Who is sylvia

Your IP address will be recorded. Log in No account? Create an account. Remember me. Previous Share Flag Next. I confess to not having read this particular play yet, although I hope to remedy that situation this year, particularly since the synopsis I read tells me that it includes a woman in drag as a man, which is one of my all-time favorite literary tropes. But I digress.

In the text below, I've retained the spelling as "Silvia", although it is sometimes recast as "Sylvia".

Silvia is a pretty young lady who is sought after by quite a lot of young swains, including the pair of friends at the start of the book, Valentine and Proteus who has already exchanged rings and vows with the fair Julia, who turns up in drag as Sebastian.

This song is performed outside her tower window by musicians, hired by yet another guy Thurio, Silvia's father's choice of suitor in order to woo her.

Who is Silvia? Is she kind as she is fair? For beauty lives with kindness. Love doth to her eyes repair, To help him of his blindness, And, being helped, inhabits there. Then to Silvia let us sing, That Silvia is excelling; She excels each mortal thing Upon the dull earth dwelling: To her let us garlands bring. Analysis of form: The song is organized into three five-line stanzas.

While you might, at a glance, note the "-ings" in all five lines the A lines are a simple "-ing", while the B lines are "-elling" endings. The A lines are all written in trochaic meter with a truncated or masculine ending or, if you prefer, consist of two trochees DUM-ta followed by an amphimacer or cretic foot DUM-ta-DUM.

Modern Text. HOST Now, my young guest, it seems to me you feel melancholy. HOST Ay, that you shall. HOST Yes, you will. Music plays. HOST Hark! HOST Listen! HOST 35 Ay, but peace! HOST Yes, but be quiet! What is she, That all our swains commend her? Is she kind as she is fair? For beauty lives with kindness. Love doth to her eyes repair To help him of his blindness, 45 And, being helped, inhabits there.

Then to Sylvia let us sing, That Sylvia is excelling. She excels each mortal thing Upon the dull earth dwelling. What is she like, That all our young men praise her? She is holy and fair and wise; And Heaven has lent her such grace So that she may be admired.