Summary of the essay ‘Of Friendship’.

According to Aristotle, the great Greek philosopher truth and untruth can be discussed in few words. To him, a man who finds delight in solitude, who prefers to live a lonely life outside the society is either a beast or a god. It is true that the hatred and aversion of a man towards society has somewhat of the savage beast. If one finds himself out truly in love and enjoyment everything would be heavenly to him. Epimenides, Numa, Empedocles are some those characters who find the true nature of self-realization. But very few people can actually come to know the nature of solitude. A crowd is not a company, the pictures of some people can take a place in the out gallery but it would be wrong to say that we love them. Magna is one of the biggest to cities of Greece, but there is no friendship here. Friends live here in a scattering manner and, therefore, friendship never grows warm. Loneliness engulfs there, where there is the lack of friendship, love and humanity. It is also a fact that without a true friend the world appears as a land of wilderness.

One can open his heart to a true friend. We can feel ease if we lay down our mental suffocation to a friend. An inflicted mind finds relief expressing to a friend. Various treatments are there for the physical or bodily problems. Artificial or natural medicine can cure our body but not the mind. We only can open the door of our heart to a friend with whom we can frankly share our grief, joys, fears, hopes, suspicions and almost everything. In a word true friend is like a confession box.

The great kings make friendship between them in spite of the hazards of their own safety and greatness. It bears golden fruit for them. It is seen that the princes if break the distance between them and their servants or subject they can easily be benefited by it. As a result of it distance breaks and they come close to each other and the result of which is obviously enormous. In modern language this tie is named as favourites or ‘privadoes’ In the Roman name of this tie is ‘sharers of cares and anxieties’. Nothing can be more beautiful than this. It is also noticed that not only the princes but the wisest and the most serious persons make friendship with their servants or common persons.

Sylla raised Pompey to the great height and Pompey. (Therefore ventured himself for Sylla’s overmatch). But the friendship between them remained alive in spite of a short rift between them. Julius Caesar loved Brutus and it was Brutus who was one of the conspirators against him. Caesar was not ready to leave the senate because his wife dreamt a very serious dream that the statue of Caeser was bleeding. Caeser would not dismiss the senate until his wife dreamt a good dream. Brutus lifted him and he believed him more than anyone else thought after a short while he was assassinated. .Augustus loved Agrippa in spite of his mean birth. He even thought to arrange the marriage between him and his daughter Julia. Tiberious Caeser and Sejanus had achieved the symbol of true friendship and the senate decided to make an alter to Friendship. Septimius severs loved Plantianus so much that he forced his eldest son to marry Plantinus daughter. It is seen that the great men or wise men found enough comfort in friendship than in other relation of the world.

Commineus observed his first master, Duke Charles the Hardy that the never communicate his secrets, those gave him the most trouble to none. He therefore made the remark that ‘closeness did impair and a little perish of his understanding Pythagoras rightly put that if a man never opened his mind or formed a closeness he would be the eater of the heart. If one shares his joy with his friend the joy would be double and if he shares his sorrow, the sorrow would be reduced. It is seen that inspite of the contrary pulls we always find or get benefit from friendship as we bodily be fitted inspite of the chemicals, the  use of which often apparently causes contrary effects by the alchemists.

Friendship is healthful and it makes the understanding clear. It brings a fair day after the tempests and storms of affections. In the light of friendship darkness flies away. If one can not find what to do coming into a situation he can be easily guided by counseling with friend what one can not make out inspite of a whole day’s meditation can find the way of solution if consults with his friend. One will get clear light after arguing with his friend: You can lessen your suffering by conveying it near your friend.

A man receives more pure judgement and understanding by counseling. There lies the difference between the judgement that one take himself and that he knows from his friends. Man’s self is his highest flatter and only a true friend can check that flatter. There are two types of counseling — one relating to manners and other relating to business. In case of manner the best advice is come from a friend. We often can not understand our absurdities and errors which destroy our fame and fortune. In this case a friend can guide you to the right way. In case of business a good counsel often sets the business in the straight direction. It is dangerous to pick counsels piece by piece. If will surely bring two types of dangers. First of all he may not be faithfully counseled and  secondly the counsel may prove hurtful and unsafe for him. It may be like the case that for curing your disease you call a doctor who is unacquainted with your body; he may cure your body but sets another problems to your health. It will sound like – ‘cure the disease and kill the patient’. Therefore, never rest upon the scattered counsels; they will rather distract and mislead you.

The last fruit of friendship is like pomegranate, full of many kernels. There are many things in the world that one can not perform himself. It is said that ‘a friend is another himself’ but the fact is that a friend is far more himself. An unfinished can be finished if you go away by a friend. What one can not express through his own lips can be better pronounced by a friend. “A man can not speak to his son but as a father ‘to his wife but as a husband; to his enemy but upon terms : whereas a friend may speak as the case requires, and not as it sorteth with the person.”

1. Examine ‘I Find No Peace’ as a conventional Elizabethan sonnet. OR 2. ‘I Find No Peace’ is a typical Petrarchan sonnet with some variations – Discuss. OR 3. Wyatt as a sonneteer with reference to ‘I Find No Peace’ – Discuss. OR 4. Attempt an estimate of ‘I Find No Peace’ mentioning its characteristic as a sonnet. OR 5. Attempt a critical analysis of the theme of Wyatt’s sonnet ‘I Find No Peace’.

                Under the heavy impact of the Renaissance the English poetical literature came with the contact of the sonnet form which became an extremely popular in the poets of the Elizabethan period. It was Sir Thomas Wyatt who inaugurated the sonnet in English literature following the great sonnet master Petrarch. Wyatt tried his best to make the Petrarchan sonnet to be implanted with its theme as well as technique into English literature.

        The Petrarchan sonnet provides the English poet not only with a form but also with the sentiments. The whole nature of the relation between the poet and his beloved had become conventionalised in terms of an idealized courtly love attitude, which Petrarch had manifested toward Laura in his love sonnets. The notion of the lover as the humble servant of the fair lady, injured by her glance, tempest-tossed in seas of despair in rejection, changing in mood according to the presence or absence of his beloved—was derived from the medieval view of courtly love, a concept of love which arose out of the changing attitude towards women centring round Virgin Mary as an ideal example. At this point it must be pointed out that the imported poetic theme had also become essential for satisfying the mental needs and cultural tastes of the English gentlemen created by the Renaissance. That is why we find the historical existence of the English counterparts of Laura almost for all the 16^th century sonneteers.

         Like a conventional Petrarchan sonnet Wyatt’s ‘I Find No Peace’ treats the old theme of love as well as the pangs and stress of love. The lover in the poem is in the conflicting state of mind. He finds no peace in mind and heart. Though he is quiet sure about the success of his love, yet he has no escape from the acute torment and pressure created by the agitated state of his mind. He possesses fear as well as hope. He suffers from despondency, yet bears optimism. The fire of love is in him but he breezes like ice. He finds himself empty yet he holds the possession of the whole world. He feels himself loose yet locked.

          “That looseth nor locket holdeth me in Prison,

           And holdeth me not,”

      The intensity of love makes him vexing and tossing. To him life seems painful and anguishing and in such a context death might have been a comfort but he sees no ground for death as he is in love. He really does not know what to seek or shun. He desires to perish yet asks for health. He loves another only to hate himself. He feeds himself in sorrow and yet laughs at all his pain. Indeed, the passion of love holds him so strongly and paralyzes his beings that he seems to loose his power of Judgment.

          Like a typical Petrarchan love poem ‘I Find No Peace’ bears the singleness in its theme, mood and imagery, the theme may be either the fulfillment or the frustration of love and the poet’s mood and imagery may be varied but the total impression will be unified one. In ‘I Find No Peace’ the restlessness of the lover is expressed through different antithetical elements. Different images and changing moods are there to emphasize the forceful and inexplicable spell of love. The ecstasy of love is the cause of the lover’s rocking agitation.

‘And my delight is causer of this strife’

 So his admissions obviously categorical - ‘I Find No Peace’. Infact love rules and rolls on him and makes  him restless.

      Conventional Petrarchan sonnet bears a specific technique. Its fourteen lines are divided into two unequal parts of eight and six lines respectively.  Usually there are altogether five rhymes – a, b, c, d, e. Wyatt, as he was the follower of Petrarch framed his sonnet in the conventional form. He may likewise divide his sonnet into octave containing first eight lines and sestet with last six lines and the sonnet have the conventional rhymes.

    But it is to be noted that Wyatt’s sonnet is markedly different from the conventional sonnet in some cases. First in a conventional sonnet the theme is generally stated in octave and developed in sestet. But no such categorical division noted in Wyatt’s sonnet. The conflicting state of the lover’s mind is expressed throughout the sonnet. The lines are not written in strict iambic pentameters (that is, ten syllables per line with a pattern of stress) and the rhyme scheme, although it conforms to a Petrarchan sonnet in the octave with its rhyme scheme of abbaabba, varies in the sestet becoming cddcdd as opposed to ccdeed. The rhymes, particularly in the sestet, can be described as half rhymes, with "death" being made to rhyme with "strife" in the last two lines, perhaps indicating the disparity the speaker of the poem finds within himself in his divided state, as explored through the poem. Secondly like the Shakespearean sonnet the sonnet has a concluding couplet which is novel;

“Likewise displeaseth me both death and life,

                              And my delight is causer of this strife”

     Thus the sonnet inspite of some deviation is a typical Elizabethan sonnet which expresses the effect of love on one who is terribly loosed by an inexplicable ecstasy. It well brings but the psychology of bewilderment of such a lover who is yet to be satisfied with his love of which he is, however, certain.