The Poetics of Kissing
Asher Courtemanche, English, Latin, and Classical Humanities, University of Wisconsin — Madison Class of 2021
Sir Philip Sidney invokes a traceable lineage between his poetry and that of the classical world in Astrophil and Stella. The plot that weaves the sonnets together, the classical themes in individual sonnets, and images recalling mythological figures all work together to imitate and expand on ancient Greek and Roman cultures. Sidney’s work provides one major example of the “rebirth” of classical literature for which the Renaissance is known. Yet Astrophil and Stella offers more than just an example of Classical rebirth by continuing the tradition of erotica through kiss poetry. Pablo Maruette eloquently describes this phenomenon as “replacing the old with the ancient. Only this time, in doing so, it produced a wonderful novelty, a sub-genre of lyrical poetry autochthonous to the period.” The erotic elements in Sidney’s work, specifically the recurring basia, or kisses, lead to a necessary re-examination of how erotic poetry, like the lyric love poetry of ancient Roman authors such as Catullus, were received in the sixteenth century. Sidney’s use of an erotic tradition that includes basia, fluctuating attitudes, and Neo-Catullan tropes elevates the romantic and erotic flame still burning from antiquity, but re-ignited by the Renaissance.
It is fairly easy to find elements of the classical world in Astrophil and Stella. These classical allusions begin with Sidney’s invocation to the “sisters nine” at the beginning of Sonnet 3, a reference to the nine muses and a common trope for Greek epic poetry. Sidney’s imitation of classical literature continues to the end in both passing references—“Orpheus’ voice” in the Third Song, “Argus’ eyes” in Sonnet 104, “Phoebus’ gold” in Sonnet 108, and so on—and in longer engagements, like Sonnet 8, in which he re-invents a story for Love to highlight the unrequitedness of his love for Stella. The poem follows Love, who leaves Greece and “At length perched himself in Stella’s joyful face,” at whose coldness made him “take his flight. To my close heart, where… He burnt unawares his wings, and cannot fly away.” Although a “joyful face,” Stella is far too cold to foster a prosperous environment for Love. Yet Astrophil burns far too passionately in his love for Stella so that, once Love has flown into Astrophil’s heart, he cannot escape. Sidney takes the god Love and re-invents his myth in order to express the unrequited love felt by Astrophil. This elevates his expression of classical themes by creating his own myth for Love. With the foundation of classical influence established, there grows still the most telling branch of descent from antiquity, that being Sidney’s implementation of erotic poetry and the affectation of basia poetry.
The history of scholarship on the erotic in Astrophil and Stella often avoids discussing the influence of Roman love poetry on sixteenth-century poets. Elizabeth Hull argues for her perspective on the scholarship of erotic desire. Scholars have wrestled with the erotic tones of Astrophil and Stella to remove erotic intent from erotic elements; Hull agrees that in past scholarship “the analogies for sexual desire drive out sexual desire, and the erotic is made to take the name of what it is not.” The precedent of erasure, or purification, of Sidney’s sonnet sequence fails to recognize the erotic influence on Astrophil and Stella. This lacuna is something A.T. Wong tries to correct with his own scholarship, acknowledging the lack of understanding of Neo-Latin tradition in the field of early modern English literature, as the erotic leaning toward sexual desire is not something that wholly fits within the canonized interpretations of sixteenth-century poetry. The simple act of a kiss can elicit the ambiguity of eroticism and lead the reader to question the motivation of such inclusion. Attending to a tradition of eroticism traced back to antiquity, the framing of Astrophil and Stella’s plot unlocks similarities to the events of Catullus’ and Lesbia’s love affair, scattered throughout his corpus.
Catullus plays a major role in tracing a line of eroticism back to antiquity from the Renaissance. A.T. Wong analyzes the history of basia and the ever-present use of “Neo-Catullan” elements, observing that the elements of Neo-Catullanism not only relate to themes such as stolen kisses, irony, and submission, but are prevalent in the poetic style itself (as seen in catalogues of words like dulcis, basia mille and in uses of specific meter). Although other Roman poets share many of the same details of Neo-Catullanism, Catullus became a central influence at the outset of his rediscovery in the fourteenth century and his later popularization in fifteenth-century Italy. What makes Catullus unique amongst his Renaissance readers is that he was discovered “without any critical baggage from the past… Thus, they had to confront Catullus directly, explaining his poetry either from the confusing and corrupt text itself or from clues scattered here and there in other ancient authors.” He was wholly new and ready to be imitated and studied as he spread. His works passed through many circles before reaching the English language, with prominent figures in Neo-Catullan traditions being Martial, Janus Secundus, Giovanni Gioviano Pontano, and Janus Dousa, an acquaintance of Sidney. Sidney himself shows acquaintance with Catullus, as he is one of the first individuals to translate Catullus into English, fitting him into a larger scale of English readers indulging in the ancient poet. The precedent for Sidney’s implementation of erotic poetry exists, but these erotic elements of Catullus exist in his work in a different manner. Rather than only referencing older texts or alluding to his predecessors, Sidney evolves them in his own myth and his own narrative. What Wong makes clear is that the Catullan leap into English is less about literary style, but “more about themes, tropes, and attitudes.” Each of these elements tie Astrophil and Stella to erotic Latin poetry, starting with an overarching, formulaic theme.
Astrophil and Stella’s plot movement, at its most prominent points, follows a plot common in erotic poetry and formulaic to Catullus’ own Complete Poems. Although Catullus’ poems aren’t necessarily meant to be read as a cohesive unit in the same way that Astrophil and Stella’s are, his turbulent relationship with Lesbia frames the series of poems and highlights their erotic nature. Poem 5 epitomizes Catullus’ love for Lesbia: not only is this love as limitless as the amount of kisses the two lovers share, but it is mysterious, for they remain uncounted, “lest some villain overlook us / Knowing the total of our kisses (ne quis malus invidere possit cum tantum sciat esse basiorum)” The number of kisses and the circumstance hyperbolize their infatuation for each other, but it is only a matter of time before the cycle of Catullus’ erotic poetry comes to the fore with the handful of sprinkled break-up/rough-patch poems. Of these, the most significant is the comparison to Sidney’s sonnet sequence is Poem 83. In this poem, Catullus reveals that his beloved Lesbia is married. Their adulterous love is bold, for “In husband’s presence Lesbia keeps abusing me (mala plurima dicit).” The framework for Catullus’ relationship with Lesbia is tumultuous and centers on Catullus’ love, rather than on the relationship itself. Poem 8 highlights this self-centeredness, in which Catullus and Lesbia have broken up. He addresses himself in the vocative and speaks in the second person: “Wretched Catullus (Miser Catulle), you should stop fooling / And what you know you’ve lost admit losing (desinas ineptire / et quod vides perisse perditum ducas).” The grammar places an importance on Catullus by addressing him in this way; since it is an emotional poem, he is brought to the forefront. He reminisces about their good times together, “Which you wanted nor did the girl not want (quae tu volebas nec puella nolebat).” Catullus uses a pleonastic negative (nec… nolebat) when referring to the girl’s emotions of the affairs. He is unable to fully know her wishes and places her emotions a distance grammatically, making her participation displaced from the speaker, Catullus. Thus his writing and emotional weight becomes focused on his end of the relationship.
Like Catullus’ relationship with Lesbia, Astrophil’s relationship with Stella revolves around his own selfish motives. It is hard to perceive Stella’s thoughts since the speaker of the sonnets is almost always Astrophil, but the reader can still gain from him the same turbulent attitude of Catullus. He ends sonnet 47 angry at Stella, saying “I love you not—: O me, that eye / Doth make my heart give to my tongue the lie.” In the heat of the moment, he jumps between hating Stella and loving her, acknowledging that it would be a lie if he said he did not love her. She marries another man, but that does not stop Astrophil’s pursuit, or her apparent love for him; with her is to be in a “paradise of joy” as he professes in Sonnet 68. Yet the Second Song and his secret kiss lead to the downfall of their romance, and like Catullus, he ends up heartbroken, because at last “Stella is not here.” Though a simplification of the sonnet sequence, the major plot points key into the formulaic example of Catullus. Maurette explains that, although Astrophil is filled with love, “A heavy sense of yearning and dissatisfaction runs through the sonnets, which are dedicated to a woman whom the poet could never have.” Both men long for a married woman and seek out a relationship destined to fail. Neither man can obtain the hand of their lover in marriage, yet both persist in their kisses. Whereas Catullus succeeds in having a sexual and romantic relationship with Lesbia, Astrophil’s only attempt at reaching the same level of intimacy as Catullus is through his stolen kiss in his Second Song, that being a common trope in Latin erotic poetry of the Renaissance. Since Sidney does not push Astrophil and Stella into that final act of consummation or infidelity, he instead seeks to fit the Latin erotic tradition into the confines of his own time period, making it difficult for scholars to embrace the study of erotica in a time period with little tolerance for the subject.
The most objective marker of the erotic tradition is the implementation of a “stolen kiss” in the Second Song. This song emphasizes the growing desire of Astrophil as Stella refuses his advances, marking a turn toward erotic desire. His attitude shifts from the preceding sonnets, saying “Now will I teach her that she, / When she wakes, is too too cruel.” The rejection Astrophil has thus far received manifests itself in a vindictive attitude that leads up to his stolen kiss. This attitude is a close mirroring of Catullus’ reactions to a rejecting Lesbia in Poem 42. In response to Lesbia taking his writing tablets, he becomes enraged, calling her a “dirty adulteress” (putida moecha), with a “bitch’s face” (canis ore). Both men become vindictive and enraged at the cuckolding of their desire and threaten to retaliate against their lovers. Catullus changes his tone at the end of the poem in order to receive what he wants, but Astrophil takes it a step further and acts psychically against Stella to fulfill his unmet desires.
The erotic tradition continues with Astrophil stealing a kiss from Stella, both deepening and complicating the undertone of erotic desire. Astrophil’s bitter attitude continues in Sidney’s Second Song when he decides to “attempt to know / What ‘no’ her tongue sleeping useth.” A modern reader might see these lines in a perspective concerning the consent of Stella, even though it is just a kiss. Her hand “grants a free resort,” and he moves to “invade the fort.” Modestly, the fort may refer to her mouth, but the potential for this song to carry connotations of sexual assault is not out of the question, which only fuels the intensity of Astrophil’s desire. The argument for this being a scene about sexual assault is textually supported by the later line: “Who will read, must first learn spelling,” with the implication that the lover would first venture in kissing before sex, as one would need knowledge of spelling in order to read properly. The language, combined with the persistent, vindictive attitude of a spurned Astrophil gives the impression of a deeper sexual desire. It is as if “He wishes to blur the distinctions between “pure” love and desire so that she will not be able to maintain a separation of these categories… Each defense she proposes against his desire melts, in his poetry, in the desire her image excites.” Hull refers to previous rejections of Astrophil’s persistence, where she must defend herself in order to sift out immodest desires. Like her “hand which, waking, guardeth,” she must physically and verbally defend herself from his advances. Asleep, she leaves herself defenseless against Astrophil’s advances, blurring the distinction between love and desire Before the kiss even happens, Sidney sets up the action of the stolen kiss as having an undertone of sexual desire run through it, making the act of a stolen kiss melt into the erotic tradition.
The actual stealing of the kiss comes by way of temptation for Astrophil, for “those lips so sweetly swelling / Do invite a stealing kiss.” Astrophil makes Stella, still and defenseless, an active part of the stolen kiss, as he claims that her beauty invites him to take it. As she wakes and literally becomes active, he flees, chastising himself: “Fool, more fool, for no more taking.” Although Astrophil’s desire has built up considerably, it is quickly spent with this last line. Sonnet 73, the proceeding piece, adds to the anger he fears Stella would have once she found out about the stolen kiss, but his desire once again climaxes at the end, where her anger makes him feel the need to kiss her once again. Desire becomes entwined with both the kiss and sex, where “The imagerial usefulness of the kiss has to do largely with its ambiguous position in relation to the act of sex: euphemistic or innuendoish in the tropical realm, preludial or substitutionary in the actual.” Although the implication of sexual assault appears in the Second Song, and in the necessity to stay away from the description of “obscene,” Sidney uses the kiss, in conjunction with the iconography of mythic Love (Eros or Cupid), to mark Astrophil’s consummatory desire. The erotic tradition, continued by Sidney, brings together the common kiss and sexual desire, but mingles in the idea of “pure” or romantic love that was not part of the Roman concept of love, making Astrophil’s stolen kiss tailored to Sidney’s contemporary constrictions and views of the relationship between love and desire.
This, too, is not the first instance of a stolen kiss. There is one in Catullus’ corpus, but it does not involve a sleeping Lesbia—or a girl at all. Poem 99 is a worthwhile comparison , since it deals with the attitudes of Catullus and Juventius, the kissed lover. Juventius acts disgusted with the act, and rather than getting enraged, Catullus becomes despondent. The poem starts with “I stole (surripui) from you / a sweeter kiss than sweet ambrosia,” ending with the same verb with a different tense, in “I will never steal (surripiam) a kiss again.” The poem forms a ring composition around the act of stealing a kiss, ending with him vowing to never steal another one. With similar form, both Sidney’s Second Song and Catullus’ Poem 99 end “with cowardly flight and self-reproach,” which “is typical of the ironization of masculine posturing.” It is not an exact copy of Catullus, but the actions are alike in different situations by the controlling subjects of the poems. Sidney plays with the attitudes and formulae set up by Catullus and later erotic poets, even expanding the image with a sleeping lover. But even that exists in the erotic tradition earlier than Sidney.
As for an explicit account of a kiss stolen while sleeping, there is one that exists in erotic Latin poetry. Though it is not directly traced to Catullus, Wong cites the Latin poetry of Nicolas Bourbon as predecessor for Sidney’s Astrophil. Bourbon mentions a kiss stolen while his loved Rubella was sleeping (dum dormis). Bourbon’s poem, like Sidney’s, includes the connection between the kiss and the speaker’s state of mind:
O male me sanum qui, quod me torquet et urit,
Id dicam dulci nectare dulce magis.
O how crazed am I, who say that what tortures
and burns me, is sweeter than sweet nectar (trans. Wong).
Urit, from urere, which Wong translates as “burns,” implies the same relationship between a kiss and erotic desire as Sidney’s. It is also the same verb used by Catullus in poem 83 mentioned before. He is male sanum, crazed, and considers the kiss—the very object that burns him—to be dulcis, sweet. The sweetness is intensified by the repetition of dulcis in two different cases and within a comparative construction. The intensity of sweetness only heightens the flames of desire within the speaker. What makes this compelling to the overarching argument for the transference of knowledge from antiquity to Sidney’s works is the precedent of the erotic tradition not inherently influencing Sidney, but having the additional link of Nicolas Bourbon’s Latin poetry between the two authors. Rather than Sidney wholly imitating Catullus, Bourbon is evidence for there being other writers with the same subject origin or genre. Much like the translatio studii et imperii where multiple people or nations fight for the title of descendant, here multiple threads extend from Catullus and other Classical Latin poets in ways that are already showing evolution from the primary sources. Bourbon’s addition of a sleeping stolen kiss, for Sidney to imitate in Astrophil and Stella, is much like a crown being passed down from one person to the next.
By now, the influence of classical literature in Astrophil and Stella should be clear. The sixteenth-century and the fluid title of “Renaissance” are known for the revitalization of classicism, and by no means does Sidney hold back from joining this tradition. If the Renaissance is the origin of basia poetry found in English writers of the sixteenth-century, surely the classical world is the tree from which the acorn fell. Sidney, even Bourbon, is doing something different with the erotic tradition of antiquity that produces a new relationship between love and desire tailored to their time period’s conceptions. For Catullus, the erotica of his poetry was appreciated for its erotica, but for Philip Sidney, the erotica in Astrophil and Stella was appreciated for everything but erotica—which is the one motivating factor behind the plot and his manifested desires. The discussion of Sidney is nothing like the discussion of Catullus, Propertius, Ovid, and other classical authors, but there is much room and much need for this exploration. Tracing the lineage of erotic kiss poetry is not the conclusion to the study of classical influences on Sir Philip Sidney, but a contribution to a topic still waiting to be explored.
Bibliography
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Hull, Elizabeth M. “All My Deed but Copying Is: The Erotics of Identity in Astrophil and Stella.” Texas Studies in Literature and Language 38, no. 2 (1996): 175–90. www.jstor.org/stable/40755096.
Maurette, Pablo. “Shakespeare's Venus and Adonis and Sixteenth-Century Kiss Poetry.” English Literary Renaissance 47, no. 3 (2017): 355–79. https://www-journals-uchicago-edu.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/doi/10.1086/694647.
Sidney, Philip. “Astrophil and Stella.” In Sir Philip Sidney: The Major Works, edited by Katherine Duncan-Jones. Oxford UP, 2002.
Wong, A.T. “Sir Philip Sidney and the Humanist Poetry of Kissing.” Sidney Journal 31, no. 2 (2013): 1–30. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A360994692/LitRC?u=wisc_madison&sid=LitRC&xid=c946babe.
Wong, A.T. The Poetry of Kissing in Early Modern Europe: From the Catullan Revival to Secundus, Shakespeare, and the English Cavaliers. Vol. 34. Studies in Renaissance Literature. Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 2017.