Mary Wroth: A Revolutionary Poet

Lady Mary Wroth is best known today as the first English woman writer to have published an original work of prose fiction. For her contemporaries, however, her primary identity was as a member of the illustrious Sidney family. Lady Mary Wroth was the first Englishwoman to write a complete sonnet sequence as well as an original work of prose fiction. One of the most powerful forces in shaping Wroth's literary career was her aunt and godmother, Mary Sidney, who was married to Henry Herbert, second Earl of Pembroke. Her country estate at Wilton served as a gathering place for a diverse number of poets, theologians, and scientists. The countess of Pembroke wrote poetry and translations from French and Italian, but even more important, she boldly published her works at a time when few women dared.

Pamphilia to Amphilanthus is a sonnet sequence by Lady Mary Wroth. It is the second known sonnet sequence by a woman writer in England. Mary Wroth wrote this poem as she was looking for love. She wants to find love and the right man who will fufill her personal desires. She wants it to be true love and her ideal man. She wants someone that will be a good father for her children when she has children, and she wants someone that will go out and do work, but still come back to her, treating her like loyalty, loving her and caring for her. She wants a man who goes out and works durign the day and then comes home to her at the end of the night. It the poem you see her questioning whether this kind of man is real and attainable. We wonder if the right and perfect man is out there.