covering famous English figures’ lives.

A Mirror for Magistrates embodied the Renaissance spirit. It emphasized history’s role in teaching humanity. The poems offered lessons for rulers, showcasing good and bad behaviors from history. It preceded chronicle poetry and inspired Elizabethan plays, making it influential.

Shakespeare’s narrative poems “Venus and Adonis” and “The Rape of Lucree” both provide a glimpse into his robust poetic capabilities, with the latter delving into the tragic tale of Lucree’s violation by Tarquin and its eventual societal repercussions, despite certain critiques regarding its digressions and elaborations.

Elizabethan Lyrical Poetry   

Lyrical poetry is a genre that, unlike narrative poetry, expresses personal and emotional feelings. In the Elizabethan period, these poems often had musical qualities and were sometimes set to music, hence the term “lyric.”

Elizabethan lyrical poems were brief and meant to be sung or spoken in a musical tone. Their rhythm and meter often imitated or matched the natural cadences of music.

Here are a few more examples that encapsulate the essence of that description:

“Spring” by Thomas Nash – This poem beautifully captures the sights and sounds of springtime through lilting rhythm and phrases: “Spring, the sweet spring, is the year’s pleasant king / Then blooms each thing, then maids dance in a ring / Cold doth not sting, the pretty birds do sing”.

“When I Was Fair and Young” by Queen Elizabeth I**: The monarch herself penned this poem, reflecting on her youth and the power she wielded over admirers. Its rhythmic structure and repetition make it reminiscent of songs or ballads.

“It Was a Lover and His Lass” by William Shakespeare**: From his play “As You Like It,” this song celebrates the joys and playfulness of young love during springtime. Its lively rhythm and repeated refrains underscore its song-like quality.

“Song: To Celia” by Ben Jonson – Using rhyme, repetition, and impulse iambic tetrameter, this poem is structured like a song meant to woo the subject Celia. For example: “Drink to me only with thine eyes, And I will pledge with mine.”

These poems, among others from the Elizabethan era, are celebrated not only for their poetic brilliance but also for their inherent musicality. Their rhythmic patterns and melodious qualities made them suitable for performances, both spoken and sung.

Imagery and Figurative Language

Imagery involves using descriptive language to create vivid mental pictures in the reader’s mind, helping to intensify the poetic experience.

Figurative language, on the other hand, involves using words or expressions in a way that deviates from their conventional meanings to convey complex ideas, often using similes, metaphors, and personification.

Elizabethan poets made frequent use of vivid sensory imagery and figures of speech like metaphors and similes. Imagery creates visually resonant scenes, like in Spenser’s Faerie Queene:

Here are some examples from The Faerie Queene:

“Her angel’s face as the great eye of heaven shined bright,

And made a sunshine in the shady place.” (Book 1, Canto 3)

This uses a simile, comparing the brightness of her face to the sun in the sky. It creates a vivid image of her beauty lighting up the shady forest.

“Upon her eyelids many Graces sate,

Under the shadow of her even brows.” (Book 2, Canto 3)

This conveys a vivid image of Graces perched on her eyelids and brows, using concrete sensory details like shadows and eyebrows.

Another example, Shakespeare’s Sonnet 73:

“That time of year thou mayst in me behold

When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang

Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,

Bare ruin’d choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.”

This vividly evokes the imagery of autumn and barren trees while also employing metaphorical language, comparing the boughs to “ruin’d choirs”, symbolizing the inevitable decay of age.

The use of poetic techniques like alliteration, assonance, and onomatopoeia creates rhythm, cadence, and songlike phrasing.

Allusions to classical mythology and literature

Elizabethan poets often made allusions to classical mythology and literature. This means that they would refer characters, events, and stories from classical works in their own writing. This was done to add depth and richness to their poems, and to appeal to the learned audience of the time.

“And as he fell, he cast his eyes aside,

And on the ground his bloody Phoebus lay” (lines 793-794,  “The Rape of Lucrece” by William Shakespeare)

The unfinished narrative “Hero and Leander” by Marlowe, depicting a tragic love story from classical mythology, not only showcases his remarkable versification but also seemed to pave the way for love poems rooted in classical myths, as seen in Lodge’s and Drayton’s respective works.

Marlowe’s “Hero and Leander” can be probed for subconscious desires and conflicts within the protagonists. Their tragic love story, where Leander’s relentless swimming across the Hellespont to meet Hero signifies an intense yearning, can be viewed as an expression of the unconscious desires and the destructive nature of love.

According to Freud’s theory of the unconscious, such intense desires often lead to tragic consequences, which is evident in the poem’s culmination.

Personal and Subjective Tones

Despite clinging to the classical masters, many poets of the era followed their passion and imbued their works with personal feelings, experiences, and emotions, making the poetry deeply subjective.

The sonnets of Shakespeare and Sidney’s “Astrophel and Stella” offer insights into the personal lives and feelings of the poets, narrating their own experiences of love, longing, and heartbreak.

Exploration of Complex Themes

Elizabethan poets explored a wide range of complex themes in their poetry, including love, loss, mortality, religion, spirituality etc. They were not afraid to tackle difficult and challenging subjects, and their poetry often offers insights into the human condition.

We will discuss them in the next section below.

This overview captures some of the defining features of Elizabethan poetry. The era was marked by a confluence of classical references, innovation in form, a deep sense of personal introspection, etc. all set against the rich tapestry of love, nature, and human experience.

Themes of the Elizabethan Poetry

Theme of Love

The fascination with themes of love, particularly unrequited or courtly love, is evident across the sonnets of this period.

The English sonneteers adapted the Petrarchan sonnet, reflect on courtly love themes similar to Petrarch’s admiration for Laura.

According to me, the exploration of love through sonnets in the Elizabethan era, like those between Astrophel and Stella or Spenser and Elizabeth Boyle, offered poets a respectable medium to express personal yet universally relatable experiences.

It adhered to both the societal norms and the personal, intimate inclinations of the poets, providing a safe and structured platform to delve into such themes without the potential chaos of unbridled expression.

Some Elizabethan love poetry are: Spenser’s “Sweet Warrior”, “Like As a Huntsman”, “One Day I Wrote Her Name’ etc.

Feminism

Feminist interpretations might explore the representation and often objectification of women in these poems, which could mirror broader societal perspectives of the era. For instance, the unresponsive, idealized woman in Petrarchan sonnets might be critiqued for portraying women as mere objects of desire rather than entities with agency and emotion.

Nature and pastoral life

Many Elizabethan lyrics explore the beauty and simplicity of the natural world and country living.

For example, Edmund Spenser’s “The Shepheardes Calendar” (1579) deals with the lives of shepherds. The Shepheardes Calendar is a pastoral poem, like the poems of Virgil and Theocritus, but it is also quintessentially Elizabethan. It is combination of classical and contemporary styles.

The poem has twelve eclogues, one for each month. The twelve eclogues are poems that tell stories about shepherds. Each eclogue is set in a different month, and describes the characteristics of the month and the activities of the shepherds during that time of year.

The eclogues are pastoral dialogues, but they also have allegorical meaning, which means that it has a hidden meaning. The poem can be read as a commentary on English politics and society during the Elizabethan era.

Spenser’s “Shepheardes Calendar can be studied from the lens of Cultural Studies. It revolves around shepherds and their dialogues which can be investigated to understand the cultural practices, values, and norms of the Elizabethan pastoral life.

Mortality and Transience of Life

The inevitability of death and the fleeting nature of life were common themes. Poets mused on the transient nature of beauty, youth, and worldly pleasures, often using them to underscore the value of seizing the day.

This sonnet “When I do count the clock that tells the time” (Sonnet 12) by William Shakespeare delves deep into the inevitable progression of time, the aging process, and the subsequent decline of youth and vitality. The poem poignantly states how day turns to night, summer gives way to winter, and youth ages, all leading to the inexorable march towards death.

Mysticism and Spirituality

With the religious upheavals of the time, many poets also delved into themes of spirituality, faith, and the human soul’s relationship with the divine. They often expressed personal spiritual journeys, doubts, and musings.

Sir John Davies’ “Of the Soul” series is a profound exploration of the nature of the human soul, its divine origins, and its entrapment within the physical body.

Elizabethan Poets and their Works

Sir Thomas Wyatt

Wyatt played a crucial role bringing the Italian sonnet to English literature. After Encountering Petrarch’s works during visits to Italy, Wyatt introduced the English sonnet, attempting to replicate Petrarch’s style.

He translated some Petrarchan sonnets, pioneering the form in English. Wyatt’s approximately thirty sonnets included Petrarch translations. They created a new personal, expressive poetic type modeled on the Italian pattern.

Though sometimes demonstrating an experimental struggle with the form, Wyatt’s sonnets unveiled his craftsmanship and flexibility with a conventional theme. Occasionally, his sonnets deviated from the Petrarchan structure using couplets or two seven-line parts.

Beyond sonnets, Wyatt wrote other poetic forms like lyrics, epigrams and satires. His lighter, freer lyrical songs contrasted the constraints of his sonnets.

Both Wyatt and Surrey’s sonnets were posthumously published in Tottel’s Miscellany in 1557.

Henry Howard

Surrey, a courtier and poet, distinguished himself through his skilled metrical experiments in sonnets.

Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, while following Wyatt, brought a distinct originality and innovation in versification as his form is distinct form from the Petrarchan sonnet. This gave rise to what later became known as the Shakespearian sonnet.

The adaptation and modification of the Petrarchan sonnet to develop the Shakespearian sonnet could symbolize a subtle resistance to merely adopting Italian forms, instead crafting a uniquely English style.

Surrey’s sonnets, though using the standard Petrarchan love theme, were unique in their natural English imagery. This sometimes foreshadowed Shakespeare’s vivid, profound works.

Metrically, Surrey innovated with rhyme schemes like abab, cdcd, efef, gg. This formed three quatrains and a concluding couplet. Additionally, Surrey translated Virgil’s Aeneid into blank verse. This impacted later dramatists like Marlowe, Shakespeare and Milton.

Edmund Spenser

Edmund Spenser, a beacon of literary proficiency in the Elizabethan age, embarks as a remarkable bridge between the literary genius of Chaucer and Shakespeare, heralding a vivid era rich in poetic expression. Some of his works are “The Shepheardes Calendar,” “Hymnes in Honour of Love and Beautie”, “Astrophel” “Epithalamion,” “Prothalamion,” “The Faerie Queen,” and “Amoretti,”.

Spenser’s “Hymnes in Honour of Love and Beautie” is a philosophical exploration of Platonic doctrines. It is a major work in which Spenser articulates his ideas about love and beauty.

Spenser’s elegy “Astrophel” is a pastoral poem that mourns the death of Sir Philip Sidney. Spenser draws on classical sources for inspiration, but his poem does not quite match the quality of his other work. However, it is still an important part of his body of work.

“Epithalamion” is a celebration of Spenser’s marriage to Elizabeth Boyle. It is a vibrant poem that combines personal joy with poetic imagination. Spenser also wrote a poem called “Prothalamion” to celebrate the wedding of a friend. This poem also shows Spenser’s skill at combining imagery and melody, and it explores the theme of celestial beauty.

Edmund Spenser’s monumental epic poem “The Faerie Queene” represents the pinnacle of his poetic aspirations, even though it remained unfinished after two decades of work. Inspired by classical epics, this elaborate poetic tale integrates allegory, medieval romance, and epic poetry within a multifaceted narrative arcs.

At the heart of the story is the character of Prince Arthur, who journeys through a leisurely plot imbued with allegorical meaning, vibrant reflections on England’s history, politics, and religion.

The poem resists simple classification, interweaving elements of the epic, romance, didactic and symbolic traditions. Like a conventional epic, it utilizes motifs of chivalry, witchcraft, and battle. However, it rises above mere romance to impart moral lessons through its romantic tales.

Spenser’s allegorical technique lacks the lucid quality of Chaucer’s “The Canterbury Tales,” yet vividly displays his skills as an ingenious allegorist. Arguably the most melodious feature is Spenser’s adept use of the Spenserian stanza he invented. This provides a harmonious poetic rhythm that counteracts the potential monotony of the romantic epic structure.

Spenser’s sonnet sequence “Amoretti” is based on the Petrarchan sonnet model and it tells the story of Spenser’s own courtship with Elizabeth Boyle, but it is not as deep or idealistic as Spenser’s other writings.

“Amoretti” is not as good as some of Spenser’s other works, such as “The Faerie Queene,” or as good as other sonnet sequences, such as Shakespeare’s sonnets or Sidney’s sonnets. However, Spenser’s skill at creating imagery and melody is still evident in “Amoretti.”

“Amoretti” is different from Sidney’s sonnet sequence “Astrophel and Stella” because it celebrates a successful love story that ends in marriage. Sidney’s sonnet sequence, on the other hand, ends with the lovers being separated.

Sir Philip Sidney

Sir Philip Sidney was a scholar, poet, critic, diplomat, and courtier who lived for only 32 years but had a big impact on Elizabethan literature and culture. He was a Renaissance man, meaning he was good at many different things.

Sir Philip Sidney’s sonnet sequence “Astrophel and Stella” is a melancholy story of unfulfilled love between Sidney (Astrophel) and Penelope Devereux (Stella). The series of 108 sonnets and 11 songs tells the story of Astrophel’s growing love for Stella and his inner struggles between reason and passion. Although the lovers are separated in the end, the sonnets remain ardent and tenderly melancholic.

Sidney’s sonnet sequence is a spontaneous story of Sidney’s own emotional and psychological experiences during his courtship. It shows how he is both intelligent and passionate. It is not as varied as Shakespeare’s sonnet sequences, but it is still charming and sincere.

Sidney’s sonnets follow the Petrarchan convention, but they also show his personality and how he expresses himself freely. This makes “Astrophel and Stella” a fascinating reflection of sincere and profound love.

Sidney’s work was not published during his lifetime, but it is still important today. He wrote a pastoral prose romance called “Arcadia” and started English literary criticism with a book called An Apology for Poetry. He is also known for his poems, especially his sonnets.

George Gascoigne

George Gascoigne was an early Elizabethan poet. He did not become very famous among the many great writers of the time. Gascoigne focused more on military pursuits than writing early in life. But he eventually shifted to literature, though with limited success.

Gascoigne wrote in many different forms – verse, prose, and drama. He wrote verse tales, martial poems, comedies, tragedies, prose tales, and even critical writings on poetry. In 1575, he published a book of his writings called “The Poesies of George Gascoigne Esquire.” Later, Gascoigne wrote more, including a tragicomedy, satire, elegy, and instructional prose.

Gascoigne’s writing was extensive but not very unique or artistic. His verse was pleasant but undistinguished. His prose was often monotonous. Overall, he did not showcase great talent in his many writings.

However, Gascoigne was important for pioneering many new literary forms. He wrote the first modern prose tale, prose comedy, adapted tragedy, masque, formal satire, and critical essay on poetry. He also wrote early verse tales and elegies.

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare, while renowned in English theatre, also claimed unparalleled recognition in the sonnet form, introducing loftiness, profundity, and a remarkable melodic quality to his 154 sonnets.

Departing from typical Elizabethan sonnets, his were not solely romantic or adoring in nature but also explored masculine friendship and were strikingly realistic, especially the 26 “Dark Lady Sonnets” which opposed Petrarchan idealization.

Shakespeare used a format of three quatrains and a couplet, innovated by Henry Howard, with a distinct seven-rime scheme as opposed to the Petrarchan five.

The sonnets explore Shakespeare’s thoughts on friendship, love, and experiences. They are divided into two sections – one addresses a young man, likely the Earl of Southampton, admiring male friendship. The other addresses an unnamed woman, showing Shakespeare’s conflicted feelings.

A Perspective

Viewing Shakespeare’s Dark Lady Sonnets through a lens of feminist literary theory could offer interesting insights. The poet deviates from the conventional portrayal of women as fair, gentle, and virtuous, instead presenting a dark, cruel, and deceitful lady.

This subversion could be seen as a critique or mockery of the Petrarchan ideal, challenging contemporary notions of femininity and romantic love.

Alternatively, the portrayal might be examined for potentially reinforcing negative stereotypes about women, providing a dichotomy that warrants a critical feminist reading.

Elizabethan poets and courtiers

The relationship between Elizabethan poets and courtiers offers a fascinating glimpse into the sociopolitical dynamics of the time.

The Court as a Center of Patronage

During the Elizabethan era, the royal court was a hub of artistic and intellectual activity. Poets often sought the patronage of courtiers and the nobility to secure financial support and protection.

This patronage system meant that poets would dedicate works to their patrons, often praising them in elaborate verses. In return, the patron provided the poet with monetary rewards, protection, and sometimes a position within the courtly structure.

Courtier-Poets

Many courtiers were themselves poets or had strong literary inclinations. Sir Philip Sidney, for instance, was both a courtier and a celebrated poet of his time.

His work “Astrophel and Stella” is a classic of Elizabethan poetry. These courtier-poets used their works to navigate and comment on courtly politics, love, and philosophical musings, often embedding their personal experiences within the wider context of Elizabethan society.

Influence on Themes and Styles

The close relationship between poets and courtiers had a significant influence on the themes and styles of Elizabethan poetry. Courtly love, chivalry, loyalty, and the ideals of the “perfect courtier” were common topics.

Poets often wrote verses that reflected the intricate dynamics of court life, filled with its intrigues, romances, and political maneuverings.

The Role of the Courtier as a Cultural Conduit

Courtiers, being typically well-traveled and educated, often introduced new literary forms and ideas from the continent to England. The sonnet form, for example, which became exceedingly popular during the Elizabethan era, was imported from Italy after Wyatt encountered Petrarch’s works during visits to Italy.

Courtiers played a role in this cultural exchange, and poets in the courtly circles were among the first to experiment with and popularize these forms.

Mutual Dependence

While poets benefited from the patronage of courtiers, the latter also gained from this relationship. Being a patron of a renowned poet or having literary inclinations elevated a courtier’s status, showcasing them as cultured, educated, and sophisticated. It added a layer of prestige to their social standing.

In conclusion, their interactions shaped much of the era’s poetic output, reflecting both the personal experiences of court life and the broader sociocultural shifts of the time.