Sonnet 1 from Astrophil and Stella is the introductory work in the collection by Phillip Sydney about loving the muse or the “star.” Being the sonnet form there are a lot of formulaic expectations that are set up by the meter, however I think this poem was interesting for the narrative elements that broke my expectations of what a sonnet should be. What I enjoyed and found funny was how meta the poem is, talking about the difficulties of finding elegant enough words to win over a love interest while writing to a love interest. It follows the narrative of this character’s doubt in their own poetic abilities inside of a poem. The concluding couplet of this sonnet does what a good conclusion should, which is to sum up the poem and make the meaning visible. At the end of Astrophil and Stella sonnet 1 we are shown how the poem is a self referencing introduction to the whole collection. The muse whose role is to provide inspiration for the artist says “fool… look in thy heart and write.” Which seems like a very direct and literal way of trying to inspire the artist, so there is clever humor being used in this sonnet. Lines 2-4, reflect the idea of being a star-crossed admirer and getting easily carried away, as they are one long sentence about the sequence to grace that stems from her taking pleasure in his pain.