Crying Child (symbol)
The child in the poem is a symbol of many overarching concerns: as the speaker makes clear, the image of a child symbolizes the experience of erotic love and the time and attention it demands. However, the child also symbolizes Wroth's own intervention in the Petrarchan "love poetry" of the English Renaissance, as the speaker characterizes him both in terms of classical mythology (like many other, mostly male, Petrarchists) and according to the dynamic between mother and son. Thus, the figure of the child represents a nod to the Petrarchan tradition in which Wroth is working (and which was prevalent in the late sixteenth century), while simultaneously allowing her to carve out a uniquely feminine space in that tradition.
Flattery (motif)
The speaker frequently warns her reader of love's ability to flatter and deceive, and as such uses flattery as a means of connecting the mischievous child to the process of erotic or romantic courtship. People in the early modern period were inundated with warnings about flattery, both in terms of Christianity (Satan's flattery of Eve) and in terms of politics: a monarch's counselors were not to be trusted if they spoke flatteringly as opposed to honestly. As such, flattery in this poem represents a number of intersecting discourses, from classical and conventional to romantic and political.
Wailing (motif)
When the speaker asserts that "He will triumph in your wailing" (13), the term comes to signify more than just a generic expression of sadness. Rather, "wailing" is both deeply entrenched in the Petrarchan tradition and rather novel for the genre: Petrarchan poets of the late sixteenth century made frequent reference to "sighs and tears" that would plague them as they attempted to court an unwilling Beloved, and Wroth is drawing on that tradition by mentioning a similar expression of sadness. Yet, the choice of the word "wailing" also departs from the masculine Petrarchan tradition by attaching itself to the distinctly feminine sphere of public mourning: since antiquity, women have frequently been described as "wailing" for the loss of a loved one, putting on performances of grief in one of the only public forums where women were able to express themselves. Thus, the use of the term "wailing" once again allows Wroth to acknowledge her debt to the Petrarchan tradition while innovating its conventions from within.
Feather and Wolves (symbols)
Feathers and wolves symbolize the dual nature of erotic love as something that is both ethereal and predatory. Comparing love to a feather suggests that it lacks stability and is often overcome by the slightest gust of wind. Ironically, the comparison of love to wolves suggests nearly the opposite, portraying love as that which stalks, preys, and conquers its victim. These two seemingly disparate symbols work together to suggest the paradoxical experience of love as that which pleases and pains, a concept that also belongs to the Petrarchan tradition but was typically expressed through oxymorons like "freezing heat."
Political Ambition (allegory)
While this is not the primary reading that most attach to Wroth's poetry, it is worth noting that the metaphor of love as a crying child can also be read as an allegory for political ambition. Love, critics have pointed out, was frequently used as a stand-in for poets looking to become more politically involved, as most Petrarchan poets of the late sixteenth century were part of prominent political families. Wroth is no different, having come from the same family as Sir Philip Sidney, one of Queen Elizabeth's favorite courtiers and soldiers during her lifetime. While Wroth writes during the reign of King James, the metaphor of love as a crying child maintains this tradition and paints political involvement as notably precarious: the king may be affectionate one minute and scornful the next, a predicament that led many to criticize the absolutism of King James's regime and eventually influenced the eruption of the English Civil War during the reign of his son, King Charles I.
