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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;
When as a storm hath dim’d 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 over-cast,
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
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:
So I whose star, that wont with her bright ray
me to direct, with cloudes is overcast,
doe wander now in darknesse and dismay,
through hidden perils round about me plast.
Yet hope I well, that when this storme is past
my Helice the lodestar of my lyfe
will shine again, and looke on me at last,
with lovely light to cleare my cloudy grief.
Till then I wander carefull comfortlesse,
in secret sorow and sad pensivenesse.
Edmund Spenser's Amoretti chronicles his courtship with his wife Elizabeth Boyle. It was originally published in 1595 and loosely follows the Petrarchan sonnet model. Petrarch wrote his sonnets about women that he would never be able to obtain, while Spenser wrote about a single woman whom he did marry. Sonnet 34 appears to describe a break in Spenser's relationship with Elizabeth; it seems like they had a fight and Spenser is biding his time until she forgives him. Spenser uses the analogy of a ship losing its way during a storm to convey the separation between him and Elizabeth.
Now I wander 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.
*a star that leads or guides; usually refers to the North Star
I hope that when this storm passes my beloved's light will shine upon me again, and guide me back to port (or her), so that they can be together once again.
These 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. Spenser is telling his beloved that until she forgives him, he will wander aimlessly all alone, thinking sorrowful thoughts.
The rhyme scheme is the Spenserian sonnet scheme of ababbcbccdcdee
The main purpose behind writing this poem is to reach the land and also to reach the correct way with his beloved.
1- Metaphor:
A- Star: is compared with the poet’s beloved.
B- The ocean: is compared with life itself.
C- Clouds, storms and perils: are compared to life and love problems.
D- Landing: is love again.
2- Simile: we have two words “like” and “as”.
3- Personification: the ship and the star are personified to have human qualities.