Compare and contrast the ways in which any two writers in this period explore freedom and/or captivity

Definitions:
- Freedom
- From one’s own passions
- From the pursuit of material gain and earthly matters
- From the power of the mistress
- Captivity
- Can be held captive by the mistress
- By sensual pleasures
- By ambition and human achievement
- Or even by inherent composite nature of the body

- And/or
- In all the poems, a situation of freedom is always compared with a scenario of captivity
- Yet, the converse is not always true; captivity may not be paired with corresponding freedom (which makes sense)
- While useful (and ideal) to discuss the terms in tandem, it’s not always possible to

Relevant poems
- Sidney: Sonnets 2, 10, 12, 26, 29, 4, [5], 1, 21, 23
- Marvell: The Fair Singer, The Gallery, Soul and Body, Drop of Dew, The Coronet, The Garden, Hill and Grove, Horatian Ode

Point Sidney Marvell

1 Love is a form of captivity Sonnet 12: The Fair Singer:

given that it constitutes
being enraptured by the
mistress; given the
overwhelming power of the
mistress, both poets
suggest efforts to resist and
seek freedom are ultimately
Cupid, because thou shin’st in Stella’s eyes,
That from her locks, thy day-nets, none ‘scapes
free,
This sonnet is at best deserving brief mention: Sidney
compares Stella’s hair (“locks”) to Cupid’s traps, or “day-
nets”, amidst his poetic blazon. Here, Stella’s beauty is
directly analogised as one of Cupid’s tools of captivity
Her power over the persona is irresistible, for the fair
singer possesses the “advantage both of eyes and voice”
which allows her to exercise absolute control to both “bind”
the persona’s heart and “captivate [his] mind”. Firstly,
Marvell’s use of the metaphor of captivity elucidates this
power. The mistress’ hair is described as “curled
futile that he uses to capture unsuspecting lovers. Stella’s
beauty and thus Cupid’s strength in Stella is so
Sidney: metaphors of overpowering, completely irresistible, that “none ‘scapes
captivity occur only on a free”: he achieves total captivity through her
surface level – blazons of overwhelming beauty.
her physical beauty
Marvell: metaphors of Sonnet 2:
captivity occur on two levels ...Now even that footstep of lost liberty
(through physical features Is gone, and now like slave-born Muscovite
like her hair, as well as I call it praise to suffer tyranny;
through the soul like her And now employ the remnant of my wit
airy voice) To make myself believe that all is well,
While with a feeling skill I paint my hell.
Sidney’s references to Muscovy, at the time under the
political domination of Russia’s Ivan the Terrible, show
the extent of love as the conquering of Astrophil. Like
Muscovites who are “slave-born” and hence know no
other condition than servitude for the rest of their lives, so
does Astrophil suffer the pain of love which “while [he]
breathe[s] will bleed”. In fact, unlike the Muscovites who
have fortunately known no other condition than captivity,
Astrophil’s suffering is greater — he has experienced the
“footstep of lost liberty” being forcibly seized from him by
the unreasonable and draconian “decrees” of love.
Therefore, left without the slightest modicum of freedom
with even his “partial lot” taken from him, Astrophil is
unable to do anything but “call it praise to suffer tyranny”.
He is forced to celebrate his state of captivity, even as he
recognises that the pain that this situation inflicts is akin
to eternal damnation in “hell”. Sidney goes on to show the
great depth of domination/captivity of Stella on Astrophil
through showing how he only has “remnant[s]” of his wit
left (displaying how overwhelmed love has made him).
trammels”, like nets in their ability to ensnare the heart of
the persona. Furthermore, the eyes of the mistress are
compared to the “sun” being as stellar as the brightest
celestial object Nature itself has created — thus, they are
equally radiant and equally capable of dazzling, even
blinding the persona with their beauty.
Even the soul which can “disentangle” itself from these
beautiful traps is ultimately overcome, as the fair singer
can wield her “subtle art” in order to “fetter” even the
ethereal and incorporeal soul; although the intangible soul
can “break” the physical “trammels” of the mistress’
beauty, her ability to wield rarefied music to surround the
soul in the “very air” breathed by the persona ensures the
total subjugation of Marvell’s persona. Similar to how the
mistress’ eyes were compared to the sun, her beautiful
and utterly captivating voice possess the elemental power
of the “wind”, which overcomes even the resistance of the
noble and pure soul.
Therefore, this overwhelming power of the mistress effects
a total domination over, and a “final conquest” of the
persona; the permanence and extent of this defeat is
conveyed through the metaphor of a “fatal” harmony that
results in the persona’s “death”. The persona is totally
deprived of agency, reduced to nothing more than a
“slave” who must bend if the mistress but carelessly nod
on him. His “forces” — the faculties of reason and passion
— are entirely “undone”; he is totally at the behest of the
mistress; “all resistance” against this new state of captivity
would be but “in vain”.

2 Both writers see captivity in
how the spiritual soul is
trapped within the body and
its sinful nature. However,
their ways of finding
freedom from this Earthly
captivity differ - Marvell
finds a solution through
spiritual devotion, while
Sidney does so through
continued virtue.
The poets see desire for
achievement as smth that
constrains their artistic
enterprise
In going a step further to illustrate how Astrophil seeks to
deceive himself into believing that “all is well”, Sidney
suggests that accepting — even delighting in this state of
captivity — is the only way of managing it.
Sonnet 2:
Rather than fighting or resisting, he decides to use the
“remnant of [his] wit” to deceive himself and “paint” his
hell
Sonnet 10:
How he’s childishly and spitefully battling reason
Sonnet 29:
“Am giv’n up for a slave”
Sonnet 5:
It is most true, that eyes are formed to serve
The inward light; and that the heavenly part
Ought to be king, from whose rules who do
swerve,
Rebels to Nature, strive for their own smart.
… A soul hung up , as ‘twere, in chains
True, that on earth we are but pilgrims made,
And should in soul up to our country move
Sidney opposes and juxtaposes the inward part - the soul
- and the outward part, the body, and assigns various
images to each, retaining the superiority of the soul
through focusing on the fact that the eyes “serve” it, and
that the soul “ought to be king”. (One could even argue
that the fact that the soul is inward and the body is
external shows a sense of captivity already????)
The Gallery:
Marvell’s persona also celebrates his mistress, who does
torment and hold him captive; yet, what’s celebrated is not
the state of pain but instead her innocence in being a
“tender shepherdess”
(can help ask if this makes sense bc if not delete)
Soul and Body:
… A soul, enslaved so many ways,
With bolts of bones, that fettered stands
In feet, and manacled in hands.
Here blinded with an eye; and there
Deaf with the drumming of an ear,
Of nerves, and arteries, and veins,
Marvell directly links the structures and the systems of the
body - like “bones”, “feet”, “hands” - with images of
captivity like “bolts” and “manacles”, to directly make the
point that these bodily parts are equivalent to the captivity
of a prison for the soul.
Furthermore, Marvell goes a step further to describe the
torture of this captivity for the soul through the its sensory
torment through the body’s senses: the soul is “blinded
Sidney then mentions this dichotomy again toward the
end of the poem, where he invokes the Christian ideal of
how our physical presence on earth is akin to nothing but
a “pilgrim”, who must “up to our country move”. The idea
that our souls belong to heaven, but are kept here on
Earth by our physical bodies, is indicative of Sidney’s
conception of the body as captor of the soul.
Not like with like comparison!
Use Sonnet 4 instead, which highlights Astrophil’s vain
love, senses. Our sensual appetite/physical needs
interfere with our spirit/soul or virtue/reason.
Marvell sees the ends of the physical body as always
constraining the soul. Conversely, Astrophil argues
against the harsh rules of reason which are always
interfering with his enjoyment of/indulgent in great love.
Astrophil is aware of the fact that his love for Stella is
constraining him but he willingly allows himself to be
constrained. VS. resolved soul and created pleasure → constant
battle
However, Sidney also argues that the soul and
succumbing to earthly pleasures need not be
dichotomous in nature and hence, might not be
considered as earthly captivity anyway.
Sonnet 25:
Based on Neoplatonic ideas of man as a composite being
of Reason and Sense. Through the poet’s wit, we realise
that while Stella has charmed the sensual man, she also
overcomes the spiritual soul. Plato declares that if an
individual saw Virtue in a physical form, that individual
would immediately fall in love with Virtue. Astrophil
acknowledges the truth of this declaration, claiming Virtue
with an eye” and “deaf with the drumming of the ear”.
Through making an equivalence between the functions of
these senses (and a pretty good pun for the ear) Marvell
goes a step further, from mere captivity to complete torture
of the soul.
“And all my care itself employs, that to preserve, which me
destroys” Even though the Soul wants to be free of the
confines of the body, it cannot collude in its destruction
since suicide is not condoned by God, that the spirit
believes in. As such, it is held captive in a physical form.
solved
Marvell goes further to present the opinion that freedom
from Earthly captivity can be achieved through spiritual
devotion.
Resolved Soul and Created Pleasure:
...
Cease, tempter. None can chain a mind
Whom this sweet chordage cannot bind.
...
Throughout the poem “ Resolved Soul and Created
Pleasure”, Pleasure attempts to hold the Soul captive on
 took the physical form of Stella and that he immediately earth by enticing it with created pleasure that appeal to the
and inevitably fell in love with her. (“Virtue of late, with various senses of the body such as a Banquet, Perfume
virtuous care to stir / Love of herself, takes Stella’s and Music. In the Soul’s second couplet perhaps clearly
shape, that she…” ) articulates, for the first time, the stakes involved in the
battle – the “sweet chordage” of music’s “charming airs”
In doing so, he nullifies the need for man to navigate the will constitute a “chain” that “bind[s]” and imprisons the
dichotomy between Virtue/Reason and Passion in the pursuit of Soul on earth, forever halting its journey to Heaven. Hence
their romantic passions ⇒ In loving Stella, one does not if the Soul succumbs to any of these earthly temptations, it
relinquish one’s duty to Virtue because she is the physical will be condemned , never reaching the realm above and
distillation of Virtue. As such, succumbing to sensual pleasures returning to God’s side.
like love is not necessarily sinful, but rather inevitable and
virtuous. “A soul that knows not to presume
Is heaven’s and its own perfume.
As such, Sidney takes the discussion a step further, …
challenging the dichotomy that the virtuous soul and the When the Creator’s skill is prized,
The rest is all but earth disguised”
body susceptible to temptation of earthly pleasures are
...
placed in.
Nonetheless the Soul ultimately achieves freedom and
“triumph” from this earthly captivity by practicing resolve
and spiritual devotion. The soul is constantly rejects the
temptations of sin such as of elevating itself to God’s
position, knowing its place. In fact it believes that such
sense of self awareness is a virtue and beauty in itself,
comparable to the enticing perfumes offered by Pleasure.
The Soul rejects Pleasure’s appeal to its vanity , insisting
that all is dull in its eye when compared to the “Creator’s
skill” or God’s. The Resolved Soul demurs, wanting only to
please Heaven and praise God. In doing so, the Soul is a
humble spiritual servant who acknowledges the true
master, God, and achieves the reward of freedom at the
end of its earthly journey by returning home to heaven
with access to the “everlasting store” of heaven with its
infinite reward of true value, unlike that which is subject to
time and corruption like Earth’s treasures.

3 The captivity of society’s Sonnet 1, 21: The Coronet:

desire for achievement: the
poets find and debate about Ambition for achievement from writing traps them -
freedom from this captivity Astrophil’s friends tell him that his own writings are like
in vastly different ways “bad servants” and are “lame” “in virtue”, and Astrophil
sees his “constant love” “deemed… but want of wit”
(Sonnet 31).
Resolution is undoubtedly to find Stella as the answer - to BUT his resolution is to “let these wither, so that he may
“look into thy heart, and write”
Sonnet 23:
Although it appears tempting and attractive to ambitious
men given its precious and “golden” appearance, Sidney
suggests that it is described as utterly destructive,
ensnaring and “captivat[ing]” men in an endless attempt
to gain more power and influence. Like a “golden cage”,
ambition is merely gilded — it outwardly promises great
riches and wealth, but in truth merely deprives men of
their freedom, keeping them locked away in an
inescapable “cage”.
Additionally this experience of captivity is arduous —
ambition inflicts immense and terrifying pain on those
who who attempt to achieve their personal goals with it;
it’s the “scourge of itself”, brutally flaying and impeding
ambitious men. Even as ambition causes great suffering,
Sidney depicts it as futile and impossible to achieve.
The Sisyphean image of ambitious men “still climbing
slippery place” elucidates the impossibility of ever sating
this persistent desire for power, to finally escape being
held captive by ambition. Any effort made to advance up
societal hierarchy is for nought, given that one’s place
has already been ordained at birth. Even if one succeeds
in the “slippery” ascent up one rank, ambition forces
Ambition for achievement from writing traps Marvell - he is
trapped by “wreaths of fame and interest”, and “foolish”
mankind itself inadvertently “debases” “Heaven’s diadem”
with these wreaths.
die”, which “disentangles” and frees him from the “winding
snare” of “fame and interest”
Horatian Ode:
While Marvell does not explicitly condemn ambition as
Sidney does, he echoes Sidney’s sentiments about the
continued struggle to sate ambition in the poem, for
Cromwell — like the “young brain[s] captivated” by
ambition of Sonnet 23 — is held captive by the need to
unceasingly “keep the sword erect” in order to maintain his
power, and the glory of England. (he should see a doctor if
it goes on for more than 4 hours)
Admittedly, Cromwell has succeeded in “climbing” up the
hierarchy of society where the ambitious men of Sonnet
23 have failed, which seems to suggest that he’s achieved
everything. With the elemental quickness and devastating
precision of “three-forked lightning”, Cromwell has
defeated the other Parliamentarians in his way, “burn[ed]
through” the Royalists opposing him, and even succeeded
in his greatest ambition by “blast[ing]” Charles’ power
away.
However, even his overtopping of the king (and the king’s
head) is but “the Capitol’s first line”, from which further
efforts to command and conquer have “begun”. Cromwell
is held captive by ambition — both his own and that of the
people. Although the leader of England, Cromwell must
still submit himself to the wishes of the people, and must
never-ending dissatisfaction at what one has achieved,
and hence imprisons ambitious men in an unceasing
“race” that brings only suffering.
Unfortunately for Astrophil, he harbours such ambitions
for Stella, which “alas” means that he too is a captive
(which links nicely to point 1 as well!) of his desire for
more. The chiasmatic inversion of the final couplet links
“start” and “eyes”, suggesting that it is the beauty which
Stella’s eyes emblemify which have initiated his pointless
“race” to reach the desired “place”, to attain Stella’s love.
Therefore, just as other men are trapped in their
unending efforts to gain more power and hold more sway,
Astrophil is also captivated by an ambitious desire to
achieve something greater — “Stella’s heart”.
“obey” their ambitious desire to strengthen the country.
Despite the greatness of what he has achieved, the
conquest of Ireland is but Cromwell’s “first year’s rents” —
as a serf is contracted and imprisoned on a master’s land,
so too is Cromwell shown to be held captive by a need to
continually embellish his achievements.
Like the ambitious and “Caesar” continually seeking to
gain more power, Cromwell could not afford to be idle, and
must “march indefatigably on” to conquer the “Caledonian
deer” and bring Scotland to submission as well. Once the
ambitious “forward youth” has picked up the “corslet” of
war, he cannot be free from ambition or the expectation to
“maintain” his power; until the “last effect”, the “sword”
must be kept “erect”, ready to defend his achievements.
The Garden:
Similarly, in The Garden, the pursuit of ambition is
depicted by Marvell as hubristic and futile: a man’s pursuit
of “the palm, the oak, or bays” - every facet of human
achievement, from the military, to the civic, to the artistic -
is entirely described as “vain”, or worthless. This is
furthered by the contrast set up in the stanza: all of man’s
labour is “crowned for some single herb or tree” which is
“short and narrow-verged”, while the rest of the garden is
filled with “all the flow’rs and trees”, making Marvell’s
perceived uselessness of human ambition compared to
nature’s beauty even clearer.
Therefore, to be liberated from the overwhelming pressure
of ambition and expectation, the “busy companies of men”
should be given up for the “sweet and wholesome hours”
spent in nature “but with herbs and flowers”.