PHILIP SIDNEY AS A HUMANIST

The Middle Age was a time when dark and unpleasant events pervaded England. Amongst
these events include the Great Famine, The Hundred Years’ War and The Black Death. The
people during this period considered their life as something of a test. They were more
concerned with the next life or the afterlife. But with these incidents that happened during the
Middle Ages, death became a central part of everyday life and the disturbing nature of the
death disturbed the minds of the people. So they decided to adopt a new perspective on life.
In accordance with that thinking, they began to consider the human being as more than just a
body as the vehicle for the soul.

The emergence of the individual and the idea of human dignity became evident during this
period. Humanism believed that goal of learning must be rooted in virtuous action. The
change in focus from faith and afterlife to the present life led to the coming up of a secular
view amongst people. Humanists encouraged the acquisition of knowledge through the senses
(seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, and smelling). In other words, they paid attention to the
details of this world. They sought to learn how things actually are in this world. Humanists
also believed that they could improve society with improvements in education. The ruling
elites should be well educated, for with education comes wisdom, virtue, and morality.

People began to show interest in classical education especially Latin, French and Italian. The
Classical study also meant a renewed interest in grammar, rhetoric, poetry, history and moral
philosophy. The Classical literature was welcomed warmly by the people who were tired of
Medieval Christian and Pagan works.

Realism became an important part of humanists. They always sought to look at human
experiences through an objective lens and rejected the traditional method of assumption. This
change in perspective also led to the rise of modern Social Science. Self-inquiry became a
huge part of a humanist lifestyle and they began to treat people for what they are instead of
what they ought to be. Humanists began to teach and write history with a new found vigour.

Philip Sidney was born on November 30, 1554, to an aristocratic family. His father Sir Henry
Sidney had become lord president of Wales and also lord deputy of Ireland, while his uncle,
Robert Dudley, was the earl of Leicester and became the queen's most trusted adviser. His
family background had left high hopes for their eldest son, Philip Sidney and he was destined
for a career as a statesman and soldier. Sir Philip Sidney is often considered as an archetype
of the “Renaissance man” who is skilled in almost all face of life. He not only had a
cultivated learning but also possessed the virtues of statesmanship and military service.

Sidney’s Defense of Poesy displays his humanistic education and the humanistic influences in
his life. Throughout the essay, he voices the opinions and ideas of Greeks and Romans. The
Roman term for the poet was “vates”, meaning “diviner, foreseer, or prophet, so heavenly a
title did that excellent people bestow upon this heart-ravishing knowledge”. Referring to the
Greeks he says that the Greek origin of the English word “poet” was the word “poiein”,
meaning “to make” (46-47). These references in the essay are put forward mainly to cater to

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the Renaissance audience. Sidney also states that poets are independent thinkers with their
own inventions and that they could provide better creations than what nature brings forth.

". . . Only the poet, disdaining to be tied to any such subjection, lifted up with the
vigor of his own invention, doth grow in effect another nature, in making things either
better than nature bringeth forth, or, quite anew, forms such as never were in nature,
as the Heroes, Demigods, Cyclops, Chimeras, Furies, and such like: so as he goeth
hand in hand with nature, not enclosed within the narrow warrant of her gifts, but
freely ranging only within the zodiac of his own wit "(48).

These lines from Sidney’s essay shows humanistic outlook of human centred life that is
separate from nature itself. Before humanism, people strongly believed that God controlled
every aspect of their life and their fate but with Humanism there happened a drastic change.
Individualism was one of the main traits of Renaissance Humanism and this was perfectly
represented by Sidney in his essay. Sidney believes that poets are in control of themselves
and that they are not restricted by any kind of external ideas.

Throughout the essay, we find Sidney's tone rather victorious in every instance he tries to
challenge the conventional hierarchy of knowledge. In the essay, we find lines like, "the
laurel crown upon the poet as victorious, not only of the historian but over the philosopher"
(59) and “of all sciences . . . is our poet the monarch” (60). Rafey Habib, in his work A
History of Literary Criticism and Theory, says that “the irony here is that Sidney uses a
theological justification for poetry to dethrone theology and philosophy from their
preeminent status”. He also says that when poetry assumes the status of “monarchy”, it
actually shakes the very theological framework to which it refers and thus it emphasises
secular humanism.

Through the essay, he also emphasises Renaissance Humanism’s interest in knowledge and
learning. He says that poetry is the only form that can make other kinds of knowledge
(scientific, moral, philosophical, and political) accessible in a pleasurable manner. Another
thing that we must notice about Sidney’s essay is that according to him the aim of poetry is
both to delight and to teach. Since it also aims at moral upliftment with the objective of
teaching, Sidney gives us yet another humanist approach.

Throughout the essay, we find instances where Sidney keeps on emphasising the point that
the ability of poetry or man’s action can move him to virtuous action and thus this idea places
him amongst humanist realm. Sidney‘s dichotomy is also revealed in this essay where he
confronts his differences regarding Humanist beliefs and Protestantism. Sidney was a staunch
Protestant but he was also influenced by Humanist beliefs. In the essay, he affirms that, “no
learning is so good as that which teacheth and moveth to virtue, and that none can both teach
and move thereto so much as poetry” (70). But he also reveals that man was given this ability
by the “heavenly Maker” (49). This goes on to show that he was never ready to compromise
humanist beliefs and praise the supremacy of scriptures. Philip Sidney, in fact, follows a
complementary position from wherein he could do justice to both his Humanist thoughts and
Protestant beliefs.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books

Habib, Rafey. A History of Literary Criticism and Theory. Wiley-Blackwell, 2007.

Sidney, Philip. “An Apology for Poetry.” Enright, D. J, and Ernst De Chickera. English
Critical Texts 16th Century to 20th Century. Oxford University Press, 1963.

Web Pages

“Humanism.” Encyclopædia Britannica. 22 November, 2017. 27 December 2017.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/humanism

“Sidney's Defense of Poesy.” BritLit Wiki. 27 December 2017.

https://britlitwiki.wikispaces.com/Sidney%27s+Defense+of+Poesy

“Sir Philip Sidney: English author and statesman.” Encyclopædia Britannica. 22 November,
2017. 27 December 2017. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Philip-Sidney