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> Philip Sidney’s alter egos Astrophel (“lover of a star”) and Philisides (whose name is a mash-up of Philip and Sidney) Er, and which also means "lover of a s
by twic 6y ago
> Philip Sidney’s alter egos Astrophel (“lover of a star”) and Philisides (whose name is a mash-up of Philip and Sidney)
Er, and which also means "lover of a star" - Greek "philos", Latin "sidus". Did the author miss that, or are we supposed to get the wink?
Reminds me that Philip Dick's self-insert character in Valis is called Horselover Fat.
- jfengel 6y agoThe author probably missed it, though I'm sure Sidney himself didn't. I wonder, in fact, if that's how it came to be: that Sidney coined "Philisides" as a pun, then derived "Astrophel" from that. The poem Astrophel and Stella predates the first known use of Philisides, but it may have been in his head already. If not, it's a heck of an amusing coincidence.