Sir Philip Sidney's “Sonnet 31” paints a portrait of a scorned lover. Sidney examines the theme of unrequited love through the sonnet's male character, Astrophel. Rather than using a precise enumeration of the sequence of events that led to Astrophel's painful rejection, Sidney instead leaves it up to the reader to infer the speaker's condition based on a scene in which Astrophel projects his sorrows onto the moon. Unable to accept the cruelties that the "beauties" of his world perpetrate against those who love them and furthermore unable to make his particular "beauty" reciprocate his feelings, Astrophel tries to outline his understanding of the injustices of love not paid to an audience lacking the capacity to disagree with his assessment or further wound his already wounded pride. The sonnet begins with Astrofel seeing the moon rise "with sad footsteps". Astrofel's rejection has altered his perception of the moon, leaving him to ponder whether perhaps the moon's "pale" appearance can be attributed to his own misfortunes in love, misfortunes caused by a "busy archer." If Astrofel's love were unrequited, he might describe the moon as a shining white sphere that lends itself to the joy of a midnight stroll; given that his love is unrequited, however, the moon's face appears not beautiful and radiant but pale, suggesting that its pale color owes its explanation to illness and desperation. Astrofel's reference to the "busy archer" whom he holds responsible for arbitrarily influencing man's emotions is undoubtedly a reference to Cupid, the god of love who, with his arrows, can inspire such intense feelings of love and admiration so that the affected person finds himself unable to act. in his best interest, regarding... the center of the card... literally, to be defined as a virtue in that he possesses the ability to achieve the desired result. Sir Philip Sidney's "Sonnet 31" might, at first glance, appear to be a man asking a series of questions with no real end. Closer examination, however, reveals that this is a work that delves deeply into the speaker's - and perhaps even the author's - psyche, offering its readers as much insight into human nature today as it did when it was written. in 1582. by communicating or winning the affection of the desired person, he seeks to better understand the circumstances of his existence. Perhaps too afraid to look into his own reflection and seek those answers for himself, Astrophel instead consults the moon, which promptly comes to embody the plight of the speaker and perhaps anyone who has looked at the moon longingly seeking answers but finding none..