‘ W H O S O   L I S T   T O   H U N T ’¹

Whosoº listº to hunt, I know where is an hind,ºWhosoeverwishesdoe
But as for me, hélas,º I may no more.alas
The vain travail hath wearied me so sore,
I am of them that farthest cometh behind.
Yet may I by no means my wearied mind
Draw from the deer, but as she fleeth aforeº before
Fainting I follow. I leave off therefore,
Sithensº in a net I seek to hold the wind. since
Who list her hunt, I put him out of doubt,
As well as I may spend his time in vain.
And graven with diamonds in letters plain
There is written her fair neck round about:
“Noli me tangere,² for Caesar’s I am,
And wild for to hold, though I seem tame.”

1. This sonnet is based loosely on Francesco Petrarch (1304–1374)'s sonnet 190, "Una candida cerva sopra l'erba" ("A guileless doe upon the grass"). It is important to understand that Wyatt was very likely devoted to Anne Boleyn, who was to become queen to Henry VIII.
2. Noli me tangere: "Touch me not." Christ is supposed to have spoken these words to Mary Magdalene after his resurrection.